Chapter Thirteen
The Council's Court Room
Drell's voice echoed through the room like a clap of thunder as he made the announcement he felt that he had already waited too long for. "THE RETRIAL WILL NOW IMMEDIATELY COMMENCE, STARTING WITH SALEM SABERHAGEN." Heads turned to look upwards at their captors, and whispers rang rampant amongst the captives.
Brown eyes turned from looking at their captors to quizzically seek answers in the gaze of the Latina beside her. "Salem Saberhagen," Theodora repeated. "¿Usted le conoce?"
Roxanne was standing again, petting her familiars' coats and keeping a steady eye on their surroundings. She shook her head as she answered Theodora, telling her that she had no idea who this Salem was. "No, nunca lo he satisfecho o he oído hablar." She had to agree with Theodora on the fact that Salem sounded like a male's name, and that thought griped her to no end. She surveyed the room again, wondering who he was. If she could find out, she'd save their captors the trouble of wasting her and her jaguars' time with this retrial of a male, who was just as surely guilty of the crimes he was being held for as she was of the superior, female gender.
"Salem Saberhagen?" Trent repeated, looking questioningly at Trina. "Is he one of yours, one I haven't met yet?"
She shook her head, her long, blonde hair shimmering down her slender back in waves of spun gold that Carlos' fingers ached to catch hold of. He quickly slid his hands into his pockets as she answered Trent's question. "No. I've never met him." She looked at Angel. "Is he one of yours?"
"Yes, he is," Angel told her. "Poor fellow! He is a cat. He's already been cursed for crimes he committed in the past. I don't know why they are retrying him. I don't think his time's up."
Angel glanced around until he spied Salem. "There he is, in the front." Angel wished he could pat Salem on the head and tell him everything was going to be all right. He hated to see the once-proud, majestic feline looking so dejected and lost, but he knew his hands were tied and there was nothing he could do until he was either called on to give his opinion or hopefully released. Once released, he and Lorne were out of there and after Crys; he itched to be gone.
Cordelia saw the pain in her love's eyes as he looked toward Salem and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. She knew Angel was torn, though he didn't speak a word. He wanted to help Salem, but he ached to be off after Crystal. She said a prayer for both Salem and Crystal and that, somehow, everything would work out all right for all of them in the end.
Trina looked upon Salem with compassion, forgetting, until Carlos spoke, that Angel had said that he was originally a man. "They turned a man into a cat?" the Mexican questioned, the doubt in his voice mirroring the same that Trent was feeling.
"Yes, and they punished his men, as well. It wasn't fair. I didn't get involved, but I knew what was going on at the time and I thought Salem would have made a wise leader if he had been given a chance. I am surprised that they did not kill him, although Salem probably wishes that they had. It could not be good to spend life as a cat, not after having been a man."
Angel could not imagine what Salem must have gone through. How weak and powerless he knew he had to feel after having been a mighty Wizard; not being able to use his magick powers would only have been half of it! Not being able to hold his own true love in his arms and love her with the body of a man would have almost killed him! After having known Cordelia only a brief time, he knew that that would have been the part that he couldn't have handled the most. He did not ever want to face the chance of losing her and vowed that she would not follow him and Lorne. They would have to sneak away.
Cordelia answered another question she felt the three newcomers must be wondering about before they could ask. "They did not kill him," she spoke quietly, "because they wanted to curse him with something worse than death."
"But why," Trent questioned, "bring us here when we don't even know him?"
"If we listen, we will find out," Angel told him. "I've never been to one of these trials before."
Carlos wondered just what Angel had seen at the trials he had been to. He often worried for Trina, and now for Trent and himself, knowing full well that they were living on the other side of the law and could, and probably would, be tried and hung if ever caught. Trent did not ponder Angel's words but merely accepted them as knowledge that the other man had no more idea what was about to happen than they did.
Trina nodded and looked around, her keen eyes seeking through the darkness for signs of their crew mates' locations and statuses. She spied Joseph laying on the floor and hoped he wasn't dead. She saw Rogue and Kennedy still in each other's arms, and the sad look on Rogue's face haunted Trina, making her fear that Joseph might well be dead. She prayed he wasn't for she knew that his death would mean the loss of two good friends for Rogue would surely die of grief.
The commotion spreading through the room caused Kyna to stir in her husband's arms. She let her feelers out first to check on their location, and what she sensed caused her almond eyes to fly open in alarmed concern. "William!"
"Yes, darling?" his husky voice answered her as his blue eyes gazed down lovingly into hers. He was not aware of what was going on around them and had only been holding her and praying quietly that she would awaken and that he wouldn't have to wait for another day to pass.
Gods, how he had missed her, but he'd never tell her! She wouldn't like it. For some reason, she was always wanting him not to be concerned about her welfare, but that was an impossible thing. She was the most important being in his whole world, and he realized he spent a lot more time worrying about her than he ever had for himself. After this, he'd pay more particular attention to both their well-fares as he hoped that she could not live without him any more than he could live without her.
His doubt had been replaced with a joyful song that burst forth from his heart and that his lips wanted to give voice to but dared not. Xena had been right; his Kyna had been restored to him! He held her even tighter, vowing never to let go. He'd sing a song of love to her as soon as they were out of this Hellhole.
It had been a long time since William had been able to hide his emotions from her, and even now, Kyna knew part of the emotions that were coursing through him as well as she knew her own. Deciding to place her concerns about their locations to the side for just a few seconds, she reached up to him, caressed his handsome face, and smiled rereassuringly. "I can tell that Judson succeeded in his intentions. I am sorry, my love; I should have warned you. Are you well?"
