Oh my gosh guys! I can't believe I'm back to writing. As soon as I posted that update for you guys I went right to reading through the first 19 chapters and boy had I written a dozy of a story so far. Of course, I had forgotten what I had intended for the all the plot points, but I did remember some of them. Some of the stuff I came up with is actually in this chapter already. The ultimate end is staying the same and so I don't forget I wrote it all down. This story is going to be finished. Anyway here is chapter 20 and it picks up right away from where chapter 19 left off 10 months ago. Here you go guys. Enjoy!

P.S. I wrote this listening to Hollywood Undead, particularly their new album Day of the Dead.

Chapter 20

The room was crowded. Not just crowded, but packed to a breaking point. People jostled around and over each other for a seat and several shoving matches broke out all over the seating. The noise was mostly concealed to the 'stands'. The council, which was acting as judge and jury, were relatively quiet with only the occasional man or woman leaning over to whisper to their neighbor.

Gregor's eyes scanned the room and he caught site of the one group of people he wanted to see. Margaret, Hazard, Vikus, and Nerissa were sitting off to the side and were the only viewers that weren't talking. They looked calm, but Gregor could tell that they were nervous for him. His sister was obviously very tense and he could see it even from where he was standing.

His eyes then caught another group of silent people. Luxa, Howard, Susannah, and York sat right next to the council members. A few seats down from them was Eisen, who had the most nervous look of everyone in the room. It was odd to say the least, for someone who wasn't close to him to be nervous for him. On the other hand, Luxa sat straight and her face was a blank slate. After what she had told him, he didn't seem to care that much. He was angry at her for not supporting him.

The room finally seemed to notice him standing in the doorway, and the noise dropped to the faintest of whispers as the last stragglers hissed at others as they tried to find seats. The council members straightened in their seats and their faces all took on the same stern looks. Only one person wasn't sitting.

"Gregor!" came the shout from his right. "Are you okay?"

"Yea, Margaret," Gregor replied back as he proceeded into the room. "I'm fine and everything is going to be okay. You got that?" Gregor had to be strong for his sister. She was still young and he was all that she had left. He had to put on a face of confidence even when he had no idea what was going to happen.

"Y-y-yea." The reply came, choked on tears. He watched as his sister sat down and Vikus wrap his good arm around her shoulder. She was in his good hands for now, which left Gregor feeling a bit better. He had forgotten all about his sister in the hecticness of the days before his imprisonment and while he was stuck in his cell just worried about not losing his mind.

Mareth and Perdita guided him to the raised dais in the center of the room. He walked up the small flight of stairs and stood at the railing that surrounded the white stone of the platform. His friends took position on his sides and he felt something he hadn't thought he would feel: confidence. He still wasn't too fond of his friends, but if they were willing to defend him and stand with him then it meant the world to him. He could feel confidence when there were people that he had known and trusted many times before standing with him, ready to fight with him for his innocence.

He felt pressure on his bonds and then the leather snapped apart and his wrists were free. They were sore from how tight they had kept them bound and he could feel the sharp tingle as blood flowed back into his hands. Involuntarily he rubbed his wrists and he looked at the scabbed over cuts that were still there from his first night in them. He was basically in perfect health minus the few cuts he had which were almost healed as well. It made him feel strong and sturdy instead of weak and disheveled like the court probably would have wanted him.

"Are you feeling okay, Gregor?" Mareth whispered to him without diverting his eyes from the council members in front of them. They were seated and waiting for the head of the council to start the trial. The member in question was in silent conversation with someone Gregor easily recognized: Roderick.

"Yea. I'm feeling alright, Mareth. I'm innocent so I'm not worried one bit about this," Gregor replied hiding his slight anxiety like a professional. He wasn't so sure if he should worry or not. If he should be scared of what will happen to him. He didn't have the support of his best friend and she was the one person who could possibly help him. She may have no say in the trial, but there was always the chance for a pardon. Luxa was the one and only person who could give a criminal a pardon as Gregor was well aware of. His thoughts drifted back to Nerissa pardoning him and Ares all those years back. Gregor shook his head to clear his mind of those thoughts. They mattered not in his current predicament. There was a chance Luxa could provide him a pardon. That of course relied on how she felt with the court decision and as of the last time they had talked he wasn't sure how Luxa felt. Her actions told him that she was leaning towards him being guilty, but they also had been hiding something. Something he couldn't put his finger on and something he hadn't even thought of until now. Obviously, she knew more about the accusations against him and there was much that could have transpired while he was locked away.

