Take 'Em To Court (Part I)

"You're kidding me!" Erin heaved over the phone. "Literal flan?! Like, a walking tower of Jell-O?"

"Ja..."

"I can't believe that!"

"It's not his fault. You should've seen the way his father showed up to the academy and just grabbed at him so forcefully. Without shame, just dragged him in front of everyone. The entire school board."

"My goodness, that's absolutely terrible! This whole situation seems really unfair to me. Between his parents at home and the professor at school, Kyle sounds like he was getting bullied left and right."

"Hm.."

"No, seriously Sigmund! He was clearly keeping a lot to himself for a long time. There's gotta be something we can do to help him."

"Something we can do?!" Sigmund questioned. "Erin, I already told you, the board voted and the vote was against me. I tried already."

"You didn't try hard enough! I would've fought back and made noise about it! I would've stood outside and protested!"

"Ah..." Sigmund sighed out in stress, rubbing at his temple with his free hand. "Please, it's our first week back. It's too soon to be making trouble."

"It's not trouble, it's justice! And I don't agree with you, but fine."

"Erin—"

"I just don't agree! You're a member of the board, aren't you?! There's gotta be a loophole somewhere that says a student in strife should be assisted, not punished!"

"I don't know about loopholes. I don't know about anything! Listen, don't get yourself worked up about this, my darling. I'm begging you."

"Don't my darling me right now, okay? I'm really peeved hearing about this."

In his new, single room, Sigmund laid back in bed and stared up at the ceiling, holding his smartphone to his ear. This room felt empty in comparison to his old, shared room. It just wasn't the same anymore. The whole atmosphere of schooling at Milkweed felt worn and strained. The first day back had already been eventful enough to fill the gap of the entire term. Erin was headstrong and Sigmund knew she wasn't going to take what had happened in the morning without a fight. He wasn't sure he had it in him to fight with anyone anymore.

"I understand, okay?" Sigmund groaned. "I do. Don't you think I'm upset about this too? I completely agree with you, I-I'm peeved!"

"Hehehe..."

"What's funny?!"

"You saying peeved...I just pfff—sorry, ignore me!"

Sigmund bit down on his bottom lip, but ended up laughing with her anyways. He was glad to laugh in such a stressful moment, but realizing he was alone in his room again bought him back to the situation fairly quickly.

"Look Erin, if you find some way to turn this around, I'll be behind you on it."

"You swear?"

"Ja! One hundred percent! I'll be right by your side. I'll shout and wave signs and whatever else you do in a protest." He smiled softly as Erin laughed over the phone. "Just promise me you won't keep yourself awake looking into this."

"..."

"Erin! Jetzt! "

"Okay, okay! I promise, no need to shout!" The witch giggled.

With a loving sigh, Sigmund finished off his call with Erin and set his phone down beside him in bed. The gentle smile on his face slowly vanished as he took a look around the room again.

Everything just felt foreign. He'd thought about calling Kyle again, to see if everything was alright, but he figured that probably wasn't the best idea right now. Everything was still too fresh and he doubted the wizard would've wanted to speak to him. Ivan and Nicolai had come around after classes to help him move into his new room, but he didn't want anything to do with either of them anymore.

They'd been so petty about the entire situation and so eager to throw Kyle under the bus. It made him upset how they had tried to speak on his behalf about not wanting to be around Kyle while he'd clearly been at a low point. He wasn't okay with that at all and had decided to call off their "friendship" altogether.

Sitting up from his bed, Sigmund settled at his desk to start homework. Once the stress of homework was out of the way, the sorcerer got washed up for bed and finally settled in when he'd finished his skincare. It was essential, even if he didn't feel like doing it!

A couple hours had passed into his sleep when his phone had suddenly gone off beside him. When it rang, he quickly rejected the call without looking and turned over in annoyance, slowly falling back asleep. That's when it rang for a second time.

"Who?!" The sorcerer groaned, taking the phone onto his hand quickly with magic. The light of the phone burned his eyes, but it looked to be Erin. It was already after the midnight hour and he was concerned about her calling so late. Was something wrong?

"Erin?" Sigmund croaked sleepily into the phone. "Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I'm sorry...I wasn't gonna call but I couldn't wait till the morning."

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, I was just reading through the Milkweed Academy official handbook of conduct and—."

