Chapter 30 - Sham Trial

A witch hunt for the Inquisition and any Zonian descent has begun. The Inquisition has overturned many families suspected of having ties with Margaret and Abigail into their custody. To show fairness, the Inquisition made public trials. The guilty are sentenced to life imprisonment at the Abandoned Abyss. And despite the power that the Inquisition wielded, the streets remain bloodless. There was no senseless killing, and everything the Inquisitor did was within the Inquisitor's promise to the King.

With each guilty verdict, the people's approval of the Inquisition grew, and more young people voiced their support for the Inquisition and the King.

As weeks passed, the Inquisition almost reached the Kingdom's entire region. The only realm it hasn't visited is the Frosthold, the most northern part of the Kingdom. Positioned in an icy terrain, surrounded by the intense cold winds of winter and the tall mountains, the Inquisition's visit to this region was difficult.

Messenger pigeons couldn't reach Frosthold. The northern gusts blew them off course. Thus, the Frosthold couldn't send messages or receive news from the other regions of the Kingdom about the Inquisition's developing power.

Despite this, Berg and George still have to help Ingrid get her people to Tarwood. Frosthold endures the cold. Ingrid's people do not.

Berg has departed from his castle, and the next batch of people is going to Tarwood. Ingrid will follow, accompanied by a trusted Frosthold knight, on their way to Tawood next week, and George will stay to manage the castle in his stead. Their journey was difficult, as expected, but never dull. Berg's cheer stories, robust ale, and wine kept his company warm and moving.

They arrived at one of the Kingdom's border outposts five days into their travel. The green shrubbery at the site brought a smile to the worried travelers, but it quickly turned into a frown when the guards asked them to return to Frosthold until the Inquisition allowed them entry.

"The Inquisition, my Lord… I've lost count, but they've issued over seventy new laws. One of them requires border inspections conducted by an Inquisition agent. Unfortunately, there are none here at the moment." The guard apologized to them, saying they were following the law.

Berg showed the guards a writ from the Princess for their safe passage and reasoned that they had been always passing this border since the weeks before. If they are not permitted entry, then the Princess would notice the lack of people working in Tarwood, which might cause the Princess to get mad at the guards.

The guards looked at each other and slowly doubted their decision. Knowing the Princess outranks and will always overpower the Inquisition's law, they decided to open the gates for them.

"Seventy new laws by the Inquisition? This does not look good for the Kingdom," Berg shakes his head as he leads his company further inland.

Once Berg arrived at Tarwood, his company immediately consolidated with their families living there. Berg saw Tarwood's industrial and economic boom for the first time since the last time he had been here. Proud of what William and John had done, he immediately sought them out.

Entering the town hall, Berg was greeted by busy workers working to improve the building's foundation. On the top floor, where the mayor's office is located, a group of researchers surround William, discussing some sites they must investigate. Berg didn't interrupt and watched how his student had grown into a man that he and Eldric could be proud of.

"The Princess will handle the funds; however, you will need to convince her which of the sites we need to develop first," William said, pulling out a paper with the Princess's approval of Harold's team.

"Each site will not only not need to turn into a profit but also something that the next generation will inspire them to be thinkers and appreciate the things we do for science," Julie added.

After the meeting adjourned, the researchers left the room, and William was left with Julie beside him.

"May I interrupt you, Mister Mayor?" Berg jokingly said as he knocked on the door. William lifted his head and saw Berg. William immediately hugged him, and William introduced Julie and Berg to each other.

"Woah, are you a bit young for that, William?" Berg said with a playful smirk and laughed after a short pause. He blessed William and asked Julie to guide his young pupil in these trying times. Berg then asked what the research team was for, and William filled Berg in on what had transpired since the Frostholds left the Capital.

Shocked by the attack on the Capital and the witch hunt happening in the Kingdom, Berg asked the two how they were holding up.

"After the attack on the Capital and meeting up with the Princess, we are doing well. . ." William paused and looked outside of the window, looking over Tarwood. ". . . but the assassins are still out there and occasionally attacked the Inquisition agents."