His eyes shifted over to where Luxa was seated and he looked at her. She seemed paler than normal and her face had the same look as when he had seen her the days previous. Her eyes had heavy bags under them when you looked closely and you could see the redness around her eyes and nose. He figured she had been crying quite often and he had a pretty good idea why. She had made a blanket statement saying she basically couldn't keep loving him at the moment. But he knew her better than that. She spoke before she thought like she did so many times before and while he had said he hated her and everyone else even he had spoken to soon. He realized that he needed them and he couldn't live without them. Any of his friends. He needed them all no matter what because they made him who he was. Without them he was just another person who was only special for being a rager and an overlander, but with his friends he was Gregor, a smart, funny, and interesting guy who they didn't just like for being able to kick ass when they asked, even though that helped a lot.

Luxa caught his eye and he flashed her a small smile. It took her a second, but to his surprise she returned it for all of a quick second and then she was back to her stoic state, yet that one small action meant loads to Gregor. It just added to his confidence; added to the rebuilding of his inner strength and his mental state. He was back and he wasn't going to let a scrawny old man dictate his life. He would fight till his last breath to prove he was innocent. There would be an opportunity at some point and he would take it and use it.

The head of the council broke off his conversation with Roderick and climbed into the council section of the room. His spot was closest to Gregor and was directly in front of the raised dais that he stood on. Gregor watched as the man slowly fell into his seat and looked down at the pieces of parchment that were laid before him. The gentleman had a stern but somewhat kind face. His didn't look all that old as his features were far from showing the usual signs of age. He was without a beard or for that matter any hair at all. There were no wrinkles in his translucent skin he seemed to be in good shape and not at all frail.

The man's eyes, however, were deep purple almost black and when they looked upon Gregor, Gregor felt very secure. It was a strange feeling to have when his judge looked at him, but it was something that he couldn't help. His eyes carried that sort of sense that everything would be okay and work itself out. A slight warmth passed through Gregor as he held eye contact with the council member. And Gregor's confidence grew even more. He felt there was a fair trial coming his way. They broke eye contact when the council member looked back at his papers and shuffled through them checking each one quickly for the information they held.

The room was silent as every attendee sat and waited for the proceedings to begin. The air was heavy and hot from the number of bodies in the room and the large doors to the room closed. It seemed as if every person in the room was holding in a collective breath waiting for the first words of the trial to be uttered. It felt like an eternity that the room sat like that and then it all started.

The head councilman stood from his seat and let the papers ease their way from his fingers to rest back on the desk. He straightened himself to his full height and locked his eyes with Gregor's again. Gregor was surprised at the man's size as he was not as small as many underlanders were and probably was larger than Gregor even was. The council member cleared his throat before he began to speak. "This trial is being held in the name of justice under our Queen, Luxa, and will be presided over by me, Heracles, the speaker of the council. The accused is to be judged for the murder of Ivan the master smith and the theft by force of a valuable piece of his property. Are you aware of these accusations?"

"Yes, sir, I am," Gregor replied. There was no point arguing that he didn't really know everything.

"Good. Very Good. The trial shall proceed then. The first witness, please." Heracles sat back into his seat and looked at the doors to the council chambers. The doors opened and a woman nervously walked in, flanked by two guards. They directed her towards a podium not even fifteen feet from Gregor's dias. Gregor could see her shaking and she was constantly shifting her feet. The nerves and anxiety were killing her. This was probably the first time she had ever been in the council's presence and it had to be worse because of the trial.

"What did you see on the day of the murder?" one of the council members, a woman, asked her in a clear and calming voice. The voice seemed to ease the nerves of the woman on the stand.