"At midnight?!" Sigmund gasped. Erin paused for a moment before responding.

"It's the witching hour...heh..."

"No. You promised me you weren't going to stay up doing this."

"I couldn't sleep." Erin whined. "And I just happened to come across the book of conduct, so~..."

"Fine, what did it say?"

"Okay, so the handbook actually has a whole list of circumstances that are eligible for appealing a discipline—."

"English please!" Sigmund complained. "I can't process all of this right now. I just woke up!"

"...you grouchy old man." Erin scoffed. "Just listen! Kyle, or a board member, can place an appeal form in the school board and fight back on the grounds of self defense! He was a victim of bullying, and that's one of the circumstances listed in the handbook. Get it now?"

"So it's a loophole to the rule?"

"Ja, Nightbreed. A loophole."

Sigmund finally sat up and laughed towards Erin's tone, turning on the light at his nightstand. Taking in the information, the sorcerer sighed.

"So since he's not around to put in the form, you said a board member can do it on his behalf. Right?"

"Right! Anyone who voted against him being expelled can complete the form for the appeal."

"I'm the only one who voted against it..."

"So, you know what we have to do...right?"

After devising a plan with Erin, Sigmund woke up early the following morning and headed straight to the headmaster's office. Headmaster Merlin was surprised to see the sorcerer stroll in.

"Good morning, Headmaster." Sigmund spoke, rather sternly.

"Good morning, Mr. Nightbreed." Merlin responded. "How can I assist you this morning?"

"I need a discipline appeal form. I'm filing for a review on Kyle's removal from Milkweed Academy."

"An appeal form?" Merlin seemed to gasp. He was shocked to hear that Sigmund seemed rather serious with his request. He'd been unaware of the teen's knowledge on legal issues. "What grounds will you be filing on?"

"Self defense." Sigmund answered. "I'm holding Professor Flan responsible and I'd like to have a hearing as soon as possible with him in attendance."

"Oh my..." The headmaster muttered. Standing from his desk, the ancient magician walked over to a filing cabinet, opened it and pulled two pieces of paper before closing it again. Turning to the sorcerer, he handed over both forms. "Seeing as you seem to know the rules, fill this out and return it to me at the end of the day. I'll have to contact the rest of the board and the Professor to make them aware and we'll organize a hearing afterwards."

"Thank you. I appreciate it." Sigmund nodded, making his way to the door. Headmaster Merlin raised his hand, pausing Sigmund as he turned the handle of the door.

"One more thing, Mr. Nightbreed!" Merlin called. "It's wonderful what you're doing for your friend and it's marvelous to see young people taking the initiative and challenging the system. I'm looking forward to your argument in the hearing!"

"Ah! Thank you!" Sigmund blushed, bowing out of the office afterwards. Merlin always found a way to encourage students and Sigmund definitely felt more comfortable after hearing those words. He'd been anxious to ask for the forms, even though Erin had assured him he was in the right to request them. It was scary to challenge an ancient system, especially as a teenager.

Walking out of the office, Sigmund turned away from the door and jumped when his eyes fell on the jiggling Professor Flan. Quickly, Sigmund pressed the forms to his chest. The Professor didn't look very happy at all, which made his appearance more disturbing than it already was. It seemed as though he'd overheard the conversation just then.

"O-oh! Good morning, Professor." Sigmund smiled sheepishly. The Professor hadn't returned his greeting. Instead, he walked around the sorcerer and into the office. Sigmund rushed away, gripping his satchel and making his way over to his first class as the bell chimed.

Once he was in Professor Flan's classroom, he sat in his assigned seat and started on the appeal form as quickly as he could. Thankfully, he'd finished both forms off before students began walking into the room. Ivan and Nicolai entered the classroom as Sigmund set the forms into his satchel and set his desk. Erin had told Sigmund that he needed statements from both boys to prove their case.

"But I'm not friends with them anymore." Sigmund argued over the phone.

"What does it matter?" Erin scoffed. "They're in your class and witnessed Kyle being called names, so we need them to validate our case!"

The issue was the attitude both Ivan and Nicolai seemed to have towards Sigmund after their falling out. The sorcerer was sure that they wouldn't agree to speak out for Kyle, especially after they announced not wanting anything to do with the wizard any longer. Nicolai glanced over in Sigmund's direction, but ultimately turned away to take a seat at his desk. Ivan, on the other hand, hadn't looked in Sigmund's direction at all. It was an obvious cold shoulder tactic that only made the sorcerer feel more resentful towards them, but he knew he'd have to set aside his feelings for the sake of the case.

