8 May
When dawn came, streams of light broke through small cracks in the door and cast upon Ashlyn's face. She hadn't slept well throughout the night. The pain in her fractured arm along with the uncomfortable stone floor made it difficult to find any sort of rest, but she stirred now that it was morning.
The runed circle still rotated beneath her in a slow fashion, the piercing glow of which had thoroughly irritated her eyes.
The booming sound of heavy stone doors opening made her turn and look to see two elf figures passing inside. Kyanthus and Milanthius both took their seats, saying nothing to Ashlyn as they waited for the third. Minutes later, the doors opened again and Kallus strode through, taking his seat on the far right.
"I am here, let us begin," he said, looking over at his two equals.
"Yes." Milanthius folded his hands, seeming nonchalant. "We understand you have some grievances to sort through, Kallus. You accuse Ashlyn of breaking a law?"
"Correct," Kallus affirmed. "I ordered her to stay away from my House, my son, and she refuses to respect my demands."
Then Milanthius turned to the girl kneeling before them. "What plead you, child? Did you disobey Kallus' demand?"
Ashlyn sighed, dipped her head. "I plead not guilty. While it's true Kallus asked me to stay away, I broke no elvish law. Damien came and found me of his own choosing. He wanted to run away with me, and we would have— if Kallus had not interfered."
“Do not speak as though you are innocent,” Kallus warned. “I have been wise to you from the beginning, Ashlyn. I took Damien in for many reasons, one of them being to ensure his fate was never entwined with yours. You have gone and proved my suspicions correct; how can someone so young hold such malice in her heart?”
"How can someone so wise be so impertinent?” she countered. “I have done nothing but honor your son.”
"Kallus?" Kyanthus came in, turning to his colleague. "Perhaps it is time you let this bitterness go. I have known our young Sorceress to be good of heart and sound of mind. It is against her character to suggest that she has ill intentions toward you or your adopted son. I vote we dismiss this."
"No." Kallus slapped the table in front of him. "I will see her punished for her actions. She must be made an example of. How many Sorceresses must come and go before anyone learns their true natures?”
They all looked at Milanthius, saw his hazel eyes shifting from one person to the other. After a long moment, the middle lord lifted his hand and said, "I do not agree with you, Kallus. The evidence suggests that it is your son who defied you, not Ashlyn. He is not of lawful age to leave home, correct?"
"Yes," Kallus answered. "I placed Damien under house arrest, forbid him to consort with the girl."
"And then he ran away?"
"Yes. But I plan to punish Damien domestically— once I find him."
Ashlyn’s face fell into a scowl. "I warned you,” she spat. “You shouldn’t have left him back there!”
“Damien is no longer your concern,” Kallus cut in. “Once you are gone, his sense will return.”
"If anything, he’ll have the sense to stay away from you. What kind of father throws a destruction rune at his own charge? If you truly cared about his well-being, Kallus, you would have let him leave with me.”
"I will not be lectured by you, Ashlyn! I meant no brutal harm to the boy, I can control the severity of my runes."
"And I can control my powers, also," she argued. "I graduated from the Academy, I’m not careless."
Kallus tapped his fingers upon the table then sighed. "Ashlyn...you are painfully ignorant to what your physical maturity entails. The mate you bond with will be more vulnerable to you than any other. This is what I’m trying to prevent for both your sakes."
"Bond?" Ashlyn felt her cheeks flushing, her hands curling. "Is that what you think I want? To become his soulmate? I would never do something like that to him."
"And yet I fear you may already have. He follows you everywhere, Ashlyn, that is not like him. He disrespects me, he skirts his responsibilities. It must come to an end."
Ashlyn shook her head. "We have not bonded, I can promise you that."
"Really?" Kallus lifted a brow. "He has spent whole, unaccounted days with you, how can I be certain?"
She stared at the spinning circle of runes that caged her. "This device, it does more than just hold me, yes? If I were lying, you would know it."
"Hmm." He grumbled.
She could see the wary looks on the lords’ faces, how they refused to confirm or deny her knowledge. Perhaps a common person would not know about their ways to detect falsehood, but she did.
"I vote not guilty," Milanthius said, drawing all the attention to himself. "What I see here is nothing but a case of youthful whim and rebellion. No harsh punishment is necessary to correct this."
"I agree," Kyanthus nodded, "but I would ensure that an incident like this does not happen in your House again, Kallus, if only for the sake of appeasing you."
Kallus grunted. "If you wish to appease me then you'll have her imprisoned."
"And what would that do? Other than justify your needless hate for her ilk?"
"It is only justice I seek." Kallus stood, pointing at Ashlyn. "And if you will not grant me that then—"
There was abrupt movement, and Ashlyn found herself gaping as Kyanthus stormed over, yanked on Kallus' arm, and pushed it down.
"You will remove yourself, Kallus!" The elder lord gestured to the door behind him, gritting his teeth. "Now!"
Kallus stared at his colleague in shock for a moment before he gathered his composure. "Very well then. But do not be fooled; she looks much more harmless on the outside."
Once he made his exit, Kyanthus stepped down from the platform and stood at the edge of Ashlyn's invisible cage. "Ashlyn of Gumber, you have not been found guilty of breaking any laws within our realm. I am obliged to release you and dismiss your case, but I strongly suggest that you stay away from the House of Kallus. He is a bitter man, ruined by decades of disdain. I hope you have learned by now that only trouble awaits you there."
He touched his index finger to the cage, and with a quick spark, it dissolved and allowed Ashlyn to move freely. Her arm was swollen and purple with bruise, so Kyanthus carved a gentle healing rune into her wound. Ashlyn shook with a sudden onset of energy as it took effect, but within a few moments the tingle ebbed and her bones felt in place again.
She got up, realizing just how sore her legs were from sitting so long on a hard floor. She pointed to the binding rune on her shoulder. "Is there anything you can do about this?" she asked, but Kyanthus shook his head.
"Kallus may be a fool but his combative runes are formidable. It will fade in due course," he said. "I am sorry for the folly he caused you. Perhaps it would be wise to make yourself scarce in this village for a time."
"How right you are," she agreed, then looked up at him. "I am due for the human capital either way, I am content to leave. But not without Damien."
Milanthius stepped down from his seat to join the two of them, crossing his arms. "You must let that go, child," the elf advised. "Whether you agree with it or not, the orphan you brought here belongs to Kallus now."
Ashlyn considered lifting her voice to argue with the lords, but she had already seen what fighting for Damien had wrought. Pain. Heartache. Still, she was not resigned to give up hope. He would be of age soon, free to leave the House of Kallus. Until such a time, she would wait.
She bowed in genuine respect. "Thank you, my lords, for your wisdom and counsel. Now I go.”
"As our humans tend to say, I wish you luck in the capital." Milanthius smiled, then dismissed Ashlyn with a gesture.