"I am now that you have been returned to me, my love. It seems like an eternity since I saw that bastard rip your head off! I couldn't reach you; I tried. And I thought Xena was lying when she said you would return to me. She is very wise. I will have to tell her that."
"I had almost given up, because I saw you die. Why didn't you tell me of this little secret? You'll never know how I felt when I saw you die before my eyes! You are my reason for living, and when you died, I died! Now that you live, my heart sings a song of love to you! I'll sing it later to you in the bedroom." He grinned mischievously down into her face. He couldn't wait to get her to their bedroom and show her just how much he did love her!
Her beloved's smile drew her own lips into a grin, but she could also see the tears that sparkled in his blue eyes, tears she knew he'd never admit to in a millennia. "I am sorry, sweetheart," she told him again. "I should have told you, but I . . . . " She shook her head. "I was a fool, thinking it would never come to that."
"Thank Gods Xena was there to protect you." She placed a finger on his lips before he could protest. "I know you. Had you managed to fight, you would have gone in on a suicide mission and gotten yourself dusted. I owe her a debt that can never be repaid for saving you, a debt that I . . . " She looked away, deep thoughts reflecting in her troubled eyes. "I know how I could repay it if only I were allowed to. That must wait for now, however."
"Without you, Kyna, there is no reason to live," Spike told her gently and then lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the palm of it. His blue eyes never left hers.
His lips had always been able to send delightful chills through her, and her heart skipped the familiar missing beat it always missed when he was near. She smiled back up at him, her eyes gazing lovingly into his. "Without you, my dearest William, I would never want to live. I suppose that is a large part of why I never told you." She sighed. "I do love you, my darling, and you know that just as you also know that I could lay here forever in your arms, if only such were possible. However, I must know . . . Are we where I think we are?"
"We are in Hell," Spike told her. "I think that this is the final portal before they decide where we're going to spend eternity. Those are our Judges. I always thought that there would be one old man with a long beard and long, flowing white hair standing at a pearly gate and pointing when you got there in the direction of either Heaven or Hell. I've never seen anything like this before, and poor Salem is the first to be judged!"
Kyna pressed her lips together to keep from grinning, though it was so hard to when her love seemed so bizarrely innocent. One glance up told her that this place was indeed where she thought it was and not what William dreaded it being. "Dear," she told him, "the time has come, and we must stand. It is not, though, what you . . . " She knew better than to say "fear". " . . . dread."
"I know. The old man's not here, although there are two some ones up there who could fit the description! Maybe there is two of them? One to fetch those of us going to Hell and the other one to take the others to Heaven? I think we may be parted for my soul is very black and yours shines with goodness!"
Cole had no sooner returned Piper and Jasmine to where Wolverine, Ororo, and Paige were waiting when he felt Ororo's eyes heavily upon him. He looked at her immediately and waited obediently for her to speak.
Ororo knew what was coming. Her first concerns were for her godchildren and Logan, but a second before her mouth could open to command Cole, she thought again of Logan and realized how concerned he would be for his sons and daughter. "Get Prue and Phoebe," she mouthed to Cole. Then, in a softer form, she added, "And, if it would not be too much trouble, the rest of our children?" Her blue eyes displayed her worry.
Cole nodded and immediately shimmered. He went after Prue first. He knew right where he'd seen her earlier and shimmered beside her and Brendan.
Prue watched as Cole appeared. "What?" she asked in a soft whisper.
"Ororo wants both of you with her. Touch my hands; I'll take you to her."
Cole's words surprised Brendan, and he realized immediately that this place must be as dangerous as his senses were screaming at him that it was. He nodded but waited for Prue to take Cole's hand before he took his other one.
The minute that Cole had both hands, he shimmered straight back to Ororo and rematerialized. Prue got the giggles. "It tickled!" she said in amazement and looked at Cole with new eyes. "Do you have fun like that all the time?"
"Not always," Cole told her. "I tried to make it easy on you two, things being what they are."
That reminder made Prue grow serious at once. "Thanks, Cole," she told him and rushed forward to her aunt.
Ororo met Prue with open arms. She had already mouthed her thanks to Cole, but now her blue eyes cast a stern look upon Brendan, who had not yet stood. Brendan reacted by getting to his feet before he even realized he was standing.
Wolverine smiled at his boy. "Good ta see ya, son. Have you seen yer brother?" he asked gruffly.
Brendan knew from the way Wolverine spoke that even he was worried, and his father's own worry added to his. He shook his head, his shaggy hair, that seemed even worse today -- or was it night? -- seeming even shaggier. "No, I haven't," he told him. "I . . . " His eyes cast downwards toward the floor. "I spent the night as the wolf."
Wolverine reached out a hand and gave Brendan's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "It's all right. Cole will find him. We need to be together. Shi -- " The lightning in Ororo's eyes changed his tune. "Crap's about to hit the fan again."
Two tall Wizards leaned together, and a whisper passed between them. Lionel Luthor heard the whisper from where he sat beside Drell, and he whispered it to him. "They say that you must tell the others of their chances to stand for them before you begin trying Saberhagen."
"They do, do they?" Drell returned with a quirked brow. "Well, you can just tell them . . . "
"Sir," Lionel warned in a hushed voice, "they are Gandalf and Merlin!"
Drell felt confident that he could have taken on one of the Wizards, but he would not dare to anger both at once. He stamped his booted foot on the floor. "Well, first of all," he whispered to one of the women, "let the special effects begin."
