//------------------------------// // Lessons on Justice // Story: Pony POV Series Origins: Queen Majesty // by Alex Warlorn //------------------------------// The white unicorn quickly galloped towards one of the town's Rangers working as crowd control around the perimeter set by the Knight of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith. Majesty recognized one of the Rangers -- Peliasson, the chief of the guards -- and decided to approach him. "Peliasson! Peliasson!" cried out Majesty to the Ranger. Peliasson turned around when he heard Majesty's familiar voice. "Majesty! I heard you were close by when this happened. Are you okay?" "I'm fine, but Feanor isn’t! The knights said they were going to try and execute him if he’s found guilty!” Peliasson nodded. "Yes, I was afraid that was what was going on. So Feanor is suspected of some random fool’s murder?" Majesty was a little confused with Peliasson's answer. "Yes. But didn't you already know that? You’re chief ranger! Aren't you the one who upholds the law here?" asked the white unicorn. Majesty was put off that Peliasson would have called Black Anvil 'some random fool.' "In a normal circumstance, yes, but the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith has special status among elven laws." he explained. "Special status?" "During the golden age of the elven kingdom cities were prosperous and commerce between them was very profitable; but while royal guards kept everyone safe within city limits, once someone left the safety of a town they were easy targets for thieves and such." explained Peliasson. "A group of priests of the temples of Vandria Gilmadrith wanted to let justice and safety be available to travelers between towns and cities, as well. So they gathered several knights and wizards from all over the kingdom that were sympathetic to their cause. Originally the order was founded with the objective to keep innocent travelers safe, and were thus given jurisdiction and authority to capture and prosecute the criminals they encountered outside the cities, by following a very strict and secret code of justice." "I heard them reference this code several times already. Is it their laws? From my talks with the duke I was under the impression that laws aren't supposed to be kept secret." Peliasson shook his head. "No Majesty, what we do know about the code is that it's a code of conduct on how to uphold the law, maintain order, and deliver justice. The laws they uphold are the ones issued by the state. They don't write the law, they just uphold and enforce it as their code dictates. "After the armies of the Dark One attacked elven territories, everything spiraled into chaos. Cities were razed to the ground, hundreds of thousands died, and even more refugees fled to sanctuaries or across the ocean. And they were completely vulnerable to attacks on the road. Several members of the Order lost their lives protecting the innocent, sometimes that wasn't enough and the armies of the Master of Midnight Castle slaughtered all in their path, young and old alike. “When the survivors started to form new settlements, that eventually grew into new towns and cities, there was nobody else but the remaining members of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith, and so they were given authority to enforce law and impose order inside and outside city limits. When things were finally organized and governments for the new cities were established, new authorities were formed to enforce law and order within the hidden settlements, like us Palace Rangers do here in Amrun. However, in thanks to all their services and efforts, the members of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith were still allowed to arrest and process any criminal activity inside city limits, as long as they were the first to find the criminal in question and arrest him. However… there are some Rangers here in Amrun, as well as in other elven sanctuaries, that believe they shouldn't have this authority anymore." Peliasson turned his head to look at Galan, the Ranger that had protested at the actions of the Order, who was now just looking at them, his arms crossed and an annoyed look on his face. "However, a member of the Order found Feanor and arrested him before the Rangers found out. By elven law they have the authority to investigate the crime, interrogate witnesses, pass judgement and carry the sentence according to the law." Majesty nodded. "I see... well, I'm not a member of their Order, a Ranger, a citizen of Amrun or even an elf! I'm a wild unicorn of the plains. And I'll carry on my OWN investigation and find out what happened here, because I know that Feanor didn't do it!" Majesty turned around, Peliasson spoke. "Majesty. Be careful saying that. You may not be officially part of this settlement, but you still have friends here. If you say you're not part of Amrun, it might give some justification to treat you less than kind." Majesty looked at him. "Someone treated Black Anvil 'less than kind', and I won't let these Knights treat Feanor 'less than kind'." Majesty started to walk over to Feanor's blacksmith shop, a Knight of the Order was standing guard at the door to prevent anyone but the authorized mages to go in or out. "Where do you think you're going?" asked the knight guarding the door. "I'm going to investigate myself, let me through." The guard shook his head. "Only authorized personnel." Majesty's horn started to glow. "I'm going in there one way or another, do not make me more angry than I already am!" Before the guard could draw his weapon, or Majesty could do anything foolish, Eluneth stepped in. "Wait!" cried out the young elf knight. Majesty turned her head to look at her, but her horn was still glowing. "Eluneth? What do you want now?" Eluneth didn't answer, she instead looked at the guard and produced a small note from her armor. "Here's a note with Captain Michanar's seal explaining that I will keep watch on this unicorn, and will make sure that she doesn't tamper with evidence or the investigation in any way.” Majesty was so surprised at this that her horn stopped glowing. The guard took the note, and indeed it was what Eluneth had just said, he handed the note back. "Very well, but she's your responsibility now. Make sure she stays in line." Eluneth nodded. "Yes, of course." The guard stepped aside and allowed Eluneth and a still surprised Majesty to go into the blacksmith shop of Feanor. "Thank you." said Majesty to Eluneth as they were inside the now empty shop. "Are you crazy!? You have to learn to control yourself! You