Before he could approach their desk, Professor Flan had entered the classroom and closed the door as students flooded in for the beginning of class. The teacher shot Sigmund a nasty look, but turned to the chalkboard to start a prompt for the lesson. The look alone confirmed he'd definitely heard the conversation between him and the headmaster earlier. The remainder of the class was ridden with cold glances and disrespectful jeers. Even some of his peers had noticed the professor strangely singling out the sorcerer. Sigmund was glad when the class had finally ended and quickly gathered his things to leave.

Once he was out into the hall, he waited by the door for Ivan and Nicolai. The pair walked out together and instantly scoffed when Sigmund approached them.

"What the heck do you want?" Ivan spat, looking the sorcerer up and down.

"Yeah, what do you want?" Nicolai repeated. Sigmund sighed.

"Look, I have to talk to you." He started. "It's really important. I need your assistance—."

"You're joking, right?" Ivan retorted, a sarcastic chuckle escaping him. "As if I'd help you with anything."

"Count me out!" Nicolai added, crossing his arms. "We're not friends anymore." As the boys started down the hall, Sigmund followed behind desperately.

"Oh, come on!" Sigmund breathed. "It's a serious matter! One that involves the school board. Kyle was falsely expelled and we have the rights to challenge the decision. It could be a major case!"

"You're asking me to help KYLE again?!" Ivan gasped, stopping to look back at the sorcerer again. "Absolutely not! In fact, HELL NO!"

"Ivan—!"

"I'm sick of you and that stupid wizard! You chose a troublemaker over us, so you deal with it!"

"I didn't choose anyone!"

"You totally did when you wouldn't report him to the headmaster."

"Ivan, there were no sides until you decided to make it that way! You decided to isolate him during a hard time, not me! I'm not a sheep that'll blindly follow you just because you tell me to, you have Nicolai for that!"

"Hey!" Nicolai gasped, puffing his cheeks out towards the insult. Sigmund adjusted the bag over his shoulder, pushed his hands into his trouser pockets and angrily walked passed them both.

"Forget I asked! You're both useless!"

Ivan and Nicolai stood beside each other in shock while other students in the hall whispered to one another after listening in on part of the argument. They'd never seen Sigmund shouting like that before and the pair looked pretty pathetic after the fact. Reaching his next class, honors elixir brewing, Sigmund sighed and set his desk up with fresh beakers. He had this class with Ivan, who he shared a desk with, and he was dreading having to sit beside him after their argument.

The warlock entered the classroom shortly after Sigmund had set his side of the desk up, and reluctantly took his spot beside him to do the same. There was an awkward air around them for sure and after some time, Ivan finally sighed.

"Look, I didn't mean to make you choose sides. Okay?" Ivan muttered, catching Sigmund's attention. Ivan's eyes stayed on the beakers he was setting up, but his expression was clearly regretful. "I was just annoyed when I saw what happened. That kid always acts first and thinks later. It's childish to me..."

"He's going through a lot." Sigmund explained. "Especially at home. I've met his parents before, they're pretty awful."

"I mean, I guess..."

"I wouldn't have asked you for help if I didn't need it. I really don't think what happened was fair. There was a lot just building up and it all blew over when it could've been avoided."

"So what are you planning to do to change it?" Ivan asked, finally turning his attention to Sigmund.

"I'm filing a case against Professor Flan."

"Wait, seriously? Like, a court case? Is that why he was looking at you like that today? Does he know?"

"Yes, to everything." Sigmund chuckled. "So to help with the case, I need witness statements that say the Professor was verbally abusive to Kyle. It's considered bullying and harassment in the Milkweed Academy official book of conduct."

"I always forget you're on the board of education." Ivan laughed with the sorcerer. "It's insane how you're able to remember all these random orders."

"Well actually...I don't know the handbook much at all." He admitted, a bashful grin spreading on his face. "Erin told me. She's helping me with this."

"Erin, huh? Okay, so you asking me for help is beginning to make more sense now knowing she's involved..."

"Don't get me wrong, I wanted to help either way. I just didn't know where to start or if we even had a valid case. Now that I know we do, I just need everything to come together before they call a date."

