Weiss knew something was wrong the second the bells started tolling.
She'd been preparing for a meeting with her castellan about repairing Nördliche Burg when they had shattered the quiet conversation between her handmaidens and sent her guards rushing into her room. She'd been escorted to the Great Hall by a dozen of her strongest knights, bar Klein, who should have led Jaune out of the fortress by now.
She was wrong.
Klein was in the Great Hall, covered in blood and forced to his knees. A group of four guardsmen held him down, pointing the tips of the spears to his neck. Next to them stood a confused and haggard looking Sergeant Nightingale, who commanded a company of six dozen guardsmen.
"What is the meaning of this?!" She demanded immediately, worry turning into rage at the sight of her wounded knight. Klein had raised her. Taught her and protected her from multiple threats from assassins to traitors. She'd be damned if she let the ones who'd hurt him escape unscathed.
"I'm not sure myself, My Queen." Sergeant Nightingale replied honestly. "I heard fighting from the stables and led some of my men to investigate. We found Sir Klein fighting some guards, only two but judging from how many he'd slain there were at least another dozen attackers."
Weiss' heart clenched. She knew this would happen. Nikos already had a grip in her court, money talks afterall,, and had ambushed Jaune using his pawns before he could escape.
"Where are those two now?" Weiss asked, focusing on Sergeant Nightingale. He was a loyal man, but even loyal men could be swayed by the promise of gold.
"Dead. Sir Klein killed one and the other tried attacking us. I doubt we'd have gotten anything useful from that one though. He'd gone mad with fear and tried taking my head off."
Weiss nodded, turning to Klein and hiding her wince with careful ease at the sight of his bloodied and bruised face.
Oh Klein. I'm so sorry.
"You are the last witness present at the event. What happened?" She asked him, forcing a harsh tone to ease concern amongst the watching noblemen she'd be biased. They had flooded into the room, and she hadn't noticed due to her worry for Klein.
"If I may, Your Majesty." Interjected one of the nobles standing on the sidelines. "But how can we be certain the man will speak truly?"
"Sir Klein has stood alongside my family for more than a decade, and I have grown up with him as a permanent fixture in my life. I will know if he lies." Weiss replied icilily, turning back to face Klein, who hacked out a cough before speaking.
"I was completing a task when I came across two guardsmen accosting some scouts I'd ordered to go out in search of the monster that attacked Nördliche Burg, Your Grace." Klein explained, raspy and hoarse. Her chest tightened painfully. She'd make sure her best healer's would check on him the second this farce was over. "They claimed Your Highness had instituted a lockdown of Nördliche Burg, refusing entry or exit. When I questioned them further, they acted suspicious and nervous. I suspected they were acting on the orders of someone other than yourself and they confirmed it when I asked them who ordered for the lockdown to be put in place."
"Did they answer?" A nobleman shouted. Lord Burly if she remembered correctly from the crest on his tunic.
"They did my lord."
"And whose name did they give?"
"They claimed Alexander Nikos ordered for the lockdown to be put in place."
The court erupted with outcry and vicious debate.
"Why would the Consort do such a thing?"
"Surely that is an abuse of his authority? What if merchants wished to enter for trade or supplies for the rebuilding efforts?"
"It is. Nikos has gone too far."
As much as it pleased her to note that many shared that opinion, she kept a careful eye on the fewer but still significant number of lords who thought otherwise.
"Surely the Consort would have a good reason for doing so? He would be foolish to risk his position so."
"Quite. Perhaps he has information not privy to us?"
"It must be something to do with the Arc boy. I've heard an Inquisitor has landed at Colkirk."
The news sent icy terror shooting down Weiss' chest. Jaune would not have as long as she'd thought to join the Order of Drachentöter and gain immunity from the Inquisition. The winds must have changed sometime in the night, giving the Inquisitor a much needed boost in speed to arrive at Colkirk.
"Do you have any proof of this? Weiss asked Klein once Sergeant Nightingale slammed the butt of his spear on the floor, calling for silence and receiving it almost immediately.
"Just my word, Your Grace." Klein replied.
"His word." Scoffed one of the noblemen. A representative of Lord Fleetfoot. She committed his face to memory. "What is the word of a murderer worth?"
"Aye. Sir Sorensson speaks truly. Thirteen staunch guardsmen have been brought low by this dishonourable knight." Agreed another, one of Nikos' dogs.
"Nay. He does not deserve the title of knight, for he stains it with the innocent blood on his hands." Another proclaimed, gesturing to the now crimson armour Klein wore.