have any idea what would have happened if you attacked a knight the Order?" exclaimed Eluneth now that they were outside of earshot, closing the door behind her. Majesty blinked in surprise, then turned her head away in embarrassment. "You're right... I should have known better. I sometimes forget I'm not in the forest anymore." Eluneth sighed. "Look, Majesty, I know we started off on the wrong foot, but I am asking you to please not to do anything foolish. Captain Michanar only agreed to this because I convinced him, I knew that you weren't just going to stand around doing nothing while Feanor was being accused of murder. I told him that we would all spare ourselves a lot of trouble if we just let you do... whatever it is you are planning, as long as I keep an eye on you the whole time, and make sure you don't tamper with any evidence, or with any other aspect of the investigation and upcoming trial. I volunteered for this, but I am responsible for your actions. Captain Michanar accepted this more as a means of keeping you under control more than expecting you to actually help." "I... yes, thank you Eluneth. Why would you do this for me?" "It's about what you said about Feanor's smell. I believe you when you said that while you saw Feanor kill Black Anvil, you didn't sense his smell when it happened. After all, you were able to smell me while I was following you in secret earlier today. The problem is that 'smell' isn't an accepted form of identification evidence by elven law. The Order can't actually use it to accuse anyone, even less to dismiss the charges against Feanor when all the other evidence against him is so strong." "I see... thank you for trusting me." "Don't worry, just try to find out... whatever it is you were trying to find out, just make sure you leave everything the way you found it and you don't tamper with anything." Majesty nodded and looked around slowly and carefully. She saw the chalk outline of where Black Anvil's body had fallen. It was empty now, like Black Anvil's dead body itself. She felt a pang of regret she hadn't notice his body being taken away... she'd have to say her goodbyes and apolgies later. "So, what are you expecting to find that the mages missed?" asked Eluneth. "I'm not really sure," replied Majesty as she continued to look around. "What I'm sure about is that whoever killed Black Anvil didn't smell like Feanor." "Yes, I understand that. But who did he smell like?" "Nobody." "You mean nobody you know?" "No, I mean that he smelled like nobody. He had no smell at all, it was as if nobody else was inside that room except Black Anvil." "So, what you saw was an illusion? How can that be? The forensic spell reading results indicate that Black Anvil was killed at the time I saw you open the door. And whoever killed Black Anvil used Feanor's hammer, and was of his same height and build." "I don't think it was an illusion either. That would suggest that someone else that has the same physical attributes of Feanor killed him and used a spell to mask his appearance. But if that were so, your wizards would have discovered that someone besides Feanor had been holding the hammer. And I still would have smelled someone else’s scent in the room." "Then what was it then?" "I have a theory, unfortunately I can't prove it, Ever since I came to Amrun, I have been exchanging magical knowledge with the court's First Spellcaster, I've been telling him how unicorn magic works, and in turn he has been telling me about different spells and other magical things elves have mastered over the years..." Majesty's mind wandered to one of the talks with the First Spellcaster as she explained her theory to Eluneth. + Majesty looked very carefully as Badhor, the palace's First Spellcaster, put the finishing touches on the clay figure he was making. It wasn't very big, just two feet tall, and he had made it very roughly too, just a head with no features, a torso, two arms and two legs. "So, you can make it in any size you want?" "Yes, as long as one has enough clay, and you can give it more carefully defined features if one is skilled enough, but since this is just a small demonstration, this one will do fine." The elf mage then started to chant a spell, his eyes glowing, as he wrote some runes on the floor around the clay figure, then on its forehead. A moment later, he was done. "Very impressive. So what now? It will obey your orders?" "That's right, look." Badhor looked at the clay figure. "I order you to go and stand next to the wall." The clay figure started to move, it walked over to where Badhor was pointing, and stopped next to the wall. "Amazing!" exclaimed Majesty. "I'm glad you think so. Several years ago, many elves started using these at farms, and other such places to replace the labor that ponies used to do, once ponies developed sentience. They are now in disuse when ponies started to just perform the same labor they used to do, but now working for a salary, like any other sentient creature does. There are some that sometime uses them, although very rarely." "Is it alive?" "No, it is just a construct. It follows its maker’s orders, and nothing else. It is not aware of its existence nor can feel anything, learn anything, remember anything, nor grow into being aware. And if I undo the spell," explained Badhor as he did just that, the clay figure then fell apart as the spell came undone. "It simply goes back to being just an inert piece of clay." Majesty nodded, it made sense that it wasn't alive, since the clay figure didn't have any smell at all, it was just as lifeless as a chair, or a table, or any other such thing in the room. "So, what did you say this was called?" "It is called a 'Golem'." + "You think someone made a golem that looked exactly like Feanor and ordered it to kill Black Anvil?" asked Eluneth, after hearing Majesty's theory. "Exactly, it would explain why I didn't smell anyone in the room besides Black Anvil, and the fact that the hammer used in the murder was not held by anyone but Feanor." The unicorn walked into another room inside the blacksmith shop. "Makes sense, but wouldn't the wizard criminologists had detected any lingering magic from a golem?" The young elf followed Majesty. Majesty shook her head. "No, Badhor told me that a golem doesn't have any lingering magic trace, a wizard might be able to detect the spell being cast when the golem is created or when it is undone, but nothing else.” "I see, that's why you said that your theory can't be proven, but if that's the case, what exactly are you looking for?" "If what killed Black