A cold grin spread across the woman's pale face, and the raven perched on her thin shoulder ruffled his black feathers and eyed her warily. If she cackled, he knew he'd best duck. Instead, however, the woman simply murmured a few words in Latin and stamped her staff onto the floor. Immediately, the booth spread out, seeming instead to grow into thirteen dais that sprang forward and a smaller booth that shrank into the far back of the room.
Each Council member now looked more directly down upon those below them from where they sat in chairs that hung suspended in the air behind each dais. Some watched the captives with compassionate eyes, some with well-guarded gazes, but still others sneered down at them. Drell, now dressed in his favorite powder white wig of the moment, rapped his hammer on the center desk where he sat. "SILENCE BELOW," he commanded.
Cole did not hang around but had nodded at Ororo before shimmering back out. This time, he went in search of Captain Kitty. He knew that speed was of the essence and hoped that she would not give him an argument. He appeared before Kitty, who was holding tightly to the hand of a redheaded girl. He glanced around for 'Heed and, spying him, told him, "Go to Wolverine now." He wasn't about to try to shimmer a dragon!
The words had been out of Cole's mouth as soon as he had finished materializing. Rachel, finding her voice, started to scream, but Kitty's hand quickly clamped over her companion's mouth. "He's a friend," she told Ray, "and a teleporter. 'Heed," she called to Lockheed, "I know you know where Dad's at. Go. We'll be there before you can get there." Keeping one hand over Rachel's mouth, she offered her other hand to Cole. "Cole, this is Rachel Summers. Ray, Cole Turner."
"Nice to meet you, Ray. Now we've got to go." He took Kitty's hand and shimmered them immediately. Landing both of them safely in front of Ororo, he did not reappear but let go of Kitty's hand. He then set off to find Jack and Will.
Kitty eyed Rachel. "Are you cool now?" she questioned, still not letting go of her mouth.
Ray nodded, her green eyes confirming that she had appropriately swallowed her surprise.
Kitty released Rachel's mouth just as Lockheed barreled onto her shoulder. He landed so swiftly that his talons raked a bit of her shoulderpad off, but she was so used to the feeling that she didn't so much as even flinch. Instead, her eyes remained where they had met Wolverine's.
"Good to see ya, daughter. We're about to have ta stand an' fight again, an' I wanted ya by my side. Who's yer friend, an' where's the Priest?"
"Coo coo!" Lockheed exclaimed, his purple wings shifting noisily.
"That's your Father?" Rachel asked, her surprise at the short man clearly sounding in her voice.
"Yes," Kitty answered Rachel, ignoring Lockheed's comment for the time being. "Dad, this is my other best friend, Rachel Summers. Ray and I have known each other since we were kids. Rachel, this is my birth Father, Wolverine."
Rachel's mouth dropped open.
"Summers?" Wolverine questioned. "Any kin to that bigoted fop of a Governor on Deer Isle?"
Rachel grinned and played her embarrassment off coolly. "Just as much as I'm presuming you're the Wolverine?"
"I see that my reputation precedes me," Wolverine said with a grin. "An' what kin might that be?" He had had a brush with the Governor in the past, and he really did not like the little blow-hard. He wanted to like the girl despite her bloodline. After all, she was Kitty's friend.
Kitty's brown eyes darted busily between Wolverine and Rachel as they talked. She remained ready to step in between the two if it came to that but hoped it wouldn't. If it did, however, she knew she'd have quite the debate on her hands for Wolverine's and Ray's fiery personalities would make for one heck of a conflict.
"Don't hold it against me," Rachel told him, keeping Wolverine's gaze steadily, "but I'm his daughter. I'm also the sister to one I believe you've fought beside before. Cable."
"You're Cable's baby sister!" Wolverine exclaimed in amazement. "Pleased to meet ya, kid. Put it here," he said as he offered her his hand in friendship. "You mean to say yer father lets you run around out here?"
"That I am," Rachel replied with a smile as she took Wolverine's hand, "and it's an honor to meet you, Sir. With you as her father, there's no wonder how Kitty ended up the way she has."
Kitty was relieved the two had found common ground but wondered if Rachel meant her words as a compliment or not.
"Kitty's got a lot o' her mother in her, an' it had to come out," Wolverine said with pride as he smiled at his daughter. "Wished things could've been different an' we could've raised her. Hel- !" he declared. "I didn't even know she was alive! Her mother didn't tell me, 'cause she knew I would've went an' got her. That wouldn't've been good fer Kitty, but a kid should be with her parents. Me not knowin' might've been the best thing, 'cause she had a chance fer a decent life, but the Pirate blood had to come out. We're cursed with it," he said with a grin. His hand reached out and gripped Kitty's shoulder in a gentle squeeze.
Rachel had sensed the emotions rising in Kitty as the memories of the previous night with her mother spun through her mind and had been just about to reach out to her when Wolverine beat her to the punch. She knew that the life of a Pirate was hard but also knew that neither Wolverine nor Kitty would have ever traded it for anything and believed that she had led much more of a "cursed" life than Wolverine had any clue of. She bit her tongue, though, keeping her thoughts to herself and being glad that no one in the group seemed to be a telepath.
Her green eyes widened suddenly, and she looked toward a new woman whose beauty took her breath away. The Amazonian beauty had a regal air to her with dark, creamy skin and long, flowing, white hair. It was the silent conversation she was carrying on, however, that had caught her attention initially. She stared at the woman a moment, listening.
