StarShower

Four

The king's court was much adorned in riches, but occupied by very few souls as Liius brought the small party before the king. Twenty minutes earlier, the king had agreed to hold court regarding the RAs, and Neza had spent the time between then and now trying to explain to the others that she wasn't interested whatsoever. But both Matthias and Liius seemed determined that if anyone was to go to Earth, Neza would be that subject. As Liius instructed she and Elle to stand to the side, the young Demi-Wolf realized that she secretly hoped the king would simply give orders to destroy the planet.

"Do we a have a jury?" the king asked from his pedestal at the front of the court.

Matthias came in through the main door, his hand in the air. "Your Majesty," he said. "Here is your juror: Mr. Flair Zero." A scruffy young man followed him into the room. He looked no more than a simple rogue, scraped off the street somewhere.

"I said I'd do it for a meal," Flair said. "I don't have time to work for free."

"You'll get your meal," Matthias said. "After court." He directed the young man to a wooden straight-backed chair, into which the rogue dropped gracelessly.

"We will begin," the king said after a moment. "Someone, recount the events and our options."

"3,000 RAs have vanished," Liius took liberty to speak. "This High Mage claims that her divinations say the men are in Realm 397, on a planet called Earth. Our first option is to destroy the planet, including all of Earth's natives and the missing RAs, as well as their hostage: my own brother Julius. Our other choice is to send one or two men to personally dispose of each of the fugitives and liberate Julius."

"I have a question," Flair said from his juror's seat. "If the King's Assassins were to destroy the planet in question, just how would they do it?" He sounded sophisticated when he spoke, but his speech disagreed very much with his appearance, and Neza got the impression he was only pretending to know what he was talking about.

"There's a ritual," Madame Bailey replied. "It takes a lot of power – we'd need at least two dozen mages of the highest order. And even with that amount, it could take anywhere from a month to three years or more to stabilize our powers for the procedure. And even then, it's very dangerous and tricky. If one thing goes wrong, we could end up destroying not only our world, but others as well."

"And what about these Rebel Assassins?" Flair asked. "Do they pose an immediate threat?"

"Not most of them," Matthias said. "A good number of them rank below Liius and myself."

"And the others?" Flair persisted.

"Vorr could be a threat," Liius said. "He knows the system all too well. He knows how to get to the king, and he could do it all blindfolded."

"And he outranks you?" Flair asked.

"No," Matthias answered. "Not in rank."

"But he's not just an ordinary sorcerer," Liius added. He lowered his voice as if his words themselves held a deadly curse. "He's a Demi," he said.

Flair leaned his chair back so that it stood on two legs, fingers intertwined behind his head, and clicked his tongue in thought. All too suddenly he sat straight, causing the front of his chair to clunk against the stone floor. "So, let me get this straight," he said. "The king is at risk either way. If someone goes, Vorr can easily sneak back here and do away with His Majesty. If someone doesn't go, it could take years to destroy the planet, giving Vorr an even better chance at sneaking back. And even if you do get the ritual underway, it could be so dangerous that you destroy Talion anyway, thereby killing the king all the same. Am I missing something?"

Liius and Matthias looked at each other. Neza could feel the tension between the assassins and the juror. Nobody appreciated Flair's candor. Liius finally nodded. "That's right," he said.

"Here is the jury's proposal," Flair continued. "I would go ahead and send somebody to look for Vorr. During this time, the mages can start on their ritual. If Vorr isn't dead by the time the ritual is ready, then you destroy the planet. Everybody wins, Vorr probably dies. We're all happy. Can I get something to eat, now? I came all the way from Terseto yesterday and haven't eaten since the day before."

Liius glanced at the scout, who continued to linger. "Take the jury to the kitchen," he said. "Give him a meal and send him on his way."

The scout nodded. "Right this way, Mr. Zero," he said as Flair abandoned his seat.

"If you men need anything else," Flair spoke to Matthias, "I'm staying at the White Stallion Tavern. I'll be around for a while." He winked and followed the scout from the room.

"Is it settled, then?" Matthias asked.

"You heard the verdict," the king said. "Now you must find someone to do the job."

"I think we have our men," Liius said, glancing at Neza and the determined little baker, who had long since forgotten about her bread.

The king followed Liius' gaze and nodded in the girls' direction. "Who are they?" he asked. "Have they the capacity to take care of Vorr?"

"The Demi is Neza Lyn," Liius said, "one of our own. Not a high rank, but of high skill. The other is Your Majesty's baker, a mage. Both of these girls were caught eavesdropping and we see it only befitting that they are sent to finish the task."

"We can trust them?" the king asked dubiously.

"Neza is half wolf," Liius said. "She's a bloodthirsty devil, just like all of them. She'll do the job, and the baker seemed awfully eager to help."

The king rose from his seat, his elegant robes sweeping over the floor. "Give them two day's preparation," he said. "Gather the mages for the ritual, and waste no time." With that, he headed to leave the court. A dozen or more servants seemed to appear out of nowhere, following at the king's heels, ready for any order they might be given.

Liius glared at Neza and Elle. "You heard the king," he said. "I'd start getting ready now, because when that portal opens in two days, it's not waiting."

"I object to this," Neza said, stepping closer. "You can send me to Earth, but you can't make me chase after Vorr. I want no involvement with an alien species."

"Don't be a traitor," Liius said. "If you don't take care of Vorr before the ritual is ready, then there won't a portal waiting to bring you back to Talion. You'll end with the world. Got it?"

Neza bared her teeth, showing off her pointed fangs as a low growl emanated from deep within her throat. "You're hoping I don't kill him," she said. "One Demi less is a bit more peace of mind for you. Don't involve the baker. She's pathetic and you have no need to be rid of her."

Liius just stared back. He glanced from one girl to the other. "Two days," he said. "Be ready. Both of you."