Chapter 107: Book 2 Chapter 48: Jury duty

Well, ultimately, the reason was the conditions surrounding the trial. It was the war being fought below by the war and defense committees, the dryads suddenly sprouting up like any other plant out in the villages and pulling attention from the arbor committee, and then just today he discovers he would be arguing against his own lord Faranti who demanded he argue his absolute best case against him. His lord was truly demanding the impossible of him in this, he was supposed to argue that the magus Eirlathion was at risk of running away if he was not kept in the iron heart. It was such an impossible task, a part of him actually felt compelled to run back to Mr. Steven and ask him what the proper procedure was in a case where they generally were not at risk of fleeing, because the scant few arguments he could make would all impune the honor of the royal family, the queen in particular, in one way or another.

In the end, the only options he had were to first suggest Mr. Eirlathion may be cunning enough to fool the great tree into allowing him to leave. He ought to know the workings of a tree spirit’s mind well enough due to his long-term association with the one currently causing all these problems after all. This argument was quickly overturned though by his lord stating that even if he left, it would be impossible to avoid discovery on the open expanse of the Heaven’s Scar. After this, he was forced to resort to hinting that he may receive aid from some unspecified person. Of course, his lord quickly listed off there were only 3 people Mr. Eirlathion had associations with, and one of them held no such power. The remaining other two were the dangerous ones Gailben dared not refer to.

Gailben had not required sleep for centuries since becoming a great fairy, but after the chaos this trial was turning into he felt the desire to simply lay upon a soft mattress and close his eyes as he shut off the world for some time. On top of that, the trial was going to be tomorrow! At this point, he felt as though the entire proceeding was turning against him in the worst way possible. It was clear the guilt or innocence of Mr. Eirlathion had ceased to be the driving force behind this trial, it was becoming an insult to everything the justice committee stood for! Could this be why his lord had chosen to stand in for the defense for this part of the trial? Perhaps he could see it too and had decided the way things are being done are wrong. But, there are still several very suspicious points about the events he had heard about as they occurred in Cundo village. It simply did not sit well to not dig into them further.

Gailben couldn’t help but admire the proceedings of the princess’ world. Already they had yielded fruits. In the investigation of the incident, they had discovered the depth of the threat posed by the dryads, and Gailben had learned things about the incident that only proved to increase his own certainty of Mr. Eirlathion’s guilt in what had occurred. He would have very much liked to have seen this play out according to the proper procedures Mr. Steven had told him about. But, as it stands, it is becoming nothing more than a spectacle.

He could do nothing but sigh in resignation and wait for tomorrow it seemed. So, Gailben simply flopped face-first into the pillow of a bed that had belonged to one of the elves currently making the journey on foot from the old site of the capital to the new location it was moved to. He’d had to fly all the way down to the lower groves that rested under the branches of the great tree in order to find this place as the guest rooms for the non-fey visitors were simply not something a person of his rank station could make use of.

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??? POV

Late in the evening, the capital caravan was settling in to the camp they had pitched. Moving this many people clear across the fairy queen’s forest on foot while fighting and dodging demons had been a logistical nightmare for those in charge to manage. It seemed more of the day was dedicated to pitching and breaking camp, leaving only a short matter of a few hours to get any actual progress made.

As they passed, a foot-worn trail showed the path they had taken. The leaves and pine needles were ground to dust and kicked out of the way, while the soil beneath their feet was compacted down into a smooth path. Even the best rangers could not cover tracks like these. The only option that would stop this alteration of the forest floor would be to spread the caravan out over a wider front and reduce the number of feet walking across the same patch of land, but this would make it far more difficult to defend the actual people while simultaneously also increasing the likelihood of an encounter with a demon. And so, the elves had no choice but to disturb the forest floor and leave an obvious trail for anyone to clearly see where they had passed.

What’s more, the elves of the capital did not keep any humans. The dragons were annoyed by humans since they could not understand the language of the spirit, and there was also never a need for them as the great tree provided more than enough energy to meet their needs. However, now that they were traveling far away from the great tree and they also had no humans, they needed to pick the trees clean of all fruit, forage the forest floor bare of any edible plant, and even resort to eating meat like a human as they wiped out large portions of the wild life along their journey.