Anvil was a golem, then that means that there must have been someone else around, to give orders. Not in the main room, I would have smelled them, but somewhere inside the shop so they would be able to see what happened." "If it was a golem that murdered Black Anvil, shouldn't you be able to smell the clay?" "... I'm afraid clay is just dirt to me. I've never had to tell the difference." "Makes sense. But you still haven't told me what you are looking for." "Not looking: smelling. If someone was here, then they must have left an odor trail and... AHA!" Majesty's eyes lit up. "I found it! A smell that doesn't belong to Feanor or Black Anvil!" She walked over to where the scent was stronger. "It was right over here, whoever it was. Far enough so nobody could see them, or in my case smell them, from the entrance, but close enough to the main room that they could give orders without being seen." "Couldn't that be just a customer?" Majesty shook her head. "No, customers aren’t allowed in this area, only Black Anvil and Feanor's smell lingers here normally. Whoever it was, it was someone standing right behind this wall next to the entrance." Majesty walked along the wall, following the smell. "Then the person started to move over here, towards this wall and... huh?" Majesty stopped right next to the opposite wall. "What? What is it? Where does the scent lead you to?" "This is strange... the smell goes right in there," said Majesty, pointing at a small rat hole at the bottom of the wall. "Great... so all you smelled was a rat." said a disappointed Eluneth. "No. I know what rats and mice smell like, this is not the scent of a rat or a mouse. It's not the smell of an elf either... it's somewhat familiar... but I'm not sure where I smelled it before." "Well, now what do we do? All we have now is just an impossible to prove theory, and some more evidence about a smell that is not valid in an investigation or trial." "How long do we have until the Knights of the Order put Feanor on trial?" "There is plenty of evidence to begin, Captain Michanar told me the trial would be starting early tomorrow." "Then we have to make today count, I'll go all over town, every single nook and cranny. Until I pick up the scent of whoever was here." "Very well, I'll go with you." "You don't have to, I'm not going to be anywhere near where Black Anivl died." Eluneth shook her head. "I want to help you Majesty, and besides, I'm supposed to keep an eye on you anyway." She winked an eye. "Okay then, let's get going," said Majesty with a smile. The two left and began walking around Amrun, Majesty being on alert for any fresh trail of the unknown scent. "Eluneth, while we are alone, can I ask you something regarding the Knights of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith?" asked Majesty as she and Eluneth walked along one of the streets of Amrun close to Feanor's shop. "As long as it's not some secret information about the Order, I'm okay with answering any question." "Peliasson, one of the palace's Rangers, told me that the Order had defended refugees against Tir-” “Don’t say his name!” Eluneth hissed. “Sorry. The Order fought the Dark One's army. What exactly happened?" "Well, it was well before I was born, let alone joined the Order, but I heard stories from older knights. The Order was originally founded by Priests of Vandria Gilmadrith with the goal of upholding justice for everyone in elven lands, and several knights joined their cause." Majesty nodded. "Yes, Peliasson told me as much." "Well, the Priests of the order were among the first targets of the Dark One. Temples of Vandria Gilmadrith were razed to the ground. The Order soon was quickly devoid of Priests, the high council of the Order was eradicated, and none of the founding Knights survived the battles, all dying valiantly to defend innocent survivors. But as much as they bravely fought on, the Order was losing more and more capable fighters, entire platoons would die in a day. "Soon, the Order was scraping the bottom of the barrel for available Knights, and started sending inexperienced squires still in training into the fray. Captain Michanar was one of such squire, he barely speaks, if at all, about his experiences fighting against the Enemy back then, but I've heard others talk about how once Captain Michanar was the only survivor of an ambush. He saw all of his squad mates, his leader and mentor, and the refugees they were escorting slaughtered right in front of him by Reptillians, the enemy's foot soldiers." "That's... that's awful. I still don't like him... but I at least understand why he is the way he is." "Even if all our founders died, the surviving Knights of those battles, after every refugee was finally in a safe settlement, formed a new council of the Order and started recruiting new members to rebuild." "Is it hard being in the Order?" "The training is very difficult. You must not only master weapons, but also become an expert in elven laws..." as she explained, Eluneth recalled her time as a trainee to become a Knight of the Order. In particular one talk Captain Michanar had given. + There were about a dozen rookies in the room, they took classes about law, and the history of the Order in the mornings and did physical training in the afternoon. Captain Michanar was giving a course today about Justice. The Captain of the Order stood in front of the room as he addressed the rookies sitting at their desks. "What does it mean to be a defender of Justice? What is the difference between one that defends Justice, and a Vigilante driven by memories of revenge?" Michanar didn’t expect the class to answer, as he quickly continued. "A Just person is one who is committed to the view that moral obligations are equal to everyone, also known as Deontological Morality. Justice means fairness, wherein equal persons step behind a 'curtain of ignorance' when determining principles of justice, how people should treat each other. Every Knight of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith is expected to step behind this 'curtain of ignorance' when fulfilling their duties." Eluneth was a little confused by this, mostly because she wasn't sure what Michanar meant. And she looked around to see that she wasn't the only one, the other trainees in the class seemed just as confused as she was. Luckily for them, Michanar proceeded to explain himself. "When we step behind this 'curtain of ignorance' we become completely ignorant of our particular circumstances, we forget the fact that we are rich or poor, weak or strong, we even forget the fact that