Forgotten Embers

Chapter 37: All Is Borrowed

Blackridge watched as Kallida stepped out and addressed the accused. "State your name for the record, please, sir."

"Eliezer Horatio Webber," he replied humbly.

"And, Mr. Webber, could you please state your occupation for us?" Kallida requested, arching around the front of the floor with his hands folded in silent consideration.

"I am a Kingsmen clergyman," Eliezer stated, his eyes watching Kallida as he circled around him.

"Mr. Webber, as a Kingsman, do you consider lying and deceit to be immoral?" Kallida asked him with a quick glance and a clever smile.

"I do," Webber replied simply.

"Then tell me why, Mr. Webber, you have lived for the past twenty years under false pretenses and a fraudulent identity!"

'Kallida's a fool if he thinks this will work. Painting Eliezer as two-faced and self-interested is about as credible a cause as claiming that the sky is grey because it has clouds in it. The fault in the approach is with Eliezer, himself. The man is too meek to be believed as a conman. Still, the way the crowd reacted... terrifies me.'

"It was necessary should I return to Pyre as I had hoped to fulfill my position as ambassador that my identity as a court officer remain unknown. Elsewise would I have put in jeopardy the lives of countless others."

"Were others your concern or was it your own self-preservation that you had in mind? Isn't it true that you knew if you were identified it would jeopardize your own life?"

"No," Webber insisted. "It wasn't like that."

"No? Then why not turn yourself in? You knew you were wanted. You clearly recognized the danger that you, as an outlaw, would bring to those around you. So, why would you not turn yourself in, if it were truly their safety you had in mind?"

'I'll give Kallida effort, but nothing more. All that man does is out of concern for his companions and his God. There is no way to rectify that with the appearance of a man Kallida is trying to create. There is a quiet genuineness which will save him... at least from shame, if not from death.'

"I am that I am not to myself only, nor to the people among whom I minister, but to the Supreme King, whose I am and whom I serve. It is to Him that I have committed my life, and it is He who has spared me from the shackles of death. To throw away such liberty I would consider utmost treason."

"So, then, you admit that you serve another king."

Blackridge was appalled. His eyes widened. 'No! What is he doing? Putting the whole of the Kingsmen on trial? But he can't!'

"The governments which rule over men are those which are subject to the Divine governance which has authority over nations and kingdoms and peoples. All creation is subject to Him and His judgements. Any governmental authority which is exercised here on earth is merely borrowed, awarded according to His just allocation. Nations rise and fall at His hand. It is He who will uphold the throne of a king and it is He who will despise it. All is borrowed." He took a moment to pause, moving his eyes upwards.

All the while, Kallida watched him as a serpent ready to strike.

"You have mentioned," Webber began again slowly, "my life and its value." He wet his lips, moving his eyes again from the balcony to the right. He looked to Blackridge for a moment. His gaze then swept across the crowd until his eyes finally rested on Kallida. "My life," he told him sternly, "was never mine to lose. It was never mine to keep or to uphold. My life was never mine. It was borrowed. All is borrowed."

"Such flashy words for treason," Kallida hissed, continuing his address of the court with a thin smile of dastardly delight.

'What is he doing? The Kingsmen are the lifeblood of the empire. Would he charge every one of us with treason? He could force another rebellion. Would he burn their buildings, also? It would be a blood bath... Not again.' He grabbed at the hilt of his sword, but Zahaynei stopped him.

"Adrien, hold! It's not what you think," Zahaynei whispered, leaning towards him.

'Alhor!' His eyes locked on Zahaynei with furor.

"You knew about this?" Blackridge quietly demanded.

"Don't worry," he whispered, keeping hold of his arm, "the Kingsmen won't be eradicated. This is only a means of reform."

"You knew and you didn't try to stop them?" Blackridge felt his heart hasten with his growing anger.

"Listen, Blackridge. This thinking? It's old. It should have been abandoned long ago. These reforms may not be orthodox, but they are necessary. The world is changing, and the Kingsmen must change with it. They have failed to adapt to modern times, so we're going to give them a little encouragement."

He turned to face Zahaynei, his hand still wrapped around the hilt. "This is not something to play with," he warned him.

"This is from the top," he told him. "The order came from Zephyr. All he wants is their absolute loyalty. He has tired of these questions of authority and right. No longer will he allow them to undermine his power. He says it's time that they recognized his lordship. That's what we were told. I thought you knew."

'Zephyr... he knew. He knew I would never agree with it. Such a plan would be...'

Blackridge felt everything begin to twist along with his stomach, and the world began to turn into perspective.

"What is this, then?" he asked, easing his grip on the sword.

"It's a trap, all of this. Look around you. Don't you see? The security, the guards... this isn't crowd control; it's an ambush. There's our fish," he said, pointing to Benjamin.