Since the reinstation of their old power, Inquisition agents have been seen traveling around Tarwood but never entered. William thought the Princess's speech had finally gone through their thick skulls but feared the assassin's threat was still present and might soon stage an attack. William ordered abled men in Tarwood to train and prepare for an attack.

Julie shared troubling news: anyone with past ties to Abigail or Margaret was being labeled guilty. Her mentor, Harold, might be next. This is why William took him in here in Tarwood to ensure his safety, and John went to the Princess to make a special order not to include Harold in the Inquisition's sight.

Berg, outraged by the Inquisition's abuse of power, wanted to personally punch the Inquisitor in the face just to put him in place, for this abuse of power reminds him how the Inquisition used to treat the Frosthold before.

But William is glad Berg is here and asks him to stay for a few days. Berg accepts his offer, knowing that Ingrid will be here next week. The air is also cold but not as frigid as he is used to in his castle. The warm food and cozy hearth give Berg his much-needed relaxation.

The following day, John returned to Tarwood, and he, too, was glad to see Berg visiting them. But John asked William and Berg to come with him back to the Palace as their news that the Inquisition had finally captured one of the Pentalium agents and could prove their powers before the people. The public trial will begin in three days. Hearing this, the three men left Tarwood and Julie to stay to help the researchers in their investigation.

While on their way to the Capital, the wind from the north finally blew snow to fall here as well. Winter finally came and painted the Kingdom into a gloomy shade of white, perpetuating it in a forever state of darkness. The people wanting to enter the Capital slowed William's journey more than before, for everyone hoped to attend the trial and see the captured Pentalium member.

They arrived at the Capital a few hours before the trial started. The three were greeted by a crowd similar to that generally found at the Grand Tourney.

The three wasted no time and immediately went to the public courtroom. Once they arrived, they spotted the Princess arguing with the King. William could not hear it even with his power due to the crowd murmuring intensely around them. Seeing the Princess's composure shattered into a panic made William, John, and Berg think that whatever this trial is, it might shatter the Princess' confidence in the Inquisition.

CLANG! A loud bell reverbed around them, signaling the start of the trial.

The Inquisition flag entered the public courtroom. Beneath the lengthening shadow of their flag, the Inquisitor marched proudly. Besides him were his soldiers who combated the assassins. All were decked out in red and dark armor and a golden mask to hide their faces.

Snow began to fall as the trial began. The cold wind and silence kept everyone anxious about what would happen next.

The Inquisitor started the trial by congratulating his brave soldiers, whom he called the Blades of the Inquisition, for helping to patrol the roads. With their intervention, they saved many Inquisition agents from another ambush by these assassins. Among the assassins, the Blades managed to capture a member of the Pentalium.

Then, the Inquisition signals his right-hand man Morgan, who has the armor of the Blades but a unique design to his mask. The mask shows a large grin, which is where the wearer's mouth should be. Morgan and the Blades dragged the bodies of the assassins they intercepted on the road, which they presented to the public.

"See the sigils they bear!" the Inquisitor said, showing the insignia of the dead assassins before the crowd. He mentioned some families, such as Blackstone, a Greymound knight missing in the Keep many weeks ago, and the knight who shocked William, Berg, and John, a Frosthold knight.

A Frosthold knight as an assassin? The boys and Berg know this is impossible and far from the truth.

Berg yelled and flared in anger. "Show us the bodies!" Other knights followed him, demanding to see the bodies to confirm their suspicion.

William was familiar with the man who approached the body of the Greymound knight. William knew him as the captain of the knights stationed at the Keep. William overheard the man recognizing that this Greymound knight was the same one missing from his post weeks ago.

The other who examined the bodies also confirmed the dead to be theirs, but all deny that these are assassins. They insisted something was wrong. This was a setup, a smear against their families.

Behind the Inquisitor's cold demeanor, he is delighted to see the knights suffering and the citizens' trust in their protectors shattering before him. For him, the murmurs and the shame the people talk underneath their breath is a satisfaction he will never forget.