we are elves. The 'curtain' blinds us from considering these details, and from this standpoint, then, the only way to proceed is to choose a course of action allowing everyone an equal treatment under the law. Nobody will benefit from the law because of who they are, the law will affect everyone equally." Eluneth and the other trainees nodded their heads, it sounded reasonable. Justice must be fair, and to be fair, one could not play favorites. "It sounds easier than it is, however. Imagine that you find yourselves in a situation where a criminal and an innocent person were both in mortal danger. The 'curtain' makes us morally obligated to treat them the same, and thus try equally hard to save them both, without fear or favor. Imagine that this criminal is one that killed a very dear friend of yours, as much as you, as an individual, might loathe the criminal, you, as a Knight of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith, are obligated to save this criminal from the mortal danger." Eluneth and the other trainees looked at each other, they didn't exchange words but their eyes said it all. None of them were sure that, given the circumstances, they wouldn't be inclined to let the hypothetical criminal die. "Who we are before becoming Knights of the Order must NEVER influence our actions. When you put on the armor of the Order, armor decorated with the very image of the Goddess of Justice herself, you effectively are stepping behind the 'curtain of ignorance'. THIS is what distinguishes us, the Knights of the Order, from mere vigilantes. A vigilante takes the law into his own hands. When we don the armor of the Order, we set our personal situations aside and act in the interest of all. Indeed this is the very reason why we MUST wear the armor of the Order and not just any other generic armor, why we can't just mete out justice on our own. By putting it on, you put aside your identity and become a symbol, a symbol of justice, it is the only way we can act as anonymous, rationally interested keepers of the law." Eluneth nodded, so did the rest of the trainees in the class. What Michanar told them sounded difficult, extremely difficult, but they must do it in order to be true servers of Justice. + "After the training is completed, one makes an Oath to always follow the Code, to uphold and obey the law, and to honor the Goddess," explained Eluneth. "It is very difficult to complete the training, which makes getting more trained Knights in our ranks a slow endeavor, and which is why rebuilding the Order is still underway and taking so long," explained Eluneth. "I see, and what about... huh?" Majesty came to a complete halt, surprising Eluneth who also stopped walking. "The scent! I picked up the scent! Quick, follow me!" Majesty started to gallop, Eluneth quickly running behind her. Some minutes later, Majesty and Eluneth were outside of the city limits of Amrun, and heading into the Dark Forest. "The scent goes into the forest. Be very careful Eluneth, this forest is NOT safe." Eluneth nodded, keeping one hand on the pommel of her sheathed sword and ready to unsheathe it at a moment's notice as she and Majesty stepped into the woods. "Now that it goes into the forest, I can track the trail more easily, there isn't just a scent to follow, but a trail on the ground as well." said Majesty as she kept going while looking at the ground. "It goes this way and... wait!" Majesty suddenly stopped. Eluneth’s hand firmly grasped her sword. "What? What is it?" "The trail is indeed that of a rat until this spot... then it turns into the trail of a wolf. But the scent remains the same." "You mean that it changed forms, from a rat to a wolf?" "That is exactly what I mean." said Majesty, then continued to walk following the trail. "The smell remained the same, and it isn't what a wolf smells like either. And that means whoever we're following is a spellcaster or a shapeshifter." "Spellcaster makes sense if they indeed used a golem like you think. But why go into the forest?" "I can think of only one being that casts spells and would hide in into this forest. And I now know why the scent was so familiar... we're following a witch," said Majesty as she frowned. "A witch? Are you sure?" "Positive. The trail is even in the same direction as the coven I killed." "But, why would a witch go to all the trouble of murdering Black Anvil and framing Feanor? And didn't you say you slew them all?" "We'll ask her when we find her." Later, Majesty and Eluneth were standing in front of the supposedly abandoned coven where Majesty had confronted and slain the witches that had killed her herd. "The wolf trail changes into footsteps as they enter the coven. Let's go." Majesty started to enter the coven when Eluneth stopped her. "Let's be careful. The last time you did this the witches didn't know you were coming, you had the element of surprise on your side. But now whoever is in there is expecting us." "What makes you think that, Eluneth?" "This has all the signs of a planned ambush. At first it is clear that whoever this witch is, she didn't expect us to find her trail so fast. But about halfway she realized she was being followed, and started to lead us here. She probably has an attack plan prepared for when we enter this coven. We have to be on alert." "I see. Don't worry, she won't surprise us," commented Majesty as she and Eluneth started to enter the coven. "It's so dark in here. We usually bring torches to go into a place like this. Majesty, don't you have a spell to help us see in the dark?" "I thought elves could see in the dark, give me a second." Majesty concentrated and started to cast a light spell as her horn began to glow, but suddenly she felt a surge of power from her left front hoof that shot up her leg, neck and ended in her horn. When it did, the simple light spell became blazingly bright, allowing both Majesty and Eluneth to see inside the coven like they were outdoors on a clear sunny day. "Wow! Majesty, that's amazing. I've never seen a wizard cast a light spell this powerful." exclaimed Eluneth. "Yes... I'm a little surprised myself," commented Majesty as she looked down at the golden horseshoe on her left front hoof. "Is something wrong?" "No, it's nothing. Let's keep going," said Majesty dismissively. The elf and the unicorn continued into the coven, until they finally reached the main area where Majesty had found and killed the witches. It had been left almost completely empty when Majesty had left before, taking every book, scroll and parchment that she had found. But now it wasn't empty. The