The old scholar ambled to the front, wearing a dusty cloak that no doubt smelt of musty old pages from his librarian kingdom.
“As our Master of Records, do you recall any time in history where a princess has disappeared alone for such an extended period of time?” Luyna opened.
“N-N-No,” the academic stuttered nervously.
“So what we are dealing with is an unprecedented crime,” Luyna phrased.
“I suppose,” Scroll managed.
“Exhibit B.”
Luyna once again captivated the crowd by producing the skeleton key taken from Damselfly along with the bell by Orion at Shadowgarden. It was noticeable again that the benches were fuller than before with many of the performers joining the ranks. Damselfly saw Pan the juggler, Harlequin the dancer, Lark the singer along with Polter and Geist the acrobats.
Luyna hesitated only briefly before continuing her performance.
“Do you know what this is?” she framed.
“A key,” Scroll replied.
A couple of laughs emerged from the crowd, though they were instantly frozen by Luyna’s cold yellow eyes and Judge Vale’s raised gavel.
“Have you ever seen a key like this?” the sorceress interrogated.
“No, I have searched my books and found nothing that resembles this particular type,” Scroll responded.
“How does a child, who has never left the safety of this castle, travel so far and acquire such instruments of destruction?” Luyna performed.
“I call Princess Damselfly as my final witness.”
As Damselfly made her way to the front, she noticed that the benches were now full, with many of those present offering a word of support. Madame Hart the stylist praised her wings, Mistress Taverner offered to do her hair and Colter to make her a new pair of shoes. The lower levels were also represented by Bullan, Master of Hounds, Fletcher the yeoman and Farcroft the blacksmith. These tough men all looked concerned at the princess’s situation and especially the look in Luyna’s yellow eyes.
“This is your opportunity to present your side of the story,” Judge Vale offered.
Damselfly nodded to show she understood and then waited breathlessly for Luyna to start her examination.
“Why did you leave the castle without permission?” the sorceress began.
“I was visiting my mother,” Damselfly explained.
“Were you supposed to enter your mother’s room?”
“No,” Damselfly replied. “She was sick and no one would tell me anything.”
Luyna sensed the crowd’s sympathetic response and decided not to tarry on the point any further.
“What happened next?”
“Mother was really sick and I got scared.” Damselfly felt hot tears flowing down her cheeks at the memory. “Death appeared and he offered me a deal.”
The audience made an audible gasp at this statement, and Judge Vale removed his glasses in disbelief. Luyna smiled deliciously, almost licking her lips in anticipation.
“So the old king who has not been seen for years appeared to you.”
“Yes,” Damselfly replied nervously, feeling a high level of scrutiny.
“Did anyone else witness this miraculous event?” Luyna questioned.
“Only Buttons.”
“Your sidekick in this make-believe fantasy.”
“I’m not making it up,” Damselfly retorted defiantly.
Luyna shrugged her shoulders in a gesture that showed what her thoughts on the matter were and allowed the audience to decide for themselves. A few murmurings arose from the crowded benches, though these were swiftly silenced by Judge Vale’s aggressive gavel.
“Where is your friend to support these wild accusations?” Luyna asked.
“I don’t know,” the princess replied.
“So there is no one who can substantiate your outlandish claims?”
“No,” Damselfly admitted.
Luyna looked triumphant until her moment was stolen by a curious Judge Vale. “What did Death say to you?”
Damselfly, seizing on this opportunity to regain some control of the conversation, started telling her story.
“Death offered to spare my mother’s life if I retrieved his stolen timepiece.”
“The one that the Fairy King stole?” Judge Vale posed.
“Yes,” Damselfly confirmed.
Luyna, who had been momentarily surprised by the unwanted insertion into her interrogation, quickly sought to regain everyone’s focus back to her agenda.
“We all know that the Fairy King was banished in this very court to the Evergarden; it is impossible to return from that dreaded exile and so retrieving the timepiece cannot be done.”
“I think there is a way,” Damselfly argued.
“Really,” Luyna laughed. “A child believes she can accomplish what the greatest minds in the land cannot.”
