Chapter 2 Part 5

Sam stood in a large room before three old men seated at a table. Armegon and Ultrecht were seated to his left and the girl he had come to know a little too intimately was seated to his right. Also to his right sat a man whose appearance suggested that he was Calista's father, and the three women who had discovered him at the river. Tyson was not to be seen.

The whole affair had been quite frightening. The women accused him of mesmerizing Calista and violating her for some diabolical purpose. Armegon and Ultrecht had noticed Sam's disappearance about the same time as the women had gone in search of Calista. They, however, had made the mistake of assuming he had wandered off into the crowd with Tyson. When the women and Calista returned with their claim that a demon had beguiled Calista, Armegon and Ultrecht realized their mistake too late.

Sam had been locked up overnight and only Armegon--as he was the boy's foster parent--was allowed to see him. Armegon assured Sam that everything would be all right. He and Ultrecht would speak for him and Tyson was setting up an escape should one be needed.

Now Sam stood as the subject of a controversial trial. The three village elders were at odds about what to do.

"We have heard testimony from the boy and his foster that he is young, having seen only a couple of years," the third elder from the left said. "The truth of this has been verified by our priestess of Denar."

"Which only goes to prove that the boy is a malevolent spirit. No natural child could grow to puberty so quickly," the first elder countered.

"Perhaps the boy is a spirit," the second added, "but by what argument do you name him malevolent."

"By his actions," the first answered. "The girl was violated on the eve of her womanhood against her will."

The second elder addressed the table to the right of Sam where her father and the three women accompanied Calista. "Dear child," he said gently, "did you or did you not willingly participate in last nights actions."

Calista looked at her father who reached out to hold her hand. "I don't know," she said. "I did not fight it, but neither did I want to be mated to a monster."

"The boy hid his true identity from her," one of the women said. "Had she known she would undoubtedly have refused."

"I must agree on this point," the first elder interrupted. "The withholding of knowledge of this order shows deceptive intent."

"Calista," the second elder asked after considering this, "even in the dark it can be seen that the boy is not entirely human. Did this concern you?"

"No, elder," she replied. I asked him if he was an elf, and he claimed that his parents were both dead, but that his uncle was a half elf. I assumed that meant he too was a half elf."

The second elder addressed Ultrecht and Armegon. “You,” he said pointing to Armegon.

“You are the boy's foster parent. Are you his uncle?"

"We both are," Ultrecht said. "He has no blood relatives."

"What is his heritage," the first elder asked.

"He’s the son of a druid who has passed from this world," Ultrecht replied.

"The facts are clear," the first elder said. "The boy is a subhuman, he hid this fact and implied an elven heritage. He coupled with the daughter of Merkant under false pretense, and apparently with no intention of making her his wife." The elder jumped to his feet and pointed an accusing finger at Sam. "He evilly took advantage of a young woman's state of despair. I say we find him guilty and sentence him immediately."

Ultrecht had to react quickly to keep Armegon under control. They had agreed to let Sam stand on his own two feet. He had to be able to fend for himself.

"The penalty you wish to impose," the second elder responded, "is castration and bondage for life. Before passing judgment we must be certain of guilt."

"My friends," the third elder said quietly, "we know this to be true that the boy’s only a year or so in age. That’s hardly enough time for a boy to mature mentally to manhood in spite of his body's appearance. Is it possible he was unaware of the law of marriage and mating?"

"Ignorance of the law is not a valid defense," the first elder snapped.

"No," the third rebutted, "but most male children have a year or more to adjust to the changes in their bodies at this...apparent age. This boy has had only days or possibly a week at the most. Is it possible that he was not totally in control of himself?"

"You defend him with an insanity plea?" the first asked disbelievingly.

"Has it been so long since you have held a woman in your arms that you have forgotten the madness of arousal?" the third asked rhetorically.

The first elder glared at his opponent momentarily. Then turned away.

"Is there anything the accusers wish to add?" the second elder asked.

The girl's father stood. "I have no desire to see any boy maimed in this way, but my daughter has been violated. With consent or not, she deserves a mate. The boy, Sam, would make a fine husband in spite of his heritage. We would ask to forgo the first sentence if he would agree to the second."

The second elder looked at Armegon briefly, then addressed Sam. "An offer for a reduced sentence has been made. You can accept it or you can ask for judgment. But I must warn you. If you ask for judgment, then you will be denying acceptance of your mate and therefore if found guilty full sentence will be carried out. Do you have anything that you wish to say?"

Sam glanced over his shoulder at Armegon and Ultrecht. Armegon's jaw muscle was tight. Tyson had taught him how to tell from subtle signs what a person was thinking. Sam was apparently on his own on this. "Elder," he said, "I like Calista very much, and if I were older and wiser I’d accept the terms, but I don’t feel that I have done anything wrong.” He sighed with resignation. “I guess I must ask for your judgment."

The second elder sighed. "Very well," he said, "we shall retire until after the noon meal. In two hour's time I will pass judgment."