"I did not see much of anything." The woman answered her voice a little shaky. She swallowed several times and cleared her throat before continuing. "I remember being about my morning chores, collecting food and such, and I walked past the smithy. I heard yelling from inside, but that was normal. Someone was always yelling at somebody in there. I thought nothing of it."

"Is that all you remember?" another council member asked, with a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"No. I came back past a little later on my way to the bakery and I did see someone come rushing out of the store, but I did not get a good look at them. I do remember them carrying something and I assumed it was something they had bought. I did not question it. I needed to get done with my trip and get back home to watch the children."

"Thank you ma'am. You are dismissed. Next witness, please."

The witnesses that the council called in had varying stories that they told. Many of them were close to the events of the day, how Gregor had seen them. The man with the instrument that Gregor had passed by on his way to the Ivan's said he saw Gregor twice and once he looked happy and was walking normally and the second he looked angry and was running. Another person had heard Gregor yelling, but not the words he yelled. He never saw anyone leave the store however after the yelling, so he couldn't be able to say if it was Gregor or not who was angry. Gregor was happy with the testimony so far as none of it seemed to be able to put blame on him. None of it had the ability to prove he had killed anyone. However, that was about to change.

The council called in what seemed like the fiftieth witness to give their testimony. The man was large and Gregor had a vague feeling he had seen him in the street somewhere before. The man stood on the dais and looked between Gregor and the council. His face was blank of emotion and he seemed bored to be there. That face made Gregor get a little nervous. Usually the witnesses had seemed a little nervous themselves and had anxious tendencies to them. Not this man though. He stood straight and still besides his gaze switching between the two parties.

"What do recall happening the morning of the event?" A council woman a few rows deep in the stands asked.

"Well, I was walking past the smith like I do most mornings. Nothing seemed all that strange about what was happening and then I heard a commotion from inside and I stopped to listen. I heard a conversation that was escalating quickly. The party that was raising their voice was very angry that he couldn't buy a sword from Ivan and said they would kill for it. They threatened to get it no matter what and they would be back. I saw the warrior here come rushing out of the store and run into someone before he stalked away. I walked away after that."

The man finished and he returned his face back to a blank slate and his body posture returned to a very straight and rigid. The council was looking amongst each other and small conversations were breaking out. This account was the clearest one they had heard. Gregor hung his head realizing he had set himself up for this. All of those words were exactly what he said. He felt terrible because he had let his anger get to him yet again and he had said terrible things that he may never be able to take back. His gaze drifted to Luxa; he could see the fight on her face as she fought between what she had heard and what she felt. It was a battle for her and Gregor had caused the entire thing.

Eventually, Heracles raised his hand in the air and the council quieted down. "That is an interesting account of events there, sir. Is that all you have for us?" The man looked at the council and then back at Gregor. Gregor caught a glimpse of the man's eyes and could actually see a battle in his purple eyes. The man then spoke.

"There is one more thing. I was walking back past on the other side of the street this time on my way to the bakery. I again heard something from the smith and I stopped to see what was going on. I took a step towards the entrance and a man ran out. He was dressed in all black and was carrying a sword in his hand. I remember it being a beautiful sword. I was concerned though because I had seen some blood on the man's hand. I walked into the store and saw Ivan spread on the floor with terrible wounds. He was already dead when I got there. I sent for the guards and Roderick and them arrived shortly after."

The council again looked between each other before Heracles asked another question.

"Are you certain it was the overlander who ran out of the smith?"

"That I can not be certain of. The person was of similar size and height to the overlander. But there are many that match that. I can not say if it was he or not. The one thing I did notice was the hair did not look the same. It was lighter in color than the overlanders. Or that is what I saw."

"Thank you, sir. Your testimony is very appreciated." The man bowed before he walked from the council room. He gave Gregor one last look before he ducked his head and wa escorted out by the guards. Gregor calmly looked around. There was no chance he could have been the one to commit the act because he never went back. He went to the tactics room and then the high hall and never went back to the city.