“How would you accomplish this feat?” Judge Vale chimed in again.
Damselfly looked out at the crowded benches, seeing even more people standing at the back when no other seats were available; even the kitchen staff were present and they never left the constant labour of feeding the castle’s residents.
“I discovered a young woman who shared my mission,” Damselfly told.
“Who was this woman and where did you find her?” Luyna overrode.
“Her name is Uriel and she is a prisoner in this castle.”
“Add trespassing and colluding with delinquents to the charges,” Luyna crowed.
“Uriel believed there was a way to reach Evergarden and return time,” Damselfly explained desperately. “We believe Blakast was attempting to rescue the Fairy King before his coup was stopped and that there might be magical artefacts capable of such things that we have not yet considered.”
“So you abandoned your family and your responsibility on a whim,” Luyna accused.
“I could not sit by and do nothing while my mother died.”
“This story is a child’s over active imagination and nothing more,” the sorceress fought.
“What are you so afraid of?” Damselfly questioned.
The tension was so palpable that Judge Vale was forced to step in.
“Perhaps the princess could finish her story so we can all decide for ourselves the merits of this tale,” he ruled.
So Damselfly relived her adventure, telling how she slipped past Gregorian to access the Garden Gate with a token given to her by Uriel. How in their haste they had mistakenly ended up in the Wintergarden and discovered a village beset by Sprites. Damselfly amazed her listeners by revealing their journey alone into the woods to befriend the monstrous Peritwinkle and free the villagers from the Sprites’ threat. Then she moved on to events at the Magicgarden, explaining the depleting magic reserves and how they only just managed to escape from the gaol. The Matriarch had given them Bakka’s whereabouts when everyone believed the great smith was lost forever and how they discovered him in seclusion amongst the sulphurous islands in the Lavagarden. Damselfly repeated her conversation with Bakka and how he created the skeleton key as a gift for her, rekindling the spark in his old heart.
“So according to your own story, Bakka, the person responsible for creating the Evergarden agreed that there is no possible return from that place,” Luyna interceded.
“Yes, that is true,” Damselfly accepted. “Bakka is an engineer who believes in rules and measurements while some things cannot be seen or accounted for.”
By this point Luyna could no more stop Damselfly’s story than she could hold back the wind, and with a growing crowd of onlookers desperate to hear more, she did not even try, allowing the princess to finish her tale. Damselfly delved into their strange visit to the Dreamgarden and her vision of her uncle whose experience was embossed on the armour of those soldiers sworn to protect her family. She revealed how this shared dream had given her a new direction and hope which they followed all the way to the Shadowgarden. Again, Damselfly exposed the appearance of Sprites far to the east, the civi
l war between Shades and Scorj, which threatened to destroy both dynasties, along with her search for the stolen bell. Damselfly finished her speech by telling of how she had defeated the leviathan by discerning Delridden’s true identity and finally being caught by Orion whose shadow had been a constant companion on their long journey. When the telling was finished, everyone took a moment to digest what they had heard and few could ignore the power of Damselfly’s words. Despite the unlikely events, there were so many things that could not be explained away as fiction or imagination. Luyna sensed the crowds favour turning away from her and quickly turned to her last chance of success.
“That was a wonderful tale.” She spun a web.
“Can you prove any of these events actually happened?”
“What about the skeleton key and bell?” Damselfly grasped. “Aren’t they proof?”
“The bell does not ring,” Luyna recalled. “The key could have been made by anyone and found anywhere.”
“What about my wings,” the princess pointed out.
Damselfly attempted to fly using her magical wings; unfortunately, the tape had come loose and her humble repairs meant she could only hover a couple of inches before falling back to the ground.
“Is there anyone or anything else that can prove your words are true?” Luyna asked.
“No.” Damselfly admitted defeat.
“Then I rest my case,” Luyna grinned.
All attention now switched to Judge Vale who seemed to be struggling with his dilemma.
“This court can only deal with matters of fact,” the judge ruled. “While many of us were moved by the princess’s story, without evidence to support and validate these events it cannot be taken into account when making a decision. Therefore, I reluctantly find the defendant, Princess Damselfly, guilty.”