Ivan paused to think for a moment. As the teacher walked into the classroom and started her prompt, Ivan turned away to start his notes. Sigmund sighed and started his notes as well, taking that as a no.

"Okay, I'll help you." Ivan whispered suddenly. Sigmund jumped.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, I'll help. But this is the last thing I'm doing for that kid."

"Thank you!"

"Sure. I've always wanted Flan to get what's coming to him. Taking him to court is an offer I can't pass up."

It was great news knowing Ivan was willing to give a testimony. Knowing Nicolai, he'd follow through and also offer to help, which was confirmed after class when they met in the hall again. Predictable, really.

When classes were over for the day, Sigmund submitted his forms and called the boys into his new room to go over the plan with them. They were pretty excited about the whole idea of being in court, especially dealing with Professor Flan. He was mean and nasty and everyone wanted to have words with him outside of school. Having that chance for themselves and having it go totally unpunished was a dream come true. A call came to Sigmund's crystal ball as he was speaking to the boys and he paused to answer it at his desk.

"We're settling for Friday afternoon for the hearing. Is that alright with you?" Headmaster Merlin spoke over the crystal. Sigmund nodded while the boys behind him gave each other giddy smiles.

"That's fine by me."

"Wonderful! See you in the hearing room on Friday."

As the week went by, the boys worked on their arguments after class and settled on the way they'd present themselves. By the time Friday afternoon came around, Sigmund stood outside of the hearing room, a room just beside the Headmaster's office, and pulled his blazer away from his wrist to check his watch. Not his academy blazer, of course. He changed into his own suit and told his friends to do the same. He wouldn't be caught dead in his first court appearance wearing his school uniform, how unprofessional.

Ivan and Nicolai met him soon after he arrived and gave excited waves. In the opposite direction, Professor Flan approached with a scrivener elf beside him and entered the room, bypassing the boys with yet another nasty glare. Sigmund rolled his eyes and smiled instantly when they fell on the witch rushing down the hallway. Her heels clicked as she dashed over to meet everyone at the door. She wore a pant suit of her own and swung a briefcase.

"Ready everyone?" Erin called, finally standing beside the boys. In her hand other hand, the witch held a folder, filled with papers held together with claps and paperclips. She handed each boy a packet of their own, which they accepted and peered down to inspect. "That's a written statement on our plan of action. I drafted it last night. We can't lose!"

"This is incredible!" Ivan marveled, flipping through the pages of the statement. "You sure you don't wanna be a lawyer instead of a witch?"

"I can do both." Erin winked, catching Ivan off guard. The warlock blushed, quickly returning his attention to the packet of papers. Turning to the door, Erin giggled to herself and reached for it, but Sigmund opened it for her first. Giving a warm smile, the witch walked into the hearing room and adjusted her wide brimmed hat as the boys trailed in behind her.

Sitting at the main podium inside was Headmaster Merlin. In the section of the jury were a few members of the board and a couple upperclassman. Hearing about the court battle that was taking place, Sigmund's peers began to enter the room to sit amongst the audience. Everyone wanted to see how this would go, especially against a teacher like Professor Flan.

"Good afternoon, kinfolk." Headmaster Merlin spoke. The room answered with a resounding greeting in response. Ivan and Nicolai sat behind Sigmund and Erin, who were stood side by side at the plaintiff desk. Opposite to them, Professor Flan stood at the defendant desk with the elf who was more than likely his defense team. "We're just about ready to start this proceeding, so plaintiffs, please go ahead and present your case."

Removing her hat, Erin let it vanish as she opened her folder to pull her own packet. Sigmund looked to her as she spoke up. Pushing her hair behind her ears, the witch started off the case.

"Good afternoon." Erin smiled gently. The headmaster returned her smile.

"My name is Erin Saint'valentine the Enchantress, and I'll be assisting Mr. Sigmund Nightbreed the Sorcerer with this case. We're holding Professor Jonathan James Jasper Jackson Jamarcus Jaminiquide J.J. Flan Jr...or Professor Flan, if you will, accountable for the recent discipline against student Kyle Bloodworth-Thomason."

"On what grounds?" The headmaster asked.

"Bullying and harassment." Sigmund answered. "Kyle was within his right of self defense." Professor Flan mumbled comments on his side, crossing his arms in disagreement. His mumbling was quickly silenced with the strike down of Merlin's gavel.