Kitty caught her friend's gaze almost immediately and nudged Ray with her shoulder. "That's Ororo," she whispered to her, "Wolverine's woman."
A look of consternation flushed across Wolverine's face as he heard them talking about Ororo. "She's only my woman now 'cause we ain't married yet. We get outta here, that boyfriend o' yers is gonna do the deed. Where is he?" Wolverine glanced around but, as of yet, had not seen Kurt. "Ya two fightin' again?"
Rachel, sensing Kitty's uncomfortable shift, quickly interrupted. "You know Charles Xavier?" Her eyes were still glued to Ororo.
Wolverine's eyes went to Ray. He had glanced at 'Ro and had been concerned about her as she had not made an effort to join the conversation. In fact, she had only been standing there with her arms around Prue, and he figured she must be branching out with her mind, trying to locate her missing child. "What makes ya think I know ol' baldie?"
"Not you," Rachel told him matter-of-factly. "Her."
Ororo blinked, and her blue eyes refocused on the stranger's face. "I do, young lady, and we would appreciate it if you would leave our conversation to us."
Rachel blushed. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop."
Wolverine glanced from an angry 'Ro to a blushing Rachel. "Another telepath? Oh my Gods!" He hit his forehead with his hand before shaking his head. There would be no way to keep any secrets in this family! He glanced at Brendan. Had any one read his mind lately? The way he was gazing intently at Prue, Wolverine would have loved to have read that mind!
Brendan felt his father's eyes upon him, glanced at Logan, and dropped his eyes to the floor. He blushed a deep red even as Rachel's slight blush vanished.
"Yes, I am a telepath, and it's always been a custom of mine to do a light scanning when meeting new people. It helps one to get a better glimpse of strangers." She looked back to Ororo. "I honestly did not mean to intrude, but when I sensed Charles' mind . . . . I had to wonder."
Ororo nodded. "I understand."
"Was this . . . planned?"
'Ro paused before answering Rachel. "He says that it both was and was not and wishes to talk to you as soon as the retrial has finished. He . . . " Compassion shone in Ororo's blue eyes. "He also says that he is sorry for whatever it is that you have gone through."
Rachel knew that Charles must know but had not told Ororo. She appreciated that. "Tell him it's not his fault," she told her, "but my asshole of a father's."
Wolverine's mouth fell open. So the daughter didn't like her father any more than he did! That was a definite plus in her favor! He knew he was going to like this girl! He grinned.
"Hey!" Paige exclaimed. "If she can talk like that and she's the daughter of a Governor, why can't I!"
Piper, who had finally began to get somewhere on calming Jasmine, glared at Paige. "Not now, Paige, and because Grams would turn over in her grave if you did!"
Prue's eyes stole back to look at Brendan. A secret smile was on her face, and she wondered why he was blushing. Had his mind been where hers was? She wished she could just slide over to stand beside him and lay her hand on him. She wondered what he'd do if she dared.
She had been trying to follow the conversation that had been going on around her, but other than the fact that there were now two telepaths, very little else made sense to her. She had never even heard of Deer Island or Scott Summers. She did recognize Charles' name and wondered what was going on with Ororo and him. Were they having telepathic sex? She wished she could do that with Brendan; she knew that would shock the Hell out of him!
Ororo, only partially sensing her eldest goddaughter's doubtful thoughts, gently patted Prue's shoulder. It had taken her a moment to get over her shock at Rachel's language, and it was only Charles' gentle suggestion that she not reprimand the girl that kept Ororo quiet on that account. "I will tell him," she spoke hushedly, eyeing the redhead, who merely nodded in return.
Kyna patted Spike's shoulder rereassuringly as she stood. She turned slightly to the side while standing and pressed her other hand to her mouth to silence the chuckle that rose in her throat. "Love," she told him reassuringly once she felt it safe to speak again, "those men are not the famous Saint Peter, though they are famous in their own right. Those people, all thirteen of them . . . Well," she amended, realizing that two seats remained empty, "eleven of them are the Witch's Council. The empty seats belong to Dumbledore and Xavier."
"Oh," Spike said, getting to his feet and feeling rather foolish. "I thought we had died in the night. I was so lost in despair that I don't guess I realized the difference. But why would the Witch's Council want all of us? I'm not a Witch." His quick eyes took in others standing around. "And about half of those who are here aren't Witches." He looked at her quizzically.
Kyna smiled and gave his cheek a quick peck of a kiss. "Do not feel foolish, my dear; I thought your concerns rather . . . charming." She couldn't resist a wink at him and knew his neck was burning. "As for the Council, they govern much more than Witches. All of us who partake in any part of the Supernatural are under their rule."
"How come I've never come across them before?" Spike asked her, feeling the flames rushing up his neck. He hoped Kyna would not relay this story later.
Kyna adverted her eyes, giving her love a chance to cool his embarrassment when she wasn't looking. "Believe it or not, you've been lucky."
"Still, why would they want every one else?"
"Most likely, we were all with Salem and his people when they were brought here. Albus warned me this time was coming, and I hope the plan works," she whispered.
"Plan?" Spike repeated.
"I'll explain later," Kyna whispered in a tone so low that only Vampiric hearing could pick up her words. "Not here."
Spike took her hand and squeezed it gently. He moved to stand behind her so that she could lean back against him and pressed his mouth close to her ear. "Okay," he whispered just enough that it tickled her ear.
His touch ignited her blood, and his closeness brought a low moan rising in her throat. Keep your mind on the business at hand, Chan, she barked at herself. This is neither the time nor the place. Reaching a hand behind her, she let her fingernails graze the side of his black, denim pants. "As much as I'd like to, mon amour, this is neither the place nor the time."