Just hours earlier it had been a beautiful white-silver, but now it was stained murky red with drying blood. Weiss didn't know much of it belonged to Klein or the ones who'd attacked him, and that made her even more fearful for his health.
"Sir Klein has saved me from many attempts on my life over the years." Weiss snapped harshly, unable to keep polite and calm as they disparaged the man who raised her as his own. "He has my trust and I believe his word. I know when he lies too, they're is only a certain amount of times you can tell someone the cooks have run out of sweet rolls before a young girl stops believing him '' There were a few chuckles from the court. She aimed to distract from the severity of Klein's alleged crimes and it appeared to have worked. To an extent. He tells no lies."
One of the fools opened his mouth to retort, yet he was silenced with a single glare she sent his way. His life would suddenly become difficult in the months to come, of which Weiss had no doubt.
Having committed the man's face to memory, Weiss gestured at the guards holding Klein down.
"I believe in his innocence. Let him stand." She commanded, sternly but gentler in tone than when she addressed the fools who dared to question Klein's honour.
"Beloved! Do not trust in the words of that disgrace of a knight!" A familiar and all too irritating voice cried as Klein finally rose to his knees.
"Guards!" Weiss snarled, feeling viscous satisfaction at the shock on Nikos' face as Sergeant Nightingale and his men rounded on him, pointing their blades at him wearily.
"Beloved? What is the meaning of this?" Nikos asked as the court burst into noise, courtiers leaning forward at the promise of a spectacle. Some protested the action but they were easily drowned out by the eagerness of their fellows who wanted nothing more than to see some sparring. Verbally of course.
"You instituted a lockdown of my fief without my permission." Weiss snarled lowly. "Explain yourself at once."
"I was merely taking a pre-emptive measure, beloved. I had reason to believe the heretic would flee with the glory seeking liar that claimed to drive away the dragon that attacked Nördliche Burg." Nikos replied.
"Ruby Rose is no liar. I saw the silver light as she used her magic even from my quarters." She retorted.
"If I may ,your Grace." Nightingale spoke. "I concur with your assessment. I was working with my men to put out the fires around the storehouses when silver light seemed to engulf the dragon and drive it away."
"This description goes along with all descriptions of silver-eyed magic." Rasped a third voice. Lord Branwen. Weiss had assumed he'd left with the rest of the major nobles a week ago.
"We did concur that Ruby Rose was the one to drive off the beast." Added one of her own lords from the back of the crowd.
"I have reason to suspect that is a lie." Nikos retorted.
"And what evidence do you have to suspect this?" Weiss demanded.
"The Arcs have been known to use magic and enchanted weapons in the past. After reading through the effects some of these weapons had, I believe some of these weapons are heretical in nature." Nikos replied.
"What do you know of what is or isn't heretical Mistrali?" Spat one of her lords, nay her chiefs. The eastern regions of Atlas were dominated by nomadic tribes and their chiefs, all of whom swore loyalty to her.
"I studied intensively at the Grand Church at Haven." Nikos replied calmly.
"Aye. What is heretical to your religion may not be so to ours." The chieftain growled, making some of Nikos' retainers and Mistrali followers shift nervously. To his credit, Nikos remained calm and Weiss doubted even she could do that if she was faced with the clearly angry chief.
"The Vytal Treaty states Mistral has the right to investigate heresy in the Kingdom of Atlas-Vale." Nikos retorted, calm but cold. "An Inquisitor is a fortnight away from Nördliche Burg. Do I need to send him to investigate your tribe too?"
The chieftain bristled but said no more.
"That is what I thought. As I was stating before I was interrupted." Some of Nikos' lackey's chuckled, as did some of her own, leaving the chieftain red-faced and furious. "I suspect the Arcs may have possession of heretical artifacts and possibly heretical magic in the blood. It would explain their apparent fertility."
That brought chuckles from the crowd. She was losing momentum and fast. Faster than she'd thought judging from the discussions sprouting around her about his words. In all honesty Weiss couldn't blame them. Her mother had become a drunkard after three births, yet Lady Arc had managed to somehow birth eight hale and hearty children. Regardless, she needed to regain her prior momentum with the court and quickly.
"That does not give you the power to institute a lockdown of my fief." Weiss replied after Nightingale once again called for silence, hoping the reminder of the illegal act would push more of the neutral lords towards her end of the spectrum.
"I'm afraid you are quite wrong, beloved. I have both the power and the right to institute a temporary lockdown." Nikos replied.
"According to whom?" Weiss demanded, barely hiding the anger in her tone.
"The Vytal Treaty." Nikos replied, his green eyes glimmering victoriously. "Article 43-All Mistrali must and are given the power to aid in the capture of heretics, even if actions undertaken by these individuals clash with the actions of their hosts or lords."