room was filled with clay figures. All of them were about seven feet tall, and had no features beyond a humanoid body. "Golems, a small army of them." commented Eluneth. "Look that one over there!" said Majesty as she noticed a different golem in the middle of the room. Majesty and Eluneth quickly walked over to it. This particular golem was sculpted to look exactly like Feanor, its size, build, facial features were the same. It was painted to look like Feanor from a distance, like say from a doorway outside a small blacksmith shop. It was even wearing a pair of Feanor's coveralls for full effect. "A golem that looks exactly like Feanor!" exclaimed Eluneth, "You were right Majesty." "Yes, come on, we have to take this golem over to the rest of your Order. We'll prove Feanor didn't kill Black Anvil." At that moment, the Golem Feanor's head rose to look directly at Majesty, and a magical circle lit up at the feet of each and every other golem in the room. "It's a trap!" yelled Eluneth as the golems moved towards them. The elf unsheathed her sword, ready to fight. One of the big Golems tried to punch at them, but Eluneth and Majesty easily dodged. "Majesty, can you cast a spell to get rid of these golems?" asked Eluneth as she slashed a Golem’s arm off. "I think I can. I just need you to buy me some time, I've never cast a spell like this before." "Don't worry, I got you covered." Eluneth slashed another golem in half. Majesty hadn't actually studied the spell, but she saw how Badhor, the Palace's First Spellcaster, had disenchanted the golem. And even if she hadn't studied it, she was sure she could copy it from sight alone. All she needed to do was focus it on all golems in the room at once, and she was sure she could turn them all into inert clumps of clay again. The golems were slow and clumsy, but their punches could shatter bones and there were just so many of them. Their size made them hard to miss, but also nearly impossible to get past them, let alone with their proof in tow. Eluneth for her part did a miraculous job of keeping the entire batch of clay puppets at a stand still. "Stupid good for nothing golems! If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself." Majesty and Eluneth turned to the source of the voice, and saw a rat in a dark corner of the room that suddenly turned into a witch! The witch quickly did a magical gesture with her hands, and a bolt of lightning shot out of her open palms and struck Eluneth. "AAAAAHH!" the young elf screamed in pain and then fell down on the floor, unconscious from the magical attack. "Eluneth!" cried out Majesty. "Grab that pony now you idiots!" Before Majesty could react, the Feanor golem grabbed her and struggled the unicorn to the ground, two bigger golems quickly moved to pin down Majesty's four legs to the floor. "Ha ha ha ha! I got you now, my little pony!" said the witch as she walked over to Majesty and stood in front of her, looking down at the trapped pony in a mocking manner. "Who are you? Why are you doing this?" asked Majesty angrily. The scent from the witch was the same scent she had smelled at Feanor's blacksmith shop, there was no question about it. The witch shrugged. "Why not? You'll die soon anyways. My name is Zaleria, and I was one of the witches under 'Her Majesty' Rowena when you came here and knocked off my coven." "How? I was sure I killed every last one of you!" exclaimed Majesty. "When you came in, and stopped all of our combined attacks with a magical barrier, I knew right then and there that you were just too powerful to take head on. So while the other witches tried to fight you, I quickly used a shape-shifting spell to change into a rat and escape the coven unnoticed." explained Zaleria. "You just abandoned your family to die?!" "Why not? It was no different from what you dumb horses used to do. The only reason I had joined the coven in the first place was for Rowena's scheme to get us all wands made from unicorn horns. I was going to kill her and replace her as leader once she gave me one. My original plan was just to steal her designs, but that swine kept those hidden all the time." explained Zaleria. "Is there nothing beneath your treachery?" asked a disgusted Majesty. She guessed that if Zaleria had found out that Rowena already had completed a wand, she would have killed her to steal it. "I'm a witch, pony, it's what we do." said Zaleria with a smile. "But then why? Why kill Black Anvil? Why bring Feanor into this?" asked Majesty. "Oh, that? Why, to lure you out of the palace to somewhere I could take you on, of course. After you finished off Rowena, and let that good for nothing Syrup escape, I followed you back to that elven town as a rat. I studied your every move. Then, I broke into the library, found the books you took from my coven, and made a copy of Rowena's designs for a unicorn horn wand. I knew it would have been impossible to kill you in that palace, full of elven mages and Rangers, so I spent this whole week coming up with a plan to lure you out and to the perfect place for a trap. I had to steal a lot of clay from several merchants in the town, and making such an exact copy of that blacksmith took me a while too, but it was worth it!" "You killed Black Anvil and doomed Feanor to get revenge on me for killing your family?" asked Majesty aghast. "Revenge? Of course not, I couldn't care less about them, or Rowena. No, I wanted you in because I've seen your power first hand. You’re probably the most powerful unicorn I've ever seen, and I will use your horn to make a magic wand that will make me the new Witch Queen!" and with that, Zaleria produced a rusty saw from under her robes, "Now hold still while I cut off your horn, I could kill you first, but I want to hear you scream in pain first." "I am sorry to disappoint you then, witch," said Majesty with confidence. Zaleria raised an eyebrow, "Oh, and why is that little pony? Let me guess, you won't give me the satisfaction of screaming?" "No." replied Majesty, "Because I managed to charge up my spell while you were busy talking to me about your plans." Zaleria's eyes opened wide in realization as the spell erupted from Majesty's horn and covered the entire room. As soon as it did, all the golems in the room, including the ones holding Majesty down, fell apart into lumps of clay. "Damn you pony!" screamed Zaleria in anger. She then transformed into a crow and began to fly away towards the exit. "Oh, no you don't! You're not getting away." Majesty cast a lightning spell and struck the crow mid flight. "CAAAAW!" the crow screamed in pain