"I know," he whispered, and his voice caressed her ear again. "And watch those fingernails."
A laugh bubbled from her before she could stop it. "You certainly are quite the devil!" she scolded lovingly.
"And you, my love, are an Angel!" He gave her a gentle squeeze but stopped playing the seductive Vamp.
Cole shimmered beside a hugging trio and cleared his throat. His sudden appearance brought a yelp of surprise from Will that Cole had already learned to dismiss. "Your father wants you to be with him. He says we are about to go to battle again."
"Only he would try to fight a war without a weapon!" Jack murmured even as he released Eddie and Will. "Well, take us to him."
"I'm not taking that -- animal!" Cole finished. "I've never carried one quite so large."
"Can you find your way, Eddie, to where Wolverine is?"
Eddie's long face grew sad. "If you take them, I'll be all by myself, and it's a long, long way to Wolverine! Isn't it?"
"Not really," Cole reassured him. "If you follow the wall about half way down and turn right, walk fast, and you'll walk right into him."
"Are you sure?" Eddie cast an eyeball on Cole, not realizing that Will was also giving him quite a similar Look.
"Yes, I am, and if I wasn't afraid of hurting you, I'd try to shimmer you. Maybe we can try it later when we're not under dire stress so we'll both know if it can be done?"
"You would do that for me?" Eddie asked Cole.
"Sure. You're one of the family," he reassured him with a smile. "Now hurry, Eddie! You want to be with the family when the crap breaks lose!"
Cole reached out for Jack's hand and then offered Will his other hand even as Eddie broke out into a run.
"Be careful!" Will called after Donkey. He might be an animal, but his love for him grew each day and he didn't want anything happening to Eddie. "If you need us, bray, and we'll come!"
Eddie was almost out of earshot, but he heard Will and called back over his shoulder, "I will! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!" He continued to run, one eye watching the wall and trying to mark half way, his ears straining to hear Will.
Will nodded, silencing the doubting sigh that rose in his throat, and took Cole's hand.
Cole shimmered them to Wolverine.
As soon as Jack materialized, he saw Brendan and went straight for his brother. He was glad he had returned to man form and couldn't wait to give him a hug. Again, Cole did not rematerialize but set off after Phoebe.
Will watched Jack run toward Brendan and eyed his love's brother with serious doubt. He wished that he hadn't lost the silver sword and then recalled Prue knocking the heck out of him and glanced in her direction.
Prue's eyes met Will's. "I couldn't let you hurt him," she mouthed. "He has no clue what his wolf did, and the wolf did not mean harm." She moved over closer to Will, so that he could hear her words clearly. "Brendan is a very dear, sweet man, and he loves his family dearly but most especially his brother. If he had even a clue of what had happened, it would kill him. He lives in fear of the wolf. You can't tell him, Will! Promise me you won't!"
Will shifted uncomfortably. He had tried to step away from Prue, but she had only stepped closer each time he had stepped away. He still would not meet her gaze but glanced in Jack's direction just as his beloved threw his arms around Brendan and hugged him close. He sighed. If he were to tell Brendan, word would find its way back to Jack, and Jack would probably hate him even though it was his protection and safety he was trying to assure. "I won't." He stepped away . . . and was rewarded with Paige screeching in his ear.
Prue smiled thankfully at Will and then turned to see what was wrong with Paige. "Don't scream in his ear! You'll deafen him! What's wrong!" she demanded of Paige, who was frantically waving her arms and jumping up and down.
Paige's attention on the conversation had been lost shortly after Piper had admonished her as she'd seen Jasmine crying again and once more wondered about Carl and feared for his safety. She'd been looking for him ever since and had just now succeeded in spotting a blur moving swiftly across the floor. She knew that blur had to be her man and now again screeched his name. "CARL! CARL! OVER HERE, CARL!"
Will winced at the screaming girl and half-stepped, half-stumbled backwards. His finger wrung in his ear as he tried to get his hearing back. Women!
Prue shook her head. Sisters could be such dolts! "Sorry," she told Will, "but thank you. If you ever need some one to talk to about him," she knew Will would know she was talking about Jack, "I'm willing to listen. I won't tell anybody, and I am a good listener."
Will smiled in what he hoped Prue would take to be thanks but didn't mention any chance of his taking her up on the offer he realized that she did mean. She seemed to be a good woman, but she was as blinded to the wolf as his dear Jack was. It would be up to him to find a way to save Jack from Brendan, and no one here would help him. He knew that, but he also knew he had to find an answer before the wolf really did kill Jack. He glanced over at Jack and saw that Brendan was hugging Jack tightly in return.
Joxer moaned. He couldn't remember a time he had ever hurt so much! He had already been through Hell all night long, and then a rolling tub of lard had hit him! He had not even seen what it looked like, but he had damn sure felt it! He hurt in every inch of his body! The tub had thrown him up into the air, and when he had come down, he swore, the impact had broken every bone in his body! He lay there with his eyes tightly closed and moaned again.
Phoebe's eyes were open, but she lay motionless on the floor. She felt like a balloon that some one had let all the air out of and didn't think she could have stood if her life had depended on it. "What was that thing?" she weakly questioned the air.
"From what I saw," a voice came from above, "it was one little, fat man. Are you two going to make it?" Xena asked.
"No," Phoebe moaned.
"Xena!" Joxer breathed. "My bones are all broke! Where's Gabrielle?"