The court burst into debate. A lawmaker was summoned, one who read through the treaty in one of it's two original copies. As the defeated, Weiss' family had kept the document. When her father died, it had been given to her.
"Consort Nikos speaks truly." The lawmaker intoned gravely. "Sir Klein has broken the Vytal Treaty through his actions. The guards were under order to stop any and all from leaving Nördliche Burg to prevent a suspected heretic leaving the castle. The Treaty states it is the duty and right of all Mistrali to do what they must in order to aid in the capture of heretics, regardless of the wishes of their current host. The law is also clear as to what should now happen to Sir Klein since he violated the Vytal Treaty."
No! That's not right! It's not fair!
She seethed on the insides. Even her staunchest supporters were now calling for Klein's head. Sergeant Nightingale looked confused but tried his best to calm the situation with his guardsmen and Weiss' retinue. The punishment for either side breaking the Vytal Treaty was a simple one.
Death by public execution.
Already she could imagine it. The jeering crowd. The executioner's black hood. The triumphant look on Nikos' face as the axe fell.
Unless…
"Klein does not need to die!" She bellowed over the din. She went unheard, so loud was the clamouring of those calling for his death. "He doesn't need to be executed!"
Luckily for her, Nightingale heard, shooting her a shocked but hopeful look.
"Silence!" He bellowed, slamming his spear into the stone floor. "The Queen has spoken!"
It took a few moments for the noise to die down. Every single face in that room turned to look at her. The defeated look on Klein''s face. The expectant faces of her all her nobles bar a few chiefs, who looked shameful yet accepting. The triumphant, smug look on Nikos' face. Not for the first time, she was glad she decided to not pursue Jaune. He would've crumbled under the pressure.
"Wergild can be paid to clear Sir Klein's innocence according to our law. I am willing to pay it." She said calmly and the courtroom burst into harsh whispers.
"Silence!" Nightingale bellowed, receiving a respectful nod from the lawmaker who'd been trying to speak.
"Your Grace, the cost of the wergild for breaking the Vytal Treaty is nearly half a million in gold and silver. An exorbitant amount but one designed to encourage people not to break the Treaty." The lawmaker spoke, the court sucked in a harsh breath. Even for royalty, Schnee royalty at that, it was an exponential price.
"I will pay it." Weiss replied, ignoring the shocked gasps of the court. "Sir Klein has been loyal and steadfast in his service to my father before me and to me as well. I will not reward loyalty with death for one mistake out of hundreds, nay thousands of good deeds."
Her words struck true. Lords and guards looked at her with newfound awe on their faces. Some would accuse her of being weak, paying a King's ransom for just one aging knight, yet to many the message struck true.
Loyalty would be rewarded. And rewarded well.
"Beloved, while I admire your generosity and forgiving nature, Sir Klein sets an ugly precedent for those who seek to break the peace between our Kingdoms." Nikos spoke, voice gentle and filled with fake love. The court murmured in agreement. The chieftain had proven Nikos' point earlier through his behaviour. "Some punishment must be laid on Sir Klein's shoulders, and surely we must allow the Inquisitor to inspect him upon his arrival to ensure he isn't affected by Arc's heresy."
Weiss paused. Nikos was right. The punishment must be severe too, to deter others from breaking the Vytal Treaty. She knew what she had to do, but already her heart was breaking at the thought of doing something so cruel to the man she thought of as a father.
"I agree. The Vytal Treaty must be upheld and encouraged to be so." She replied after a few moments, fixing a regal and emotionless mask as she turned to Klein.
Forgive me.
"Sir Klein. For breaking the Vytal Treaty I strip you of your title. You have dishonoured the title of knight and it has been taken from you until the time you may earn it back through good deeds and acts of valour." Her chest tightened painfully. "Furthermore you are to be detained until the Inquisitor arrives and clears you of any and all heretical magic."
The guards Klein had trained were efficient. The second she'd finished speaking, they'd disarmed and unarmoured him, clasping heavy iron chains to his wrists with a foreboding click before leading him to the dungeon. She would smuggle him into better accommodation later, but for now she had to plan such a thing as well as use her spies to out and purge all of Nikos' little pawns that danced around Nördliche Burg.
Her eyes blazed as Klein, head hunched shamefully and verbally abused by some of the nobles, was led from the room. She glared at Nikos, who smirked back at her.
She would show him what it meant to cross the Schnee.
Mere seconds after the doors to the Great Hall had shut, they burst once more, opened by a panting guard.
"It's Arc! He's fled from the city!"