and it fell down to the ground, changing back into Zaleria. Majesty's horn glowed as she used her magic to bound the witch's arms to her sides. She went over to Eluneth's unconscious body, and after giving the young elf knight a quick look to make sure she wasn't seriously injured, she then levitated Eluneth onto her back. "Don't be smug, you got lucky." The witch sneered. "You are an idiot," Majesty said. "You said yourself how powerful I was. I could have teleported out of your dolls' grip, set your clothes on fire, or half a dozen other things. You made no effort to restrain or block my horn. Even if I hadn't been charging the spell, you'd have still lost. I just want information from you. If you had let your toys do what they were made for, Eluneth would have tired out before I finished charging the spell, and you MIGHT have won. You're greedy. You went to all this trouble, all this planning, making it so you didn't have to fight me directly, and you couldn't wait five more minutes to have your prize. Rowena had nothing to fear from you." Zaleria let out a snarl of pure hatred. "And you're a bigger idiot! You just destroyed the only proof you had for your precious friend!" "Wrong. I still have you. Start walking witch, I'm turning you over to the Order of Vandria Gilmadrit." said Majesty as she pushed Zaleria. Zaleria obeyed, and started to walk, Majesty's horn pointed at her back. The witch looked back at Majesty with a mocking smile. "Well, well, good work little horsie, you caught the big bad witch." "Be quiet, witch," replied Majesty in a neutral tone, and her horn glowed, making an electric shock coursed through Zaleria's body. "Aaargh!" screamed Zaleria in pain, then she started to laugh. "Hahaha. You're a natural!" "I said be quiet!" Majesty shocked Zaleria again, strongly this time. "AAAARGH!!" Zaleria screamed again and this time had to stop walking due to the pain, then continued, "Hahaha. And what will you do, little horsie, if I don't?" This time Majesty kicked Zaleria, tossing her back a few feet. Zaleria rolled over, then Majesty turned around and picked her up so they were face to face, Majesty's horn starting to glow like fire. "I could kill you right now witch." Zaleria, bleeding a little from her mouth now, smiled. "Do it." Majesty clenched her teeth. "You can't kill me. Not until I confess that it wasn't that blacksmith that killed his horse. You need me alive." Majesty's eyes showed barely repressed rage, her horn glowed even brighter. "Come on, do it!" Zaleria dared the unicorn. Majesty turned around, and started walking again, "Let's go, witch! I will turn you over to the proper authorities, and then you WILL pay for your crimes." "Don't talk like one of them!” said Zaleria, gesturing at Eluneth's unconscious body on Majesty's back. “You’ll never be one of them, even if you’d like to be." Majesty didn't answer, and just kept walking, holding Zaleria with her magic. "To them, you're just a curiosity, a freak. You might be helping them right now, but as soon as they get bored of you, they'll cast you out like trash. You see, their morals, their 'code', is nothing but a big joke, that gets dropped at the first sign of trouble. Being good? Ha! Everyone is only as good as circumstances allow them to be. You'll see, when push comes to shove, all these 'civilized societies' will eat each other alive." Majesty remained quiet, doing her best to ignore Zaleria. "You see, my little pony, we witches may be evil, but at least we're honest about it." finished Zaleria. "Be QUIET!" Majesty's horn glowed bright again as an even stronger bolt of electricity coursed through Zaleria. "AAAAAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!" cried out the witch and fell down, then stood back up. "Heheheh, see? That felt good to you, didn't it? You enjoyed that." "Keep. Walking," said Majesty in a no nonsense manner. "Of course, Your Majesty," replied Zaleria in a mocking manner. The two continued to walk for a few more minutes, Zaleria keeping quiet this time, but Majesty wasn't sure if it was because she had finally intimidated her into staying quiet, or because Zaleria didn't have anything more to say. As they continued to walk, Eluneth started to move as she started to wake up. Majesty stopped and looked back at Eluneth's face as the elf started to open her eyes slowly. "What... what happened?" said Eluneth as she slowly opened her eyes, then her eyes came into focus and she noticed Zaleria being bound by Majesty's magic. "I see you captured the witch." "Yes, I did. Are you well enough to stand?" asked Majesty. Eluneth simply got off of Majesty's back and stood up on the ground. "Yes, I'm okay. Don't worry. Are you alright?" "I'm fine Eluneth. Thank you. She was no trouble." The elf looked embarrassed. "Majesty, I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help." Majesty shook her head. "Don't worry about it." "Let me tie her up so you don't need to keep using your magic." said Eluneth as she took out a strong looking rope, walked over to Zaleria and tied her hands behind the witch's back with it. Majesty's horn stopped glowing when Eluneth was finished. "Now let's hurry! We have to get this filthy witch back to the Order's camp before the trial of your friend begins!" exclaimed Eluneth. Majesty nodded and hurried towards the camp of the Order outside of Amrun, where Feanor's trial was going to take place. "I have to admit that I see why Rowena had such a hard time getting rid of you, unicorn," commented Zaleria casually, "You are tougher than you look. But if I couldn't kill you, then at least I'll settle for the next best thing." "What do you mean by that, witch!?" exclaimed Eluneth, as she turned her head to look angrily at Zaleria. The witch just smiled. "Oh, you'll see." "Just ignore her," said Majesty. Eluneth nodded and they went on. After what felt like an eternity later, they reached the main camp of the Order. Several tents were arranged in a big circle, and another bigger circle made of wooden spikes set at an angle forming a perimeter around it like a defensive fence. A single knight was standing guard at the only 'entrance' to the camp where the wooden spikes had been left with a gap. "Halt! Who goes there?" asked the knight standing guard. Eluneth walked over to the guard, "Hello. Tell Captain Michanar that Eluneth and Majesty have captured the real culprit behind the murder of the pony Black Anvil." The guard looked surprised. "What? But... the trial is already over." "What!?" Majesty's eyes widened. She turned to Eluneth, "You said the trial would not