"I'm here, Joxer," Gabby reassured him as she knelt beside him. Her hands started expertly checking him over. "You look like Hades," she told him, "but I haven't found anything broken . . . " Her words suddenly trailed off.
"Are you sure?" Joxer asked. "I've never felt this bad, not even after that battle with the Christians!" Why had he thought of that suddenly? What Christians? Somehow, he knew he didn't mean the ones that had killed Phoebe's grandmother and mother, but he couldn't quite place what he did mean. He just knew that somewhere, in his past, there had been one Hell of a battle that they'd all been involved in and had been lucky to get out of. He reached but couldn't get a grasp on it.
"That was a Hell of a thing . . . " Gabrielle paused as her words hit her. An odd look settled over the bard's face. What battle was that? She tried to shrug it off, but the uneasy feeling would not leave her alone even as her hands lingered on the arm Joxer must have landed on and she looked pointedly up at Xena.
Xena knew she had to fix Joxer's arm. It wasn't exactly broken, but it was out of place. "Keep talking to him," she mouthed to Gabby even as she took hold of his arm and began to work on him.
"That was almost as bad as last night . . . " Gabby mused as though she were still thinking about what Joxer had said. "But what was it over? Do you remember?"
"No, and I don't know when it was. It feels like it was . . . not too long ago. Did we dream it?" His mouth opened in a scream even as he felt Xena yank his arm into place.
Gabrielle had been waiting for Xena to move into position, and just as she had began the final shove on Joxer's dislocated bone, Gabby had torn off a piece of Joxer's shirt. When Joxer's mouth opened in a scream, she stuffed the piece of thickly-folded cloth into his mouth before the scream could begin. She knew that they did not need the attention of the Council upon them and held the cloth in place even as she felt for her second oldest friend.
"Sorry about that, Joxer," Xena apologized for the pain, "but it had to be done."
Autolycus had watched in silence, wondering what they were carrying on about, but then saw Xena yank Joxer's arm bone back into place. He looked away rather quickly, remembering a time when she had done the same to him. He winced even as he looked into Elizabeth's eyes. "Hurts like Hell," he told her, "but it'll be better in a while. Xena's an expert at what she does."
Elizabeth grimaced. Unlike Autolycus, she had not looked away in time, and now nausea rolled in her stomach at the sight. She pressed a hand to her stomach and looked away, her eyes haunted. Her only verbal response to Autolycus' words came out in a shudder.
"Joxxy?" Phoebe questioned. "Joxxy, what's going on? Are you . . . " She sat up to check on him, and her whole world spun. " . . . oookay?"
"Better check this one out, too," Xena told Gabrielle. "I can't believe that he hit them so hard that the floor shook!""It's too bad he can't turn that energy into battle," Gabrielle commented, trying to make light of the situation as she stepped over Joxer and knelt beside Phoebe. She started to look the girl over, but the younger woman pulled away from her.
"I'm fine," Phoebe told Gabrielle, eyeing the bard warily. "Really. If I need healing, I'll just wait for a healer." She still wasn't sure what in the heck they'd done to Joxer, but she knew it had been something horrible and felt sorry for her poor Joxxy.
"She is a healer," Xena told her, "and Joxer will be okay in a little bit. His arm bone was out of place." She looked down at the young woman. "He can't answer you. He's a little out of it."
Phoebe warily eyed both women now. "What did you do to him?" she asked, dreading the answer.
"I put his arm bone back in the socket. It's not a pleasant experience, but it had to be done."
"Like I said, I'll . . . " Phoebe's words trailed off for a moment as she saw something materializing in the air behind Xena. "I'llwait," the words came out in a rush as she watched the familiar man appearing. "Cole!" She sprang into sudden life as she rushed to his side, thinking she'd never been happier to see him.
"Hello, everyone," Cole greeted the group. "Wolverine's trying to get all of us together. He says there's going to be more battle, and he'd like for us to be together. I'll go and come back, get all of us there."
Xena shook her head. "Been there, done that one too many times, Shimmer Boy. We'll be there in a few. Just point us in the right direction, but take these two with you." Xena indicated Joxer and Phoebe, who had clasped on to Cole's forearm.
"Dead ahead and to your right," Cole told them, "and hurry. No telling how long it'll be before they attack." He shimmered, carrying Phoebe and Joxer with him.
Cole had acted swiftly as he had gathered Ororo and Wolverine's children to them, but his actions, though only spanning a very few minutes, had not gone unnoticed. "Boy, that -- " The parrot who had just began to talk was silenced suddenly as the thin man whose shoulder he was perched upon clasped his beak shut with two fingers.
His squawk had not gone unnoticed, however, and the man eyed the young woman who turned and looked up at them. He moved his mouth just slightly as he commanded the loud-mouthed bird, "Be quiet, Iago! I do not know what the child is doing here, but we can not afford to be spotted by her! Besides," he added, "I don't want to hear your mouth!"
With that warning, the man released his familiar's beak. Iago rubbed his aching beak with his multi-colored feathers and then began to mouth, "Iago, I have a headache! Iago, be quiet! Iago -- "
The Wizard never looked at his bird. He simply tapped his staff on the floor, and the cobra's eyes glowed once. The bird instantly froze on his shoulder. His beak was still open, but no sound came out. "I told you," the man hissed quietly, "to shut up!"
On the floor below, a pair of hazel eyes stared at the two. Cordelia had heard the bird's familiar voice and looked immediately in their direction, and still she could not believe that she was looking at them nor could she fathom what in the world Agrabah's Royal Advisor was doing on the infamous Witch's Council. When she saw the cobra's glowing eyes seemingly turn the bird to stone, she gasped and instantly looked away.