On this day, as they were preparing their evening meal the hunters had caught during the day, the members of the caravan heard the long cry of a dragon causing all the heads to turn toward the sky. There was wonder as the large form of a true dragon revealed itself above the canopy as whispers asked why this lord of the fey court would be in this area so far from the great tree. As the majestic serpentine form began to circle their camp, everyone was astonished at the realization the dragon was coming for them, and the voices full of wonder became excited and several mothers had to get their small children under control and scold them to be on their best behavior as this fey noble spoke to them. By the time the great flying serpent came below the canopy and began coiling itself around the nearby trees, all the leadership of the caravan began gathering nearby the tree the noble had coiled themself around. They did not have long to wonder at what the dragon wanted as he spoke his need the moment he settled himself.

‘By order of her majesty the queen, Oren the wise, twelve magi capable of magic that is of the third rank or higher are to be brought to the capital in order to aid in addressing a growing situation that has arisen involving the dryads. The details of the role you are to play will be explained upon your arrival. If your membership does not include a sufficient number of maji of an appropriate level of power, a warrior of comparable power is acceptable in this situation as the primary need is your ability to resist the effects of the arcane energies of the capital. As time is of the essence, I shall personally provide you with transport. Rest assured, you will not be at risk of injury or death in the events that are to come.’

What is this!? The mages are going to be allowed to ride on a dragon? And a true dragon at that!? Several of the average folks in the crowd had looks of astonishment, excitement, and jealousy on their faces. However, the magi themselves, especially the more senior among them, were looking quite serious. This dragon had just used the true name of the queen. This indicated this really was a matter of great importance. They could not understand the purpose behind this summons, but there was simply no argument with such a high order.

The maji and the warriors were of great importance to the caravan. The maji knew the plants of the forest far better than any other and were part of how they were able to find enough food. The warriors were very important in for protecting the caravan against demons. However, there was no question that an order from the queen took priority over all of that no matter how hard it made things for them. The dragon had said it was related to the dryads. It truly must be quite serious, but then how would it be that a mere 12 elven mages could contribute something the queen, or even a dragon of the caliber of the one who had come to bring them along, could not?

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??? POV

The loss of so many maji and warriors would be harsh to the caravan’s ability to make their journey. However, by the words the dragon had spoken, it did not sound as though the specific class of mage mattered so much, and he did not even specify it had to be an elf. For all they could tell by what had just been said, a gnome metal forger such as Taminarda, the master of his workshop, ought to be quite able to fit the position. If resistance to the arcane energies was all that was needed, he could do that quite easily. Besides that, there was no need for a master of metalwork to be present on this journey.

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The main need for him and his apprentices and journeymen had been to repair the swords, spears, and arla slayers used by the warriors, and a master was not needed for that. The only place his skills would make a difference would be in the refining of raw metals from ore, the imbuning of elemental energies into said metals, and the ultimate final transformation of the metals into a finished work. The caravan would not be hurting very much to loose him, they could keep an elven forest mage in exchange for him without much trouble. And besides that, it’s not every day a noble of the court offers to personally transport you to the great tree. He may have been several centuries old, but that did not lessen the great appeal of getting to fly in the sky, and if anything it only made him feel more able to accept the extreme honor and privilege of being permitted aback a dragon noble.

Fortunately, the dragon found him acceptable, and once the other 11 were gathered as well, all of them were lifted into the air by the invisible hand of the dragon’s wind magic. They were told to take hold of his mane, and then he floated back up above the trees before giving a mighty flap of his wings and zooming off toward the new site of the capital in the middle of the scar left by the devastating heaven’s fall. He could feel the wave of powerful spirit energy hit him like a wall. He had grown used to the energy put off by the great tree, but they were still a way out from the new site of the capital. It was beyond amazing that the lingering energies from the heaven’s fall had dispersed and spread out this far, creating a feel of being in the capital from a distance where the great tree is still far enough away it is only a large feature on the horizon rather than a massive wall dominating your vision.

Below them though, as they approached, the even more astounding sight of the devastation created by the heaven’s fall was quite evident to be seen. Taminarda had only heard stories about how vast a swath of forest was simply uprooted by the force of the explosive power that had carved a chunk from the ground deeper and wider than the great tree itself. He could not believe such a thing was possible, but seeing is indeed believing. This sight was something that could not be told in words, and the most astounding thing of all was the fact that the story about the pit in the center of it was indeed true. That pit that extended deep into the ground into the vast expanses below could easily swallow even the otherwise massive great tree whole. He had never in his life imagined that anything could ever make the great tree appear small by comparison, but he was looking straight at such a thing right now as the capital was suspended in the center of the pit with enough room to spare for yet six more capitals complete with six duplicates of the great tree surrounding it, with room to spare at that.