be today! That we had time!" "It... it shouldn't have been today. I'm just as surprised as you are," replied an equally shocked Eluneth. The witch sniggered. "What was the verdict!?" demanded the unicorn. "The blacksmith was found guilty." replied the guard. "No... No!" Majesty galloped into the camp towards its center. "Hey! Wait! You can't just go in there!" screamed the guard, but Majesty paid him no attention. Majesty galloped as fast as she could, then stopped cold as she saw it. In the center of the camp stood a scaffold, with Feanor's lifeless' body hanging with a noose around his neck. "Noooooo!" cried out Majesty, her eyes wet. Her scream was heard throughout Amrun. A hammer struck her brain. Feanor hugging her and thanking her for saving him. Feanor comforting her at Black Anvil's final farewell. All the students he would have taught. All the wonders he would have made. The many years they'd be friends. Majesty the unicorn who saved her elven friend from injustice. His family forever in friendship to the ponies. Ponies at a pink castle bearing suits in armor with the Order's mark. Majesty fell to her knees, not understanding what she had just seen, but knowing she'd seen something! Yet it was for nothing! BOTH HER FRIENDS HAD DIED IN A DAY! She believed in him when no one else did. She'd tracked down the villain, she'd foiled the loss of the golem and still had their witness, she resisted the temptation to kill her for the sake of her friend. SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO SAVE HIM! Why hadn't she?! Majesty's entire body shook. All of the Knights in the encampment were there, two were lowering Feanor's body off the scaffold. Michanar was also there, overseeing everything. Michanar turned when he heard her, surprised. "Majesty? What are you doing here?" What... what right did he have to ask that! "You killed him!" cried out Majesty. "I know is hard to understand, but this was for justice." "But sir, why was the trial started so quickly, why was it done so fast? The trial shouldn't have been done today." asked Eluneth, who had already cached up with Majesty. Michanar turned to look at the young elf girl, "Eluneth? I understand your concern, but we couldn't delay the trial. We were supposed to stay near Amrun for just a day, then come back once the scribes had finished making copies of everything we needed from the library. Taking the proper time for the trial would have meant staying here longer than we could afford. We are needed elsewhere. We have to leave on schedule, it would be dangerous to do otherwise. Besides, the evidence was so overwhelming that more time for the trial would have made no difference, he was clearly guilty." "But he wasn't! He wasn't guilty!" exclaimed Majesty. "How you felt about it doesn't matter unless you have evidence to support your claims," said Michanar, annoyed. "We do have evidence, sir," replied Eluneth. She then pulled on the rope that she had used to tie up Zaleria, forcing the witch to walk over in front of Michanar. "This witch used deception to kill Black Anvil and make it look like Feanor was the murderer." "Tell him witch! Confess!" she said in a no nonsense manner. Zaleria smiled confidently and stood proud at Michanar, "I confess: I used a golem that looked like the blacksmith to kill that pony. This knight here and that unicorn tracked me down and captured me." All the knights of the Order around them started whispering to one another in surprise. "Oh, please, this is a witch! She’s clearly lying. We all know how treacherous they are. They can simply not be trusted." said Michanar dismissively. "What? She is telling the truth! Why would she lie about something like this!? It makes no sense!" exclaimed Eluneth. "Then you must have coerced her into taking the blame for Feanor's crime!" said Michanar to Eluneth, accusingly. "Why are you making excuses!? Why do you refuse to see the truth!? What happened here... it wasn't justice!" Eluneth accused back. "DON'T YOU DARE LECTURE ME ABOUT JUSTICE!" Michanar snapped at Eluneth, scaring her and all the other knights watching. Michanar looked at Eluneth then at Majesty, "You told me your story, now you'll all hear mine." + A young Michanar in rookie armor regalía was walking along a dirt path with other knights also wearing the simple armor of Order trainees. Leading them was Sir Hoston, one of the original founders of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith, as well as the trainer of these green knights, and Michanar's personal mentor. The narrow path stood between a forest and a large lake. Along with the small group of knights were half a dozen refugees, two men, one woman, an old man, and two children, a boy and a girl. The refugees had managed to escape a city that was attacked by Tirek's army, and then razed to the ground. The Knights of the Order had been escorting several refugees from many elven towns, and had suffered heavy losses. Thus, Michanar and others with unfinished training were sent here, there were no other knights to spare. "Captain, Sir, there's only eight of us, and except for you, none of us have ever been in a real battle before." said Michanar to Sir Hoston. "Will it be enough to fight off an ambush if it came to it?" Sir Hoston smiled, his armor was dented and his face had some fresh scars showing that he had seen his fair share of fighting since Tirek's invasion began. "Don't worry Michanar. We're far away from any known nests of the Dark One's armies. The possibilities of an ambush are slim." "But if we do need to fight..." Michanar trailed off, then looked at Sir Hoston again. "Sir, we are law-keepers, not soldiers." "Michanar, I understand that your worry, even fear, I understand that all of you are," said the Captain. "We might be keepers of the law and the Goddess' Justice, but we are also protectors of innocent. And there are many innocents during war. It is easy to follow our Code and keep the law in high regards during peace, but it is harder to do so during times of dire stress, and that is precisely why we must keep doing so during this troubled time." "Sir... Yes, sir, I understand," replied Michanar, clearly still worried. "Michanar, sometimes you will find yourself in a situation where the lawful thing to do might seem unjust, and the unlawful thing will appear just. What do you believe should be the course of action in that situation?" asked the Captain. "Sir? Well, I believe we should use what legal tools we have to reach a just outcome," replied Michanar. The Captain shook his head. "No, Michanar, that is a