"Webber's bookkeeper," Blackridge breathed, still pretending not to recognize him.

Zahaynei shook his head. "The prince. Kallida sent for information on him. He has no records - no record of birth, employment, or parents, no record of schooling or housing or guardianship. They wouldn't have let him in had Colonel Garner not vouched for him. Here, Garner said the man lived with his sister, which is ridiculous, because everyone knows that Garner has no sister, but a clever tip-off nonetheless. We'll have him arrested him by the end of this."

"I see..." Blackridge replied hesitantly.

'I forget how little Zahaynei and Kallida know about some things. They were away in the war fields while I spent much of my time at the palace. I doubt they had occasion to speak with the royal gardener or his kin, and they hardly knew Dorcus. If Marcus never mentioned their association, then... I suppose they wouldn't know. Marcus must have recognized Benjamin when he saw him, but why not turn him in, then? And why mention Dorcus so discreetly? Marcus...' He lifted his eyes and watched him as he walked through the crowds of the back center section. 'Could he be loyal after all this time? Could he still want to protect him? If part of that is keeping him close, was all of this meant to help ensure his safety? Or is this all... merely a part of the floor show, and is it all a trap for me, as well?'

"Is something wrong?" Zahaynei asked him.

"No. Nothing. But I don't understand," Blackridge went on, deterring him. "Why arrest this man?"

"Look at him, Adrien," Zahaynei instructed him, directing his gaze. "Can't you see? He looks like Casper's ghost."

"He does, doesn't he? The spit and image of his father," Blackridge said, easing his grip. He looked to Zahaynei. "You really think this is the heir, then?"

"We're pretty sure of it," Zahaynei said, speaking with confidence. "Can't arrest him now, though," Zahaynei told him, releasing his arm. "We need a good clip of this."

"The trial."

"Yes. That... and they want the Seer, but I'm not sure she'll come."

"You mentioned reforms," Blackridge reminded him, his dark, steely eyes fixed forward. "Tell me about them."

"Simple," Zahaynei told him. "So long as these Kingsmen serve the High King of Himmel, we will never have their allegiance to the throne. You know. Even their sacred texts have the stories of Palmiere and his exploits. They still maintain his divine right of rule."

"The promise of his throne to be established," Blackridge plainly stated.

Zahaynei nodded. "Exactly. Of course, this creates a problem for us as some start to question the validity of the King's rule. We can't have that. So, Zephyr came up with a clever plan to let Kallida have his trial, but the trial wouldn't be about Caliphus. Instead, the trial would center about the Kingsmen beliefs and the reliability of the Chronicles. He would let all of Altruon hear Webber speak of the undying love and the truth of his King, as he does with such eloquence, and then... kill him." Zahaynei paused, his eyes stayed on Blackridge with malicious intent. "Kill him right in front of everybody."

Blackridge felt his stomach twist and his heart drop as his eyes widened with disillusionment. 'But, they can't...'

"That's why the execution's so important. We're not just executing Webber here today. All that he stands for must die with him."

Adrien's eyes dropped to the ground blindly. 'Then... that's why... none of this matters. Kallida's loss here at trial was already accounted for. He wants him to lose, because the goal is not to justify the execution, but rather to show that there is no justice, no deliverance, no hope in this land. The trial, the execution, it's all... a claim to divine rule. He is the Ambassador, after all... and Zephyr is King.'

"That's why they want Dorcus so badly," Zahaynei told him. "It's because the Kingsmen need to see there is no hope in their god, and she has proven to be a hindrance to our plans."

Adrien swallowed and he felt his shoulders droop as his eyes stung with sadness. He redirected his gaze up towards Webber once again. 'No, but... you couldn't be martyred. Not after all of this madness. The two of you...' He clenched his teeth. 'No. Darn it, Eliezer, get out of this!'

"Ah, don't look so glum, Blackridge," he said, giving him a hearty slap on the back.

Blackridge blinked, turning his face back towards him. 'He seems pleased by this.'

It was an unpleasant reminder of his present situation: a pat on the back when his friend's life was in peril, and that by his own sword.

"They can still teach the principles. All they need to see is none of this is real. Some of their leaders teach that already. There shouldn't be much resistance, certainly not here. Perhaps in the regions... some of them. Laoce is always most cooperative, and Pergum will fold... with the right incentives. Most men can be bought, you know, Adrien. We're not expecting many casualties."

'Not many casualties? No. No, I suppose there wouldn't be; because, if Zephyr's plan succeeds, then they will have broken the Kingsmen's will to fight before they know there is a battle. Still, we made a similar request of the armorials those twenty years ago, and the streets were bathed in blood.'