The Ordinance

Chapter One - Natalia

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It was darkness unlike she'd ever known. It was a darkness where even the shadows of the moon didn't exist; it was as if the darkness was a shadow itself.

She'd lost all track of time. It could've been days, or weeks, or months since she'd been imprisoned.

The only thing keeping her sane was the steady tapping of her fingers against the cold, smooth surface of her prison. She had no idea whether she was tapping the wall or floor, for she could no longer tell. The simple rhythm of the lullabies sung to her by her mother was a reassurance in the darkness. That, yes, she was alive. That, yes, her family would be waiting when she finally got out, or escaped, whichever came first.

When she'd first arrived in the prison, she'd tried to use her abilities to start a fire for warmth, but quickly discovered that her captors had no patience for disobedience.
"What is the meaning of this, Northfall," one of the guards patrolling her cell had shouted at her in his silly American accent.

"Doesn't one have the right to provide oneself with warmth?" She'd asked sarcastically.

"Not when they've committed a crime against the Crown. Now, cease your use of that wretched magic immediately, or face the consequences," he threatened.
   
She gave him a look of disgust, "The Crown means nothing to me." she lifted her chin defiantly, "The only crown that matters to me is the one that was put on my brother's head when your people killed my father," she spat.
   
"Your brother is nothing but a servant to the Crown, and you, it seems, are nothing but a rebel without a cause," she gave him a piercing stare and the fire in her hands glowed brighter, fiercer. "Trying to prove something, princess? You don't scare me, you or your embers."
   
He'd gone too far. She had tried her best to make him feel the burn of her embers, but only to her own avail. That was how she'd gotten thrown into the darkness that prohibited the use of her magic while she awaited her trial.
   
At last, the guard threw open the door to her cell; she had forgotten which wall it was on. He met her with an emotionless stare, and she could see the burn marks on his cheek that still hadn't healed from their last encounter. She smirked at him
   
"Trial day, Northfall."
   
"At last, a chance to leave this dreadful enclosure." She stood, "You know, you really should put a lamp or two in here; it gets quite dark."
   
He cuffed her wrists after placing Faerie silk gloves on her hands, a fabric that didn't allow her to use her magic, a fabric crafted by her own people to be used against her. The thought made her cringe, but of course it's not like her people ever got a say in what they were forced to do by the Humans, for if they disobeyed, it would be considered a breach of the Ordinance.
   
The Ordinance is a contract that was formed by Humans and Faeries in order to stop the Civil War of 1800. Faeries and Humans were being slaughtered left and right, and both sides agreed that they would give up almost anything for the bloodshed to stop, but the Humans were manipulative. They got the Faeries to vow that any use of magic against or denied to the Humans would be punishable by branding, a dragon mark burn onto the top of the hand, so that all would know of your crimes against the Crown. Meanwhile, the Humans only obligation was to stop the brutality.
   
Though the Humans and Faeries technically each had their own governments and monarchs, the Ordinance bonded the two governments in a way that made it so that the Humans were technically in charge. However, the Humans tried to make it seem as if they were ruling their people equally with the Faeries.

Her guard led her out of the cell, and through the hallways of the prison. He walked solemnly through the prison, but she was smiling despite herself. After all this time in prison, she would have a chance to breathe fresh air, a chance to see her brothers.
   
After they had finally made it out the prison, she was immediately loaded into a carriage with the guard sitting across from her, watching all of her movements, flinching whenever she moved her hands.
   
At last, she was allowed out of the carriage. She breathed in the fresh air, savoring the cold, crisp taste of it. This was not the air of her home, but it was a welcome sensation coming out of a prison cell.
   
She looked up at the huge facade of the Council building. The Council is a judicial group comprised of three members of the royal families from the Faerie and Human monarchies. Her three older brothers were on the Council as well as the three Human royal children.
   
She was escorted into the large, high-ceilinged building decorated with extravagant paintings of cherubs floating on the ceiling, vines spreading across the Heavens, and Faerie and Human warriors shaking hands, a nod to the time when there were no harsh feelings between the races. Glutinous swine, she thought as she looked at the Humans depicted in the portrait.
   