"Who saw the attacks aside from the Blades?" Rolfe asked as he inspected one of his dead knights, who was suspected of being an assassin. He noticed these 'assassins' came from families who voiced their concerns against the Inquisition or, in Frosthold's case, had a negative interaction with them before. Rolfe smells

"An Inquisition messenger, age fourteen, was killed by the assassins, and my Blades gave chase. The assassins ambushed my agents, and my Blades defended what remained of the group. The assassins are targeting the Inquisition, for they are afraid of us. Do you want to know who saw the attacks? Ask them in the infirmary or see the ones who suffered under the assassins' attack!" the Inquisition then pointed to Rolfe to another pile of bodies. These are Inquisition agents killed on the field. And the Inquisition turns back to Rolfe to ask the dead who attacked them.

The Inquisitor raised his voice, slicing through the chaos like a blade. "They wore cloaks, but I saw their fangs. They smiled, but I smelled their rot. These are not citizens. They are serpents. And they've slithered into our homes!"

The crowd stiffened. Then, like a dam breaking, the booing began.

Rolfe stood against the Inquisitor, declaring him a tyrant, and vowed one day to expose the Inquisition for the fraud that he was.

John and William notice that some dead assassins are not wearing armor. From a distance, they recognize their clothing, familiar northern mountainous clothing fit for hunting.

Berg knelt beside the fallen Frosthold knight. The man's face was bloodied, but the crest on his armor was unmistakable.

"He was supposed to protect her," Berg whispered. "I sent him with her."

His gauntlet clenched around the man's armor. "And now she's alone."

Ingrid's body trembled as Morgan yanked her forward to the Inquisitor's feet. She clutched the bag of stones like a child clings to a blanket.

John staggered back as if punched. Then he dropped to his knees. "I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice cracking. "I should've been there."

William's Zonian blood urged him to kill. His anger tells him to kill the Inquisitor for what he has done to their friend. But he can't. He won't. He must remain calm.

"Barbarians have been a thorn in the Kingdom's side for many, many years. We thought they could not defeat us—until now! They used the Princess' kindness against us. They posed as workers in Tarwood, and this is what they gave us in return," the Inquisitor said while Morgan threw two bodies before the King and Princess. Beneath the dead’s cloak reveals the faces of the men from Ingrid's tribe.

"The border guard pointed out that they were coming from the north. And do you know where these barbarians are holed up? In the Frosthold Castle!" The Inquisition paused and looked into William's eyes to enjoy the despair seeping into his soul.

Berg was showered and thrown with stones. His armor protected him, but not his pride.

"My Blades was able to capture this one. During my interrogation, she had the same devil magic that Abigail had. Show us, heathen!" The Inquisitor bellowed.

The pain Ingrid experienced was so harrowing that her rebellious nature was non-existent. For a moment, she looked up, eyes swollen, lips cracked, and met John's gaze, then William's, then Berg's.

Something flickered in her. Guilt? Defiance? Hope? But it died just as quickly.

Ingrid threw rocks and showed the symbol: 'ᛈ ᛞ ᛏ,' which Ingrid interprets as meaning destiny lies in her home, for justice will be served. Ingrid smiled momentarily at her friends before she turned to Berg and showed mercy.

The crowd immediately declared her heretic from her display. The Inquisitor is right; magic is one of the devil and deserves to be branded as a witch. The crowd wanted her burned, but the Inquisition asked them to stop.

The Princess stood like a statue from afar, but her knuckles were white, and her eyes never left the Inquisitor.

He says to listen to the prophecy and let them destroy it. The barbarians have invaded their home, their Kingdom. So, it is right for them to go to Frosthold Castle and kill them. The Inquisition asked not to be mad at the Princess, Tarwood, and Berg, for they are all deceived by the barbarians' honeyed words.

The Inquisitor raised his sword. "Let the fire cleanse what mercy could not."

The crowd roared. "Death to the heretics!"