"We will not have interruptions today, Mr. Flan." Merlin spoke sternly. "Allow the students to present their case and then you'll have your chance to speak." The professor only rolled his eyes in response as the headmaster turned back to the teenagers. "How do you plan to back your statements on bullying and harassment?"

"We've come with witness statements." Sigmund spoke. "Mr. Ivan Kowalski and Mr. Nicolai Othonos."

"Who's willing to take to the stand first?" Merlin asked the seated boys. Nicolai looked to Ivan, who ultimately raised his hand first. Motioning Ivan to sit at the podium beside him, Ivan stood and walked over, taking a seat at the bench, nervously looking around the room. Erin, papers in hand, walked around the plaintiff's desk to start her round of questions.

"Can you state your full name for the record?" Erin asked.

"I-Ivan Kowalski, the Inquisitive Warlock."

"Mr. Kowalski, thank you for offering your statement today." Erin started with a warm smile. The smile put Ivan at ease instantly. "Are you a student in Professor Flan's class?"

"Yeah, this is my last term with him." Ivan nodded.

"How many terms have you had with the professor in total?"

"Three."

"In those three terms, have you ever witnessed the professor shouting at your peers?"

"Pfffff! Who hasn't?" Towards Ivan's comment, the room seemed to snicker amongst themselves, something Headmaster Merlin quickly silenced, though he seemed as though he wanted to laugh himself. Professor Flan looked more annoyed then ever. Erin continued.

"In those three terms, have you ever witnessed the professor insulting your peers?"

"That's part of the yelling to be honest. Yeah, he does that too."

"Mr. Kowalski, have you ever witnessed the professor insulting your peer, Kyle Bloodworth-Thomason?"

"Yup."

"Did the professor do so publicly in front of your classroom or privately?"

"No, he did it in front of everyone. Very much in public. More than once too, like he's got something against the kid or something."

"Would you mind giving the jury an example?"

"I remember we had a pop quiz the morning he came in all dirty and stuff. Kyle didn't finish his test in time, so the professor held it up to the room to show everyone and called Kyle an embarrassment. It was pretty rough..."

"I ONLY SAID SO BECAUSE HE THINKS SO HIGHLY OF HIMSELF! HE MAKES MY SKILL AS A TEACHER SEEM INCOMPETENT! I CANNOT ALLOW THAT!" Professor Flan interrupted, earning a gasp from the room and another slam of the gavel. Erin and Sigmund grinned knowingly towards one another as the room broke out in whispers.

"I have no further questions." Erin spoke to the headmaster. Returning to her spot beside Sigmund, the pair brushed shoulders and kept their heads lowered to conceal the smiles on their faces. Nicolai seemed to do all the smiling for them from his seat. Professor Flan's scrivener elf approached the stand for his round of questions for Ivan, which instantly silenced the room and caught the attention of the teenagers.

"My name is Solitaire the Scrivener, and I'm representing Mr. Flan today. I'll be asking our own questions to the witness." Turning to Ivan, the elf cleared his throat. "Mr. Kowalski, the morning of the test, how would you describe Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason's mood?"

"Um...he looked kinda pissed." Ivan responded. "He came in with a dirty uniform. I dunno, something must've happened."

"Would you say he was in an overall, poor mood?"

"I mean, I guess?"

"Had Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason been late to class that morning?"

"Yeah, he was the last one to come in."

"So not only did he come in with a poor mood, he also came tardy and failed to meet the expectations of the class by flunking his exam. I say this to you, Headmaster, to take notice of Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason's pattern of poor choices."

"I object to that statement!" Erin spoke up, raising her hand in annoyance. "You can't be serious! That has nothing to do with anything!" Headmaster Merlin slammed his gavel once again to silence Erin this time, something that made her puff her cheeks out in anger as Professor Flan smiled a crooked toothed grin. Sigmund rubbed her back to relax her as her brows furrowed.

"Calm down..." He cooed in a whisper. "It'll be alright."

"That's such a stupid argument..." Erin pouted, letting out a heavy sigh. The elf continued.

"With a pattern of poor behavior, being reprimanded by his professor should be expected as punishment and not viewed as harassment in any form. I have no further questions."