"I SAID SILENCE!" Drell commanded. "OR DO I NEED TO HAVE YOUR TONGUES FROZEN! I CAN DO THAT, YOU KNOW! NOW ON WITH THE BUSINESS AT HAND!"
"Why are we here?" All eyes turned to the two Latina women standing beside a pair of female jaguars. "We don't even know this Salem, so what do you want with us?"
"THAT IS WHAT WE ARE ABOUT TO GET TO, AND IF ANY ONE SPEAKS OUT OF TURN AGAIN, YOUR TONGUE WILL BE FROZEN!" Drell bellowed.
All eyes turned immediately back to stare at Drell, making him the center of attention, a place he dearly loved to be. "NOW THAT'S MORE LIKE IT! YOU HAVE BEEN BROUGHT HERE TODAY FOR THE RETRIAL OF SALEM SABERHAGEN AND HIS MEN. MOST OF YOU KNOW HIM, ALTHOUGH SOME OF YOU MIGHT NOT BE AWARE OF HIS CRIMES OR EVEN HIS TRUE SPECIES. IT HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO OUR ATTENTION THAT TIMES HAVE CHANGED, HOWEVER, AND WITH THE TIMES, SEVERAL OF SABERHAGEN'S PEOPLE. OR, AT LEAST, THAT IS THE CLAIM THAT HAS LED TO THIS RETRIAL."
"REGARDLESS," he continued, "HE WOULD STILL STAND ON TRIAL TODAY, ALONG WITH SEVERAL OF HIS MEN, WHO HAVE ALL ESCAPED FROM THEIR GUARDS AND THEIR PUNISHMENTS. WE WILL GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO HELP SABERHAGEN AND HIS MEN, IF YOU CHOOSE. EACH OF THOSE WHOSE SENTENCES ARE TO BE CONSIDERED FOR LIGHTNENING MUST HAVE AT LEAST ONE ENTITY WHO IS WILLING TO STAND BESIDE THEM."
"THIS BEING WILL HAVE TO PASS SEVERAL TESTS ALONG WITH WHICHEVER CRIMINAL THEY STAND FOR. AT THE END OF THESE TESTS, A FINAL DECISION WILL BE MADE AS TO WHAT EXACTLY TO DO WITH THE CRIMINAL, AND WHATEVER PUNISHMENT IS DEEMED UPON THE CRIMINAL WILL ALSO BEFALL THE ONE WHO HAS BEEN FOOLISH -- " The clearing of several throats caused Drell to falter and rephrase himself just a tad bit. " -- THE ONE WHO HAS STOOD BESIDE HIM OR HER."
"THE PERSON WHO STANDS MUST NOT BE A BLOOD RELATIVE TO THE CRIMINAL THEY STAND FOR, MUST NOT BE HIS OR HER LOVER, AND MUST BE APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL. THEY WILL STAND ON TRIAL EACH TIME THAT THE CRIMINAL STANDS ON TRIAL, WILL ENDURE THE SAME TESTS, AND WILL ALSO SHARE EQUALLY IN THE PUNISHMENT, OR PUNISHMENTS, THAT BEFALL THE CRIMINAL."
"NOW, AS I SAID, WE WILL BEGIN WITH SALEM SABERHAGEN. I CALL UPON SEVERUS SNAPE TO READ THE LIST OF CHARGES."
A loud voice interrupted before Snape could begin reading, "Your Honor, one question."
"SPEAK," Drell barked, looking down his nose at the long-haired Pirate, "BUT BE QUICK ABOUT IT."
"What if the criminal passes the tests?" Jack bravely spoke up. "Will they be freed?" He smiled at Drell, flashing his gold tooth from the dark shadows that he was so at home in.
Ororo smiled at her son's question. She was proud to see that he was not letting the Council know that his nerves were rattled and even prouder that he was already thinking optimistically.
"GIVEN," Drell responded, "THAT THEY PASS ALL TESTS AND THAT THERE IS SOME ONE WHO STANDS FOR THEM WHO ALSO PASSES ALL TESTS AND IS APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL, THEN YES, THEY WILL BE FREED -- BUT THAT IS A LOT OF IFS."
"Do we have your word on that, Your Honor?" Jack clasped his hands together in a pleading manner, his dark eyes imploring that the Judge uphold the truth of what he was saying. He had been lied to too many times in the past.
Will wondered just what in the heck Jack was daring to play at even as Drell snapped, "THAT IS TWO QUESTIONS, CAPTAIN SPARROW, BUT YES. WE ARE A COUNCIL OF OUR WORD. HOWEVER, AGAIN, THEY MUST PASS ALL TESTS, MUST GAIN THE FULL APPROVAL OF THE COUNCIL, AND MUST HAVE SOME ONE TO STAND FOR THEM WHO DOES THE SAME."
"One more question, Your Honor!" Jack nodded his head in respect, and the clinking of his beads echoed in the court room.
"WELL?" Drell ground out angrily. "WHAT IS IT?"
"Can it be written down, witnessed, and us be given our own copy?"
"JAFAR," Drell indicated the Wizard with the frozen parrot and cobra-headed, golden staff, "IS TAKING THE MINUTES OF THE DAY. HE WILL COPY DOWN ALL THAT TRANSPIRES HERE TODAY, AND YES, YOUR PEOPLE MAY HAVE A COPY."