Gregor was hoping this was the last of the testimony that he would be hearing. His stomach was aching and his legs were starting to tire from standing. Mareth and Perdita still stood behind him and he glanced back at them for a second. He got two reassuring smiles from them and then he turned his attention back to the assembled council before him. Heracles was looking at the sheet of paper in front of him and was reading something written on it. "Next witness," he said without looking up from his papers.

The doors opened and in walked in a guard. But this wasn't just a regular guard. This guard was bandaged and had his arm in a sling. Gregor looked at the man and vaguely recognized his features. The bandage around his head was wrapped tight and the sling held the man's splinted wrist in place. It took the guard some time to get to the dais he was supposed to stand on.

"How did you get these injuries?" Heracles asked with intrigue in his voice. Many of the people in the room leaned in to the man. This was the most exciting thing to happen on the day for them. A man with injuries was going to talk about events that probably had some action with them.

"I was wounded on the day we apprehended the overlander, your honor," he replied smugly.

"Who caused them?"

"The overlander, sir."

"Why did he do this?"

"We arrived to arrest him and he feigned no knowledge of the crime. Roderick told him what he did and the overlander resisted. He attacked us before we could draw our weapons, sir. We were lucky he never drew his sword or we would probably all have been dead. One of us luckily cut his sword belt away. Even then he was hard to get restrained."

"Is all of this true? This seems unlike something that would happen." Heralces' eyes shifted from the guard to Gregor. Gregor's mouth had slowly dropped open at the blatant lies the man had told. He didn't attack them when they had no weapons drawn. He was the one who was cut and beaten by them. He looked behind him and saw both Mareth and Perdita were staring the guard down hard. They knew he was lying. One of them had to draw a sword on them to keep them from beating Gregor to death.

Heracles noticed all of their stunned looked before turning his attention back to the guard.

"Indeed it is. The Overlander attacked me and snapped my wrist before knocking me down to the ground."

"Do you have any further knowledge of the crime?"

"No, sir."

"Thank you. You are dismissed." The guard turned on the spot and quickly walked from the dais. The man's eyes were set straight and he did not allow himself to look anywhere else; Gregor could see the effort it took for the man to not look at him when he passed. Gregor's eyes followed him along his entire course to the door without breaking contact. The man's pace increased right before he reached the door and then he stopped for the briefest of moments. He looked back and locked eyes with Gregor and his face showed exactly what Gregor had expected. The man had a quiet smirk on his face. The man knew he was lying and getting away with it.

"We shall take a small reprieve before we bring in our next witness," Heracles said before he stood and left his seat. The assembly immediately broke out into raucous conversation about what they all seen and heard over the past hours. Gregor could see money already exchanging hands between small groups of citizens in the crowd. Heads were bowed close as people exchanged whispered thoughts that they preferred their neighbors to not overhear. One group in particular was constantly gesturing in Gregor's direction and he wasn't sure if he should be happy or afraid of it.

His sister sat with her head curled up in Vikuses lap and he watched her as she obviously was crying. He felt anger well up inside him because of the bad luck of his sister. She had been put through so much and every time it was his fault. He felt like he was going to burst and then he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and looked at Perdita and Mareth as they looked into his eyes.

"Calm down, Gregor. There is much time left to this trial and I believe that Heracles is not buying some of the testimony he is hearing." Mareth was a calming factor and Gregor could feel his blood drop from a boil to a simmer as he slowly let his anger ease away.

"That guard lied out of his pants," Gregor said under his breath to his two friends checking over his shoulder that no one heard him.

"Yes he did," Perdita replied the anger obvious in her voice. That was new to Gregor as he had never heard Perdita sound this angry and yet so calm before. He had seen her yell at people and be mad, but this was different. Perdita was good at hiding her feelings and this was one of those times that she choose to show them.

"We can't change it though, so we'll just have to see what happens when trial resumes," Gregor replied before turning his back on his friends to let himself have some time to think. He scanned the crowd again and saw more and more people looking and pointing at him. He pushed those people from his mind and looked for those people that he cared about. He looked over at York and Susannah and they both gave him a quick smile. Luxa wouldn't even look in his direction, but he kept his eyes on her. He was determined to get out of this mess and to make things right with her.