Chapter 15
The Loneliest Times
The whole courtroom was rendered silent by Judge Vale’s decision. Damselfly felt like someone had sucked all the oxygen out of her body, and the audience was stunned. Only one person retained their composure and that was Luyna, who was smiling like a cat.
“Considering the number of crimes committed by the defendant and her lack of remorse, we may have been able to agree a lenient sentence. However, even after causing all this chaos and being warned by her father, King Handel, Princess Damselfly once again flouted the rules in an attempt to free a dangerous prisoner. With regret I ask, no, demand that the court apply the harshest sentence available to act as an example to all.”
“You cannot mean…” Judge Vale stumbled.
“I most certainly do,” Luyna instigated.
“What about the king?”
“I have here a signed proclamation giving you full authority to deal with this case, sealed by the king’s own mark.”
The crowd was still trying to comprehend what was happening while Damselfly struggled to accept her father’s disapproval so soon after the shock of being convicted.
“Princess Damselfly…” Judge Vale stammered as he passed judgement. “I sentence you to exile in the Evergarden.”
The courtroom which had been near silent for several minutes now exploded with noise from all parts. Soldiers moved forward as the people in the benches protested. Damselfly could not believe what she was hearing. Surely her father would not allow this injustice to stand and any moment he would appear and put this misunderstanding right. Instead of King Handel she found Tyten standing over her, looking grim. He took hold of her arm and began marching her away. The crowd, who were now in uproar, remained penned in by the royal guard, and Luyna stood victorious at the centre of all this drama. Judge Vale at least had the conscience to look appalled by his own part in this tragedy and would not look at Princess Damselfly as she was taken from sight.
“Please, Tyten, let me speak with my father,” Princess Damselfly pleaded.
The Captain of the Guard remained impenetrable, his grasp on her shoulder firm and impossible to break free from.
“You can’t do this! I was only trying to save my mother,” Damselfly cried.
The furor behind them disappeared as they travelled further away from the courtroom. Damselfly found the stone walls unfamiliar as though this place was no longer her home.
“At least give me a chance to say goodbye,” Damselfly protested.
Tyten’s expression clouded momentarily before returning to the professional mask he always wore. Remembering the soldier’s story, the princess attempted a different angle.
“I know you were told that love would be your downfall, but you cannot live your life without love or you are already lost,” Damselfly argued. “I know it is your duty to protect my family, though I always believed you did it not out of compulsion alone but because you cared that we were safe.”
Tyten removed a silver key from around his neck, hidden from sight by his golden mane of hair, and opened a hidden door that Damselfly had never seen before. Inside it was blackest night and the air was frigidly cold.
“Please, Tyten,” Damselfly beseeched.
The soldier stood impassively looking down on her until a single tear rolled down his cheek. He released his grip on her arm, and Damselfly thought she had finally broken through his hard exterior. Before she could say anything in gratitude, Tyten pushed her just hard enough to knock her off balance and suddenly Damselfly was falling into the cold emptiness of exile.
Blakast the usurper had only just arrived in exile.
Yet it was true to say that he had always been here.
Blakast the usurper was always alone, even his faithful mistress had departed. Though he knew not a single moment of peace, for something inside had broken long ago and left behind a paragon. A contradiction that Blakast had named The Never. The Evergarden was like a physical manifestation of this paradigm; it was always dark and cold although the low temperature seemed to seep into your bones until you barely noticed it.
A clinging fog rose up from the ground periodically, creating shadows and shapes that one never knew if they truly existed.
“In one ear and out the other. It all disappears into The Never.”
Blakast had been a sorcerer. He liked to stand tall with his shoulders back and his head held high in a posture of benevolence, acting like a grand magician with his black ceremonial robes. Then that voice would return, whispering in his ear, screaming into his face.
You’re no sorcerer, your magic is weak!
It is true.
Blakast would sink down to his knees, hiding behind a mass of long dark hair that covered his face and the expression of shame.
Now they called him usurper. Who were they?
