Chapter 147: book 3 chapter 48

After the arrival of Amethyst’s sister it appeared that conversations, at least for the moment, were over. So having nothing better to do she decided to begin with preparations to set up a camp for the night, thankful that the escorts along with the newly arrived guards had been prepared for such an event. 

If Cemi had to guess they could maybe make it to the town the other group had come from by sundown but it seemed counterproductive to make the girls backtrack before continuing to the great tree, and she was certain their was not enough time left today to continue to the town Cemi and her group came from. Then again, once Alagos returns then maybe he will have more insight on which was the best option.1

But Cemi was never one to just sit still, so camp it was. The 4 women didn’t seem to have any problems with this, well if they did they didn’t voice them though Cemi couldn’t be sure since they were now all four caught in a rather heated debate on what to do with the broken skull.

Surprisingly Himari appeared to have a way to fix it… should I interject my opinion? Cemi was torn, on one hand she felt somewhat obligated to offer her two-sense given it was now her job to watch over these four. On the other… How did she get her hands on a thunder-stag skull? And what was she doing that broke it?

Thunder-stags were sacred beasts, all but revered inside of the Great Forest. And here this girl is trying to fit a fractured skull on her head as if it were a toy? It wasn’t like it was illegal to have one, or even to go out and hunt the stag itself; it's just…

A rustling of wind broke Cemi’s thoughts as Alagos descended, landing in the middle of the budding campsite with another man slung over his shoulder. That’s right, she went into the forest to get Astari! Cemi rushed to the man only to pause when she saw the two men.

The first thing that caught Cemi’s eye was Alagos, the man’s normally stern demeanor looked… strained. She knew he wasn’t exactly the type to smile but rarely did she see him with what she could only describe as a concerned scowl as his light blue eyes had a strange darkness to them as he looked over at the women milling about on the edge of camp.

“Excuse me,” Himari’s voice rang out as she strode forward past Cemi, walking right up to Alagos and much to her surprise pointed at the ground between them. “Place him there and I will heal him.”

Cemi hadn’t actually registered Astari’s condition, having assumed that Alagos had just captured his brother. But now looking at him slung limply over Alagos shoulder it was clear that he was… rough. 

Unsurprisingly, Alagos did not move. Cemi sighed, “She wants to heal Astari.” She translated and Alagos grunted.

“Don’t let that demon near me!” Astari suddenly thrashed into his brother’s arms only succeeding in making his trip to the hard dirt much more violent than needed. With a loud oomph Astari hit the ground and Cemi got her first good look at the once proud elven man.

He crawled his way away from the small woman with his single arm, his eyes wild as he tried to scramble away. Both the man’s legs were clearly broken as they drug limply behind him leaving a very faint trail of blood in the dirt.  

“Lady Cemi,” Himari sighed, turning she gave Cemi a very soft smile… It was somehow both comforting and unsettling at once. “Can you please inform the patient that struggling will only prolong this process. If he insists on resisting treatment I will be forced to have him restrained.”

Cemi… didn’t know how she felt about what happened next. Needless to say, Astari had refused to be “treated” by Himari, but neither the escorts or guards had anyone capable of healing magic; and the insistence of both Amethyst and Rilitar that the young woman was indeed a very capable healer coupled with no one wishing to have to carry the broken man for the half day walk to the next town… there was no real option.

As two of the escorts attempted to hold the thrashing Astari down as Himari went to work… She had never heard of healing magic involving so much screaming. 

“Well, that should do it.” Himari said, wiping bloodied hands on a piece of cloth. “Oh, Hecatolite, you may want this.” She stated bluntly as she held up a shard of bone that she had found inside of the man’s hip, why she had needed to extract it Cemi wasn’t sure, but she wasn’t a healer.

“Can’t Healers numb pain… or put people to sleep?” One of the escorts asked, his face pale as he watched the woman walk away from the now still Astari. The man had eventually just… given up. A fact that surprised Cemi. The Astari she knew was a proud man, the type of man who would have died before letting a human touch him but now looking at the broken form of the man she felt a twinge of… pity for him. 

“They can.” Rilitar replied coldly, unlike the other guards he looked unfazed by the display as he scanned the nearby forest for anything attracted by the noise. “She probably could have healed him completely with a tap of her finger.”

“Then why?” The escort's face twisted in disgust. “Was she just torturing him?”

Rilitar sighed, turning away from the man, “She saved his life. I won’t question her methods after what he did.” Glancing back at the group of women who had erected a camp of their own in the time it took Himari to finish, two tents around a tiny campfire and… a table? “It’s a small revenge, but one I can’t say he didn’t deserve…”

The benefits of traveling with a space mage Cemi assumed, as she watched the four of them sit around a small table carefully placing the bloodied bone into its place on the skull. 

It was late that night when Rilitar had finally given the two chairmen a full report of what had happened. The recounts of what led to Himari all but dissecting the elven man in question made Cemi’s blood boil. She found herself wondering why she would have volunteered to heal the man at all.

If someone had attacked her in the middle of the night Cemi doubted she would have ever been able to forgive them but not only once but twice Himari had gone out of her way to heal extensive wounds on the man. 

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“Amethyst really wants to make a good impression on the eleven council. And though I don’t think she asked Himari to do it, her group seems to be dead set on making that happen.” Rilitar informed her with a shrug, “Hecatolite said something about judgment, though I don’t think she actually cares much. If she had her way, she probably would have killed him that night when she… took his arm.”