As the elf returned to his desk, Ivan stood up from the bench and returned to the side with his peers. Sitting down again, he sank down in his seat and frowned.

"Did I let you guys down?" Ivan asked. Sigmund shook his head quickly.

"Of course not! You did really great!"

"But Erin looks mad..."

"She's not mad at you, she's mad at the argument. It's up to the headmaster and the jury panel to decide which side to take, so don't worry."

"I call Mr. Nicolai Othonos to the stand, please." Headmaster Merlin spoke, motioning the mutant to the bench. Nicolai stood quickly and walked over, taking his spot. "Ms. Saint'valentine, please commence your questioning for the witness."

"Thank you, Headmaster." Erin muttered, collecting herself and her notes. Sigmund nudged her with his elbow, catching her attention.

"You're doing great. Don't sulk!"

"Thank you, my love." Walking out from behind the plaintiff desk, Erin cleared her throat. "Please state your full name for the records."

"My name is Nicolai Othonos, the Nightcrawler. I'm a hybrid mutant and wizard."

"Mr. Othonos, thank you for offering your statement today. Are you a student in Professor Flan's class?"

"Yes, I sure am!"

"How many terms have you had with the professor in total?"

"One...two...oh, THREE! Three terms!"

"In those three terms, have you ever witnessed the professor shouting at your peers?"

"Yes, ma'am. He's shouted at me before too. I didn't like that too much..."

"How about insulting? Have you ever been witness to him insulting your peers?"

"Yes. He says some really nasty things..."

"What about towards Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason?"

"Um...who's that?"

Ivan and Sigmund facepalmed towards Nicolai's question. Erin, herself, was taken aback. He wasn't being serious...was he? The honest confused expression on his face said otherwise.

"I swear he's getting dumber the more he turns mutant..." Ivan whispered to Sigmund from behind their desk, forcing the sorcerer to suppress a laugh. Erin sighed as the rest of the room held back laughter of their own. Headmaster Merlin, for the millionth time, slammed the gavel to quiet the room. Rubbing her temples, Erin turned her attention back to Nicolai.

"Kyle." She answered. "Kyle is Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason."

"Oh, sorry!" Nicolai blushed. "Yes! I've seen the professor insult him before. It was funny to me, but he wasn't really happy about it. It's happened more than once."

"Would you mind giving the jury an example?"

"Like Ivan said, he called him an embarrassment. He also told our class that he's the perfect example of what we don't wanna be after he showed up late on the first day. I remember last term, when we were learning how to conjure fire, Kyle couldn't do it. Professor Flan compared him to Sigmund and said he'd never be like him."

"Yup! I remember that too!" Ivan called from his seat. Sigmund nodded in agreement.

"So you're saying this taunting has been going on since last term?" Erin asked the blue haired student. Nicolai nodded.

"And the term before Sigmund got here too. He always finds a way to make a comment about him."

"So clearly, Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason shows a pattern of struggling in class." Erin spoke to the room, turning her attention to the Merlin the Magician. "I say this to you, Headmaster, to take notice of the way the Professor chose to discourage his student instead of uplift and assist. Even when the student arrived to class in a compromising state, the Professor chose hostility over empathy."

"Oh, she's good!" Ivan whispered to Sigmund with a grin. Sigmund leaned over to whisper back.

"Because she's mad..." He snickered. "It's personal now."

"Regardless of the expectations set by the professor.." Erin continued. "The job of a teacher is to do what their title is and teach, not to insult their pupils. Not to diminish their confidence. Not to be a bully!"

"I object to that statement!" The elf shouted.

"I HAVEN'T FINISHED!" Erin snapped back, causing the audience and the jury to flinch in their seats. The headmaster hadn't even gotten a chance to slam the gavel. "Mediation should've been put into action when Mr. Bloodworth-Thomason appeared in the classroom on the first day CLEARLY disheveled, as his classmates described. That didn't happen, he was further insulted and it sent him over the edge. The Professor is fully responsible!"

"I AM NOT!" Professor Flan yelled. Finally slamming the gavel repeatedly, Merlin had enough.

"On that interruption, we'll be going to recess now." Merlin announced. "Afterwards, we'll have one round more of questioning for Mr. Othonos and any other questions for anyone will be allowed as well before closing statements."

Nicolai quickly met with the group again and they circled up, all with smiles on their faces. So far, so good.