As she walked down the cheery hall, guard by her side, her three brothers came into view and her heart fluttered. She smiled despite herself, but was met with a hard stare from each of them. She glanced at the ground as she finally came to the middle of the Trial Room, her brothers above her sitting behind a large table, elbow to elbow with the Human prince and princesses. She glanced back up at her eldest brother, Maxon, smiling at the sight of his familiar face, and although he smiled at her, she could see the worry behind his grin.
   
"Attention, Council members, distinguished nobility, and commoners," A nobleman shouted from a podium next to the huge table,
"We are gathered here today to witness the Trial of Princess Natalia Northfall of the Faeries." A series of boos and nasty shouts erupted from the commoners and nobility watching.
   
"Silence! Silence!" the pudgy nobleman yelled. "Ms. Northfall is being put on trial today, the tenth day of the January of 1860, as she has been accused of the burning of a Human government building on the night of December first, 1859." They'd locked her up for nearly a month and half; her brothers must have been outraged.
   
"We request your suggestions for punishment of this heinous breach of the Ordinance, Princess Isabelle Moonhollow."
   
"The Human Princess stood, her long, wavy brown hair shifting as she stood up. Her brown eyes shone bright, reflecting the tiara on her head, clearly made of Faerie gold. What a disgrace, Natalia thought, bitter hate crawling up her throat. Though she would soon be ruler, the Princess was painfully unintimidating. The Princess, standing at a only a little over five foot, made it so that Natalia was about a half foot taller than her.
   
"Bow before her Highness," she felt the entire audience shift into a low bow behind her, but Natalia stood tall, chin up.
   
"Bow," the nobleman commanded, much harsher.
   
Natalia spit on the floor of the hall, "You are not my Princess." She looked into the eyes of the Princess, letting her know with only a moment's glance that she was certainly not beloved by all of her people.
   
The guard next to Natalia quickly reacted and kicked Natalia in the back her legs, making her  fall to her knees. She grunted and tried not fall forward.
   
The Princess composed herself, "I am, by law, required to sentence her to a branding. That is my verdict. However, the Faeries may challenge that." She sat solemnly back down, back straight, looking completely and utterly dignified.
   
Maxon gave her a look from the his seat at the table, it was pitying, she knew he hated seeing her in this position.
   
He stood, "Natalia has not used her powers against any Human citizen, she has just defaced government property, therefore, my verdict is that she shall not receive a branding, but the month and half she has spent in prison will serve as punishment enough."
   
As he sat down, the nobleman declared, "The Trial Room is open for debate."
   
The Princess started the debate, focusing her argument on Maxon, "Defaced a building? With all due respect, Prince Maxon, she decimated public property. If there had been a guard patrolling in there, someone could have been killed."
   
Maxon began to retaliate, "I'm sure killing someone was not her intention, and you have to keep in mind, she's barely old enough-"
   
"Maybe if there had been a guard on duty, I wouldn't have been able to set the whole thing on fire. The people on trial should really be whoever is in charge of assigning building shifts. I mean, truly, I'm a measly sixteen year old girl," she looked at Maxon, "Right?" She turned her focus toward Isabelle. "This all must be very embarrassing for you, right, Izzy?" She gave her a pitying look.
   
The Trial Room erupted into fierce whispers.
   
The guard kicked her again in the sternum. This time she fell, and the guard kicked her once more in the side. As she writhed around on the ground, the nobleman called for silence again.
   
"You have broken the Ordinance, girl, and that is a crime punishable by branding. If anyone else would like to challenge me, I suggest you truly think about your argument before you do so." The meek Princess had finally managed to seem semi-intimidating.
  
"All in favor of Princess Isabelle Moonhollow's verdict raise your right hand," the nobleman instructed.
   
All at the table raised their right hands. It didn't matter to Natalia; she had known this would be how the Trial ended, it was always just a matter of how it progressed.    
A man emerged from the side of the Trial Room with a metal fire poker glowing red with heat, the dragon outline protruding from the end of it. Natalia's guard took off her chains and Faerie silk gloves at last, and placed her left hand onto a table that was suddenly placed in front of her.
    
The man with the glowing piece of metal wasted no time before placing the dragon mark on her hand, and as her screams reverberated through the circular room, both Maxon and Isabelle could not bear to watch.