Neither of them commented on the young man's sudden nervousness, they had all they needed after all. “What do you think ,Alagos?”

“I…” Cemi couldn’t remember ever seeing the man look so… tired. But here, illuminated by a dyeing campfire the tall worrier slumped forward, his long light blond hair hiding his face as he stared into the dancing flames. “We have laws for this. Astari has not only abused his position as an elder for his own gain, but he also assaulted a foreign dignitary and could have endangered our entire nation through his actions…”

“You’re not saying?” Cemi’s throat was suddenly tight as she realized the implications of his words. Astari did deserve his punishment, he was a small petty man who has done nothing but blunder his way into power and then abuse it but… 

“Our laws are clear on this matter Cemi. Even if there was another option…” Alagos sighed, leaning back in his chair, his hand resting on the pommel of the sword beside him. “Astari is a proud man who would never lower himself to a life of servitude.”

“We… we should bring him before the council.” Cemi protested, only for Alagos to shake his head.

“It's a three day walk back, Cemi. With an uncooperative prisoner and the delegation in tow.” He replied, “It would be asking for trouble. We should pass judgment now, and then focus on keeping a very close eye on those four girls.” 

Much to her surprise even Rilitar agreed with his father, leaving Cemi with a sinking feeling in her gut. Alagos was right, and there would be no tears shed for Astari but… “Does it have to be you? Can’t one of the escorts…” to ask a man to execute his own brother. His own flesh and blood…

“It is my duty, as Chairmen of Defense, I swore to protect this land from any threat.” With one final breath Alagos face seemed to harden, “Astari probably doesn’t even realize the amount of danger he put our entire nation in by crossing that girl, Cemi. That Hecatolite is dangerous, even if she wasn’t part of a delegation from the Empire, she is someone we should strive to not make our enemy.”

“What happened in the forest?” She asked, now confused on how the crying girl who had returned had shaken this man so much that he would be willing to go to such lengths to placate her.

“I don’t know.” Alagos replied honestly, “at first, we were just wandering around, I figured she had gotten lost but… then she changed. I had never seen anything like it before, it was like the forest itself cleared a path for her. Even flying at full speed I couldn’t keep up with her, by the time I got there Astari was laying in a heap on the ground, and she was calmly sitting on him inspecting the skull she had cracked… Cemi, that girl shattered Astari’s legs before he could even retaliate. She didn’t use a single spell, no mana, she… I don’t know how she did it; and after hearing Rilitar’s report it’s clear. Hecatolite could have killed Astari, easily in fact. As to why she kept him alive, I can only guess it was to deliver him to the council, to us. And if that is the case, well. She did her part then, and it would be negligent to not do ours.” 

Cemi looked back and forth between the two sullen men before her, Astari was by no means weak; in fact, from what she knew, he was one of the most proficient casters in all of Felnnor. It was one of the reasons for his ascension to Elder. But if what he is saying is true then Hecatolite was able to toy with the man… 

“But to kill your own brother?” Cemi wasn’t close with her own family, but she still understood the implications of doing something like that. It’s one thing to hold him accountable for his actions, but to be the one to hold the sword. She couldn't do it. She knew that, despite all her vows Cemi couldn't have even suggested it with a straight face. But Alagos was… Stronger? More driven? What could make a man willing to do something like this? She couldn't understand, she knew Alagos was a warrior, a soldier through and through, but this? Could he actually be that cold hearted, or was it really just a job to him?

Alagos hated himself for what he knew he had to do. To put a member of his own family to the sword, it went against everything he stood for. Why he became a soldier in the first place… But, he had to. He had to be the one to correct this blunder, to shoulder this responsibility.

 As he laid down that night he sent a silent prayer to the Mother of the grove. I won't ask for forgiveness for what I must do, for it is a folly of my own creation. I have failed, not only as a leader, but as a brother. I allowed Astari to stray too far from the path, and that folly has caused suffering to the very people I swore to protect. And though I will do what I must to correct my own mistakes, I beg of you. Not for myself but for him. Holy Mother of the Grove, please forgive him, I will shoulder the burden so please have mercy on Astari.  

 

It was early next morning when they held the tribunal for Astari, with two council members along with a commander and several soldiers they went over the evidence against him and with the witnesses from a foreign nation they passed their judgment.

“Elder Astari, second son of Asari and Felgos. For your crimes against the great forest and its denizens, I Camilla, chairman of foreign affairs hereby offer you one final plea. Repent for your sins against this land and serve the Great forest for the remainder of your days, or be reclaimed by the land and become nourishment for the grove?”

“I have committed no sins against this land.” Astari spat at her feet. ”You all are blind, that monster will…” 

  Cemi cut him off with a clap of her hands, “Astari, you have made your choice. May your body nourish the land and the great mother have pity on you.” She had known he wouldn’t take the plea, in fact Alagos had been against even offering it to him, but still…

As Alagos moved into place Cemi couldn’t help but feel for the man. His jaw clenched as he drew his sword. Alagos raised his sword wordlessly, he took several long breaths. 

Cemi couldn’t watch… there was a crack of thunder, an argument, a compromise, a decision and no one ever spoke of what happened next. The official reports are that Alagos executed his brother; one can even visit the grave, a small shrine erected from stone and dirt depicting a featureless elven man missing both his arms.

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