The Time Capsule

Chapter Eleven.

          Bright light showed through the hood, not comforting in the slightest to Nadia, now that she was being tried for time crimes. Her feet shuffled against the ground, being roughly pushed by the guards to wherever they were going. A dagger was held to her back, just in case she had any thoughts of escaping. Although Nadia noted, 'How would I escape? And can I even die in this loop? Not important. I just wish the Keeper of Time could get me out of this situation...'
          Finally, after what felt like forever, the hood was ripped off her head, revealing her surroundings. A giant... stadium? A giant stadium made of what looked like marble encompassed them entirely. It was enormous. She couldn't believe the size. Pillars and columns, with a giant round table in the middle, which housed about twenty people. They all sat on large chairs, also made of marble.
          Nadia had no clue as to how they got here, but now was not the time to ask. "Nadia Wolfe." A booming voice rang out into the stadium, echoing everywhere. "You will be tried for your crimes against the law. The punishments will range from freedom to death. Or much, much worse. Are you ready to begin?" The person who spoke, a very tall man who sat on one of the most noticeable of the chairs, with long red hair and eyes devoid of color.
           'No. Not really.' "Yes. I am." She quietly replied, hands unable to shake because of the cuffs. "What do you need me to do? Present an alibi? And you're the High Council, right?" 'Stop. Talking. But the problem is, I might be killed! And death makes me nervous!'
          "Are all mortals this... ridiculous?" A High Council member disdainfully looked at her, sniffing in indignation.
         "Most of them are." A voice replied, and she saw the Keeper of Time appear. 'He might save me! Wait... he said he has no hand in the punishment.'
          "Let us begin if the mortal has no further statements?" The same council member spoke. Nadia shook her head. She was taken to a large podium with a tall chair, and she sat on it, facing the entire table of members. Because that wasn't nerve-wracking at all.
          "We read your crimes. Would you like me to read them aloud?" A different member asked her, knowing her answer but beginning to read anyway. "Disobeyment of the Laws of Time. Interacting with other Loopers. Deceitful behavior to Fate. Tinkering with the timeline."
          'That's a lot of crimes...' "May I speak?" She inquired, her voice sounding small and afraid. She hated the way she sounded. The High Council all agreed to let her defend herself. "I would like to clarify: The Keeper of Time told me not to speak to other Loopers. I disobeyed. But not in the way you might think. I was looking for them because I was... trying to help Roman Adair with something."
           'Don't give everything away to them.' "I didn't realize they were Loopers until I mentioned the Keeper of Time, and they said they knew him. We met up the next day, or the day reset, or however you want to call it. They told me that they were banished from ever finding a way to escape from the Keeper of Time because they had deceived him. I spoke against them, saying that they had no right to do such a thing. I defended his honor. Then I left, and I got arrested."
          Nadia's voice was gaining in volume. "Deceitful behavior to Fate? Why, how nicely put. I have deceived Fate, yes. But it was to escape this time loop. Fate has been after me and threatening to kill me, and you have done absolutely nothing about it. I had to try to find a way to escape, and the Keeper of Time and I came to a deal. In doing so, this angered Fate, and I had to hide from them for a little while. I do not think what I did was okay, but I was doing what I could to survive." The air was so silent and tense that if someone dropped a pin, you could hear it.
          "She dares to insult the High Council like this? By saying we have done nothing to help her?" A councilor yelled in outrage.
        Voices overlapped. "I see no such problem with her trying to escape. She might be right."
       "This is outrageous! I declare her a criminal. I don't think hiding from Fate is legal."
       "What is this deal she speaks of, Keeper of Time?"
        "She is a criminal!"
        Nadia held in a breath, hoping to continue speaking. She would do anything to escape arrest. "The deal that Roman Adair and I formed has nothing to do with any of you. I would rather not discuss it since it's none of your business." Again, silence accompanied her statements.
         "She dares to mock us? To laugh?" A councilor began to yell, promptly being shushed by the rest of the group.
           Roman Adair stepped forward. "I do not condone her actions, but put yourself in her shoes. Being stuck in a time loop for almost a year and having no way to escape? Almost being killed multiple times and having her friends hurt because Fate is being a brat?" He then whispered, "Put that off the record."
         "He speaks the truth. That situation does sound... unpleasant. But shouldn't she at least have a punishment for deceiving Fate and accidentally speaking to Loopers?" One of the councilors argued.
         "Perhaps. We can come to an agreement on a punishment. Hopefully." A councilor spoke softly.
          "A punishment? On what scale?" Roman Adair queried, grimacing. He looked at the scene in front of him: Confused councilors and a prisoner in a time loop.
          "We shall discuss it. In the meantime, you will be held in the Time Pit." One of the councilors that seemed to be more in charge said.
           "The Time Pit? Hold on... isn't that against my... rights? I don't know. That sounds slightly terrifying." Nadia loudly argued. "I don't agree with being held against my will while you decide on a punishment for things I didn't do wrong. Mind if I leave now?"
           "Please do not continue that argument. You're going to get yourself into more trouble." The Keeper of Time frowned.
           "Oh... sorry. Actually?" She glared at everyone. "I will speak to the fallacies that you have all brought upon me. I disagree with your decisions. Locking me in the Time Pit? Deciding on a punishment? Not even helping me escape the loop because "Fate will decide" or whatever the heck you're talking about?"
            The councilors all looked at each other, the air turning thick with tension. "Take her to the Pit." One councilor yelled, and the rest joined in with the screams. "TAKE HER! TAKE HER! TAKE HER!"
             Nadia badly wanted to cover her ears, but the cuffs wouldn't let her. Two guards seized her, grabbing her and dragging her out of the room. The last thing she noticed were the black orbs of the Keeper of Time. The ones that let her be taken to the Time Pit. The echoes of the councilors' screams followed her as she was shut out of the brightly lit room and all the horrors within it.