Blakast was alone in a black spectral maze of his own design, a subconscious nightmare that was ruled by that ethereal force.
“Another voice screams I am clever, but all this noise is really just The Never.”
He had a friend once, a truly great sorceress who looked after him and guided his darkness into the light.
Mistress.
Why had he lost her?
Blakast had failed in his mission and now the mistress had forsaken him. Beating the ground in frustration, the usurper clawed at his own face seeking to remove whatever weakness was inside that had resulted in this situation.
“This unwanted passenger.
He says you cannot escape from me, because I am
The Never.”
Blakast laughed though it was a sound without joy. He sang the words of his despair in a jolly tone that did not match his darker meaning and beat the ground until his knuckles were bloody.
Blakast was exiled in the Evergarden.
Blakast was imprisoned with his own madness. Blakast was trapped in The Never.
A sound unlike the other voices that constantly haunted the usurper caught his attention. Suspicious that this was another trick against him, Blakast moved cautiously amongst the fog like a phantom. Crawling on all fours like an animal, he espied a strange figure sitting in his territory.
&nbs
p; Where had it come from?
Was it real?
Creeping closer, the usurper made out an unfamiliar sound; someone was crying and it was coming from a little girl with red hair.
Damselfly sobbed until her chest hurt.
Tyten had not even allowed her to say goodbye. She would never see her mother or father ever again and that thought alone was enough to bring tears to her eyes.
She was still in shock; everything had happened so fast it seemed surreal as though none of it had really happened and she would wake up from this nightmare at any moment. Damselfly pinched herself repeatedly, always with the same effect: she really was in the Evergarden and everything she had ever known was left behind. A surge of anger burned away the tears as Damselfly thought about Luyna’s smiling face as she was led away. The court had been as surprised as she was and surely someone would do something to help her.
What could they do?
She was exiled beyond anyone’s reach. Even her father, the king, could not extend his rule this far. No one had ever returned from the Evergarden. Thinking of home reminded Damselfly of Buttontail. Remembering the anguished look on her friend’s face as Luyna revealed the truth about his origin, dampened any sign of fire that had been building inside Damselfly and she fell back into despair. Going through her internal struggle, Princess Damselfly had hardly registered her strange new surroundings. In truth, there was little to see as the Evergarden was shrouded in a permanent gloom. A chill, which slowly permeated into your bones, left Damselfly feeling miserable as did the lingering fog, whose cruel tendrils cast evil shapes amongst the darkness and reflected her distressed state of mind. Damselfly had barely moved from the spot where she had emerged through the hidden gate. She was going through such turmoil that she feared leaving the area in case she could not find her way back again. A small hope flickered inside her that someone would come to rescue her, that Judge Vale would overrule his decision and she could come back after all. Despite the illogical thinking, Damselfly still felt closer to her past in this spot; however, moving even a couple of feet would mean her accepting her old life was behind her. How could she leave behind her parents, Old Nana along with her wonderful stories, Trigger whose tail would wag like a pendulum at the sight of her, Buttons who had become her closest companion and Uriel who was trapped in her own exile. Thinking of Uriel brought back memories of her journey’s beginning when she began to believe there was actually a chance of completing Death’s challenge. That was when the pallor around Damselfly’s mind began to clear; everything had been so turbulent that she had forgotten her original purpose was to reach the Evergarden and retrieve Death’s timepiece from the banished Fairy King. Although she had wanted to arrive under better circumstances, Damselfly had at least accomplished her first objective. Of course, finding the Fairy King and getting him to surrender the powerful artefact would be difficult. Returning home if she somehow managed to get her hands on the timepiece seemed impossible right now; however, she could deal with that obstacle when it arose. There was nothing for Princess Damselfly to do other than continue her mission. She had known that this adventure would be dangerous and perhaps if she was safely back home it might have been possible to ignore Death’s words. Now exiled in the Evergarden, Damselfly’s only path was forward. She was closer to the Fairy King than she could have ever have imagined when she started her journey and there was no way back from here. Dusting herself off, Damselfly stood up with both arms wrapped around her chest defensively.
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