An elf man clinging to the dragon’s hair in front of Taminarda let out an audible groan of unease at the sight.

“I know.” Another man said, chuckling nervously. “Heaven’s scar they call it, huh? I heard the stories, but…”

‘It was an event that truly changed everything in this world.’ The dragon noble, who had still not deigned to give them his name, commented. ‘All of this chaos seems to have started with this. Well, we will arrive in a moment, you will hear more about it then.’

No, anybody who had been paying at least some attention to the rumors circulating about the capital in the two years following the heaven’s fall should be aware of what the dragon was talking about. The heaven’s fall, it seems, had originated from a powerful nearby world, the great sealed world is what those who immersed themselves in the study of magic called it. And, it had brought with it the souls of 11 deceased from that great world who then became great fairies so powerful they were said to have the ability to easily overwhelm a sub dragon, and even be considered comparable to a true dragon. And, it seems they were mere commoners from that great world who had not cultivated their energies for even a single day of their lives, such was the power of that world.

Indeed, it was also known that this great pit reached deep into the underworld, and the great fairies from the sealed world suggested moving the entire capital to the scar in order to combat them and keep them from rising up to the surface. All of the chaos in the past two years could, in one way or another, be traced back to the heaven’s fall.

Well, this dragon clearly did not seem interested in talking with them more than necessary, so they did not dare express this and also could not ask further questions. This left Taminarda feeling somewhat guilty now they were imposing on him by having him carry them like this. Clearly, the only reason he was doing it must be because he was ordered by the queen to do so. As such, they could only wait in silence and take in the awesome sight of the great tree from above as they came in for their approach. Soon, it became quite clear they were being taken to the sacred gathering place of the fey court atop the uppermost branches of the great tree. There was a clear nervousness among them as this realization became increasingly irrefutable. The dragon’s flight path left little doubt that was their destination.

“Is that… her majesty!?” One elf asked, pointing up toward a band of bluish jade scales coiling around the great branches of the upper crown of the tree. A few whimpers could be heard from those clutching to the hairs of the dragon’s mane. They were not just going to the fey court, they were going to appear before the queen herself.

They all kept their heads down out of respect as they passed into the crown of the tree. The were all lifted by the dragon’s wind magic, and while some were startled and curious enough to look around a bit, the first thing those individuals would see is everyone else who came with them staring toward the ground, and they did not want to be the only one not showing respect and so they quickly got in line with the rest.

Once their feet touched the ground, they all lowered themselves into a kneeling position. They had realized the dragon had turned them all to face the same direction, there was little doubt they were facing the queen’s head, even if none of them could see her.

‘Your majesty. I present to you the jurors who have been selected for the trial. As I did not feel competent, I have decided to leave it to her highness to explain what is expected of them.’

‘Very well.’ A feminine voice enveloped and surrounded their minds, holding them in the massive power behind it. It was clear despite the softness to it that the speaker was someone simply beyond the lot of them combined. There was the sound of movement, and they began to feel the air moving in a pattern that resembled breathing. She had come close, it had to be the queen who was near them now. ‘You may raise your heads.’ The queen’s voice spoke again. Taminarda was frozen and hesitant to do as she had said at first, but realized at this point it was no longer respectful to refuse to meet her gaze. He was afraid of what he was going to see.

As he lifted his gaze, he saw a massive wall of scales and teeth before him. Someone audibly gasped. For some reason, Taminarda couldn’t help but glance in the man’s direction, and noticed he was staring up to the tip of her majesty’s nose. When he lifted his own eyes to that point, he saw exactly what had upset him. On the very end of her majesty’s nose stood a person of anthromorph build and dressed in the robes of the noble great fairies, but there were no wing’s visible on their back. This person then was neither dragon or fairy, and they were standing atop the queen’s nose, putting the soles of their feet on her scales. Such a thing… who is it that her majesty would allow to do such a thing!?

‘I will start simply.’ Her majesty said. ‘I present to you my daughter, princess Aerien of the blue-jade dragons. She was adopted into my family yesterday following an incident with a newly awakened dryad, and the situation is still ongoing. Her power is such that it is above any other dragon here, save for myself, and her talents and worthiness for the royal family have already been proven. It is her plan that we are using to address one of many issues involving the new difficulties from the dryads. She shall explain what is expected of you.’

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