"Thank you, Your Honor," Jack said and backed up so quickly that he bumped into Will. His breathing was hard and labored as though he had been running hard. He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and looked up into his mother's approving gaze.
Ororo was not the only one who was smiling due to Jack's actions. Standing in their various locations across the room, Kyna, Charles, and Albus also smiled slyly. Wolverine, behind Jack, had his own smugly proud smile; he had done a good job in raising his boy!
"NOW, IF THAT IS TO BE THE FINAL INTERRUPTION," Drell glowered down at the mix of beings below them, "WE WILL RESUME. SNAPE, IF YOU PLEASE."
Severus had finished shuffling his papers and was ready. "SALEM SABERHAGEN," his deep voice boomed out over the crowd, "YOU ARE CHARGED WITH SEVERAL ACCOUNTS OF TREASON IN THE HIGHEST DEGREE, AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, ARSON, BURGLARY, COERCION, CONCEALMENT, FRAUD, DISORDERLY CONDUCT, DRUG TRAFFICKING, EMBEZZLEMENT, EXTORTION, FORGERY, GRAFFITI, KLEPTOMANIA, BREAKING AND ENTERING, GRAND LARCENY, PERJURY, PORNOGRAPHY, PROPERTY CRIME, PSYCHOACTIVITY, PUBLIC INTOXICATION, RECEIVING STOLEN PROPERTY, HUMAN TRAFFICKING, RESTITUTION, REVICTIMIZATION, ROBBERY, SEXUAL INNUENDO, SHOPLIFTING, ESCAPE, KIDNAPPING, ESPIONAGE, POSSESSION WITH INTENT TO SELL, TAX EVASION, ARMED ASSAULT, THEFT, ASSAULT AND BATTERY, RESISTING ARREST MULTIPLE TIMES . . . "
The list seemed to drone on forever, and Dawson lost track of what all Salem had done. He was amazed at the immense amount of crimes contributed to one, little black cat. Why, if the list had been printed, it would have weighted Salem down to the point he would have suffocated! How could he have done all of those things! He looked at Faith. Maybe Salem had been telling the truth? He had been a man at one time, and he knew, before Snape even finished, that Faith had every intention of standing by Salem. He had to beat her to the punch. He only waited now for the man's mouth to quiet and the direction to be given to step forward.
Salem's head hung low as he felt all eyes upon him and Severus Snape read his rap sheet as though it were a death sentence. He felt as though it was, but yet, as memories of all his grand deeds played through his mind and he recalled the reasons why he had done what he had done, his tail twitched and his feline lips turned up into a sly, proud grin.
Trent and Trina Malloy were among the number who could not believe their ears. Their blue eyes stared at the cat, and then Trina heard Trent whispering in a hushed voice, "I always knew it was a bad idea to hang around with Pirates!"
"I never told you you had to!" Trina shot back at her twin.
"You didn't leave us much choice!" Trent responded. "It's not like you were willing to come home!"
"Be quiet, Virgin Boy!" Trina shot back, knowing the embarrassment of her words, that were loud enough for Angel and Cordelia to hear, would successfully hush her brother up. She was not about to tell Trent that Salem's rap sheet was only a little worse than some of the badder Pirates she considered amongst her friends.
Rachel listened as the list was read and watched Salem. She had heard many stories of the great, defeated Salem Saberhagen, but it was one thing to hear that he had tried to take over the world and another thing to hear his actual list of crimes being read. The one that stayed repeating over and over again in her head was psychoactivity. That was one of the greatest crimes a telepath could commit, but she knew enough about Salem to know that he was not a telepath. He must have used his magick to control those people, but Ray also knew why he had done the things he had done and did not even hold that great crime against him. She knew her father would have wanted him hung, though, and her green eyes flitted around the room as she wondered just how many of these other people would agree with her father.
Faith was still weaker than she would allow herself to admit to being and was trying hard to get to her feet. She had managed to push herself up to her knees but had not gotten up the rest of the way yet when she felt some one at her elbow. She knew it wasn't Dawson even before she looked up for he was foolishly thinking of standing for Salem himself. She shook her head. The boy had no idea what he was considering getting himself into, but she knew exactly what she was doing. Looking up, Faith was surprised to see Katrina, who she had thought had headed off after Tom.
In answer to her unasked question, Katrina told her, I found Tom. In fact, he's on your other side. We're family, and we're here to help you take a stand. We are here to help you to help Salem. So saying, she reached under Faith's elbow and looked at Tom to be sure he was ready.
Tom was ecstatic to be with Katrina again and had been so glad to see her beautiful face gazing into his face when the light had vanished that the sight had brought literal tears to his eyes. He hadn't left her side since and was more than ready to do whatever she wanted of him, not that he wouldn't have helped Salem, and Faith, any way.
With Katrina on one side and Tom on her other side, Faith stood between the two catpeople. Her chin held high, she called out the very second Snape finished. "I STAND FOR SALEM SABERHAGEN! I'LL TAKE ANY DAMN THING YOU THROW AT HIM!"
"AS WILL I!" Dawson called out.
"AS WILL I!" Katrina told the Council.
"AND I!" Tom added, his orange tail cutting through the air like a blade.
From across the room, Celina called from the safe haven of her husband's arms. "AND I!"
"ME TOO!" Morph cried out from behind his wife.
"AND I!" Vang roared.
A chorus of other voices chimed in, bringing tears to Salem's eyes and causing Drell's, and several other Council members', jaws to drop open.
From his place on the floor, Lex Luthor smiled. His father certainly had not been counting on this!