Armegon had wanted to spend the two hours with Sam, but the village sheriff would not allow it. Instead Sam had been taken to a dungeon to wait out the deliberations. Armegon was on the verge of a rage that would make a volcano seem tame, when Ultrecht finally succeeded in calming him down. "Of course we're not going to let them harm him," Ultrecht had agreed as they partook of a spicy meal of venison, "but it’s just possible that he may be found not guilty. One of those elders was sympathetic, and the judge seemed fair and understanding about the whole affair. Let's see if we can get out of this without the usual fireworks. If not, Tyson’s ready with the appropriate supplies to travel through the deep woods for about a week."

"And Sam," Armegon asked. "I know we agreed to let him stand on his own, but this is partly our fault. We knew this time of his life was going to be difficult, and when it came, when he needed us we weren't there for him."

"We won't always be there for him," Ultrecht said. "And life’s rarely fair. He needs to learn these lessons no matter how much they hurt." Ultrecht put a hand on Armegon's shoulder. "Let him think he’s own his own," he said. "It builds character." Ultrecht returned to his meal.

Armegon, on the other hand, could not eat. He was nervous. It was like being caught in a no win situation. He wanted so badly to blast his way down into the village's stronghold and rescue Sam, but Ultrecht was correct. The boy, no, the young man, Armegon corrected himself, absolutely needed to learn self dependence.

So Armegon suffered in silence as the final minutes passed by. Then he went back to the stronghold. Time crept by slowly and it was almost two and a half hours past the noon meal when the elders returned and Sam was brought from the dungeon.

After everyone quieted down, the second elder stood and addressed the listeners. "There are several things that can not be denied," he began. "The young woman Calista was wronged. She deserves restitution, and the chance to continue her life in peace. She deserves the chance to win a husband even though her purity is no more."

He gazed momentarily at Sam and a softness washed across his face. "It’s also true that the man-child, Sam, is the cause of this dilemma, but he’s not solely responsible. Even though Calista mated with him under false pretense, deception was not intended. The unusual heritage of this boy leads me to believe that he was unaware that his actions were wrong. His motives were quite benign."

The elder then consulted a piece of paper before continuing. "This is a sad situation. Two youths from differing backgrounds engaged in an activity in which one unknowingly committed himself to a monogamous mating. My esteemed colleague has rightly pointed out that ignorance of the law is not a defense, even though these circumstances are unusual. Still, the law is the law and by law I have no choice but to rule the accused guilty, though it pains me. This is indeed a tragedy of the blindness of the law."

The third elder, the one who had been an advocate on Sam's behalf stood. "Sam," he said gently, "our laws are not perfect and sometimes those who are not truly guilty can be punished. It is my duty as your defender to tell you that you do have one alternative left. If you accept this decision, there may yet be leniency in your sentence, however, you do have the right to appeal by trial of ordeal. But you must know that to fail in the appeal usually means death. It is the final court."

Armegon had gone rigid at the verdict, but as the penalty of a failed appeal was revealed, his fists trembled with rage. Ultrecht glanced briefly at those fists and when the first light of gathering fury magic began to show, he elbowed the half elf in the ribs. Armegon slowly inhaled and exhaled a few times. Slowly he relaxed.

Sam on the other hand was calm as a lazy breeze. He stood and faced the three elders. "In my heart I feel no guilt," he said. "I understand that the laws you have are designed to protect normal people who are for the most part law abiding citizens and are worthy of that protection. I will not fault you because I am different nor will I hold you responsible. You have given me every chance to prove my innocence and so I must strive to do so. I ask to appeal."

"No, Sam, don't," Calista pleaded as she jumped to her feet. "Come be my husband. I really do love you. I don't care what blood runs in your veins. I have the right to negate the sentence and I do so now. Please, Sam, I don't want you to die."

The second elder stood and addressed Sam. "Calista has negated the sentence as is her right as the offended party. Sam, you are free to go."

The first elder also spoke. "Sam, this girl has given you a great gift, your freedom and your masculinity. She has also proclaimed that she wants you as her husband. Will you turn your back on this woman?"

Sam looked into Calista's eyes. They sparkled like diamonds. His heart began to pound. Slowly, almost hypnotically he reached out and touched her cheek. Her tears began to flow and Sam knew that this woman was willing to give everything up for him.

"Calista," he said barely whispering. "If I don't clear my name, forgiven or not this will always be there to haunt me--to haunt us." He looked at Armegon and Ultrecht. Armegon had closed his eyes. His expression was unreadable. Ultrecht appeared amused.

Sam turned back to the elders. "I appeal your judgment."

The second elder nodded. "Know then that an appeal has not been made in four moons. The last appeal was a suspect for murder. He did not survive. Do you still wish to appeal?"

San stood straight. "Yes," he said defiantly.

The first elder stood and addressed Sam with a serious and firm gaze. "As prosecution elder I challenge you to face the Forester."