The crowd grew silent as Heracles came back to his seat. They knew this was when everything was going to get. The "star witness" was about to come forth and spill the beans on everything. Heracles' stack of paper had dwindled to one sheet left and looked over it. His eyes came up and he looked to the doors.

"Next witness."

The doors opened and in strode the man that would be Gregor's downfall. Roderick walked in deliberately and took his spot on his dais. Roderick stood with a face of confidence and a happy smile as if he had been waiting for this moment. A moment to put himself on the top of the world. Gregor scowled as he looked at the man. Roderick flashed a look in Gregor's direction and a devilish look flashed across his eyes.

Inside Gregor was dieing. He couldn't put up with this. There was something going on underneath this trial. There was something that was being hidden and he didn't like it. And it all had to do with Roderick. Gregor had kept quiet through each and every persons testimony but he had a feeling that he wouldn't be able to do so this time.

"Roderick, please tell us what you saw and what you discovered about the crime," Heracles said to him from his seat. This was the most high profile person they had on the stand and he was the most anticipated witness as well.

"Thank you, Heracles. What I saw at the beginning was not much different than what most others saw. I was going to Ivan's to acquire about something I had ordered and to make some inquires about something else Ivan had. It was nothing much different than what I had done many mornings. I had walked up to his store and heard an argument and then the overlander ran out and bumped into me. I thought not much of it as the overlander often had seemed angry to me and he did apologize for running into me. When I went in Ivan didn't seem any worse for wear after the argument. I picked up what I had come for and inquired about a sword that I had asked about a few days previous.

"He had told me then that he was holding it for someone and I asked him on the morning in question if it was for the overlander. He told me I was correct and I realized that the overlander must have been angry about the sword because he couldn't afford it yet. That was what made the most sense. He told me that if the overlander did not get the money soon then I would be able to purchase the sword. I was happy about the news of course, but I excused myself from him at that time.

"I did not return until I got word from the guards that Ivan had been murdered and I raced back to his store. His body was torn apart by a brutal attack. I had seen this kind of senseless violence only a few times. It was every time from the sword of the overlander. I checked for the sword, but it was missing. I had a guard check the overlanders room and he discovered the sword and some bloodied clothes. I immediately gathered some guards and we went to arrest the overlander. He resisted, but we were able to restrain him and get him under arrest. The biggest part was the sword and clothes we found in his room. Those were all we needed as evidence."

Roderick stopped talking and looked at the crowd. Every member was muttering to their neighbor. Gregor however stood with his jaw locked tight as he scanned the crowd. There was not a single person that believed that Gregor was innocent. Even Luxa was saying something to Howard and looking at Gregor. He could feel himself losing himself and his head started to spin. And then he burst.

"I've had ENOUGH of this!" Gregor yelled silencing everyone in the room. "I didn't do any of that! Ivan was my fri-"

"That is enough from you," Heracles said cutting Gregor off. His voice was calm and contained but it was obvious that the outburst was wrong. "You will not speak unless I ask you a question."

Gregor surrendered. He hung his head and he felt a warm tear beading in his eye. He blinked it away and stared right into Heracles' eyes. It was time for something to happen. All that could be said was said against him. There was evidence he did it even though he knew he didn't. Someone set him up and set him up good. There was not much he could do and though he didn't want to he would have to take what they gave him for punishment.

"We will take a break to decide on what we believe happened and what punishment shall be handed down should we find the overlander guilty," Heracles said as he stood up. And then the stone doors slammed open and a man dressed in a black cloak and a black hood stood in them. He took a few steps into the room and dropped his hood back. He glared into the crowd and then at Roderick.

"Everyone shall sit. This trial is not over," the man said and his words were followed by everyone. Gregor's savior had arrived

Just because I left doesn't mean I don't know how to write... right? Haha. This was a fun chapter kinda. I was actually lucky that I had about 4 pages already written and all I had to do was write about 4 and half more and edit and change the first 4. Feeling really good to be back as I said before. Writing really does make me feel good. Remember reviews are always loved. Can't wait to read them.

Question: Who is this mysterious man and what does he know about what is going on?