mistake. What you should do is abandon that belief and follow the rules set forth by the law as it is. We cannot decide what is just and unjust, and neither can Priests, because we aren't gods. We are servants of the law and protectors of order, the law does not serve us." "I... I see," said Michanar. He understood, only the Goddess can say what justice is, he just obeyed her will. The captain smiled at Michanar. "You are a fine young man, Michanar, I saw a lot of potential in you ever since you joined our Order. That's why I wanted to take you as my protégé. And when this ordeal is over, and you and the rest can go back to finish your training, you'll be a fine Knight member of the Order of Vandria Gilmadrith." "Thank you, sir," said Michanar, now more at ease. Suddenly, Reptillians emerged from the forest side of the path, advancing in a crescent formation to trap the knights and the refugees. They all snarled and roared like wild beasts, some wielding long spears, other big axes and some even pointed flails. "Ambush!" yelled one of the Knights in training. Captain Hoston was the first to draw out his sword. "Protect the refugees, watch your backs, stay togeth-UGH!" he couldn't finish the sentence as one of the charging Reptilians tossed his spear, impaling Hoston through the chest, piercing him from side to side. The Knight Captain fell on the ground, his eyes open and lifeless. The Knights found themselves outnumbered ten to one, it wasn't much of a fight as it more resembled a massacre. Michanar managed to deflect a blow from the axe of a charging Reptilian, and then cut the attacker's head off with a swift swipe of his sword, but that wasn't enough, a second hit him hard on the head with a flail. He flew a few feet to the side, barely still conscious from his head wound, and unable to move from the impact. The Reptilians thought him dead, and focused their attacks on the others. Michanar watched the Reptillians hack and slash the other Knights in training, some of them unable to even draw out their swords as they were impaled on spears, or sliced open with a single blow of their axes. Then they turned their attention to the refugees, they made quick work of the old elf first, and another Reptilian threw his spear, killing one of the two male elves that were trying to escape by swimming across the lake, his dead body floated in the water with the spear still impaled in him. The woman elf embraced the two children as they cried, the woman begging for the Reptillians to spare her children, her pleas fell on deaf ears as they crushed her head with a vertical blow of a flail, while another Reptilian picked up the children and killed them by biting down on their necks with its sharp teeth, breaking them instantly. Overseeing the whole thing, at the edge of the forest, was a centaur with sharp horns and red skin, one that Michanar had never seen before, but knew all too well. The Dark One himself, Tirek. Even after the massacre was over, Michanar couldn't get up, the blow had been too strong. Michanar also noticed that the Reptilians didn't attack one of the refugees, the other adult male. He had been on the ground, lying down with his hands covering his head, trembling, but they hadn't even glanced his way. Then the creatures moved aside silently as Tirek walked into the midst of the slaughter, and stood in silence before the last refugee. The refugee took his hands away from his head and peeked up, then to the sides. "Is... is it over?" "Yes, get up." said Tirek in a neutral manner. "So... I'm free to go, right, my Lord? ...I told you where they were going to be, and you won't kill me?" the elf whimpered. Tirek smiled. "Of course. Oh, I almost forgot! Your pay." Tirek pulled out a small leather bag, marked with the emblem of the burning city the elves had fled from, and covered in blood stains. "Thirty pieces of silver I believe. Now, go, enjoy the life Lord Tirek has given you." He tossed the bag to the elf. "Thank you, Lord." said the elf as he grabbed the bag. Then, without saying another word, Tirek returned to the forest, followed by the Reptilians. Everything was quiet again as the lone elf stood in the middle of the bodies of the knights and refugees. The elf opened the bag and started to count the silver. Michanar finally stood up as he counted. His armor dented from the fight, his head bleeding where the flail had hit him, dirt from the ground covering him. He leaned on his sword to stand up. The elf refugee finished counting the last of the thirty pieces when he turned his head and noticed Michanar. "You... you’re still alive?" he exclaimed in surprise. "You... dirty traitor!" yelled Michanar. The terrified elf turned to run. He didn't get far. Michanar grabbed a dagger from his belt and tossed it with expert marksmanship, hitting the elf refugee in the knee. The elf yelled in pain and fell on the ground, unable to stand up again. Michanar approached him slowly and with a small limp, using his sword as a cane to help himself walk. The elf refugee grabbed his wounded knee in pain. "Thirty pieces of silver…" said Michanar as he approached the fallen elf. "Look, I just wanted to live! He’s killing everyone, he takes no prisoners, nobody is safe from him! I had to make a deal so he’d let me live!" "That's what the lives of everyone here was worth to you? Thirty pieces of silver?!" said Michanar. He was almost next to the elf now. "Look, okay, I admit what I did here was wrong, but I just wanted to survive..." the elf tried to stand up, but the pain and wound in his knee were just too much to bear and he fell down again. “And you had the gall to call that demon that’s killed so many people ‘Lord’?!” "Okay, okay, look, just arrest me! I'll stand trial for my crimes!" the elf begged. "Trial? Oh, there will be no trial, you'll die right here, right now." Michanar lifted his sword. "What!? No! Wait, I'll... I'll give you the silver. Please, don't kill me! Don't kill me!" begged the refugee elf. "Enough talk!" Michanar struck down at the elf. "No! Noo!" The elf screamed as Michanar's sword pierced him right in the middle. The elf coughed up blood, and then gave a cry of pain as Michanar twisted the sword, gaping the wound, and killing him instantly. + "You see, destiny didn't kill Captain Hoston, fate didn't betray us for silver, or chopped my friends and innocents into pieces. If the Goddess was watching, she didn't seem to mind," said Michanar as he finished telling his story to Eluneth, Majesty and everyone else present there. "It was then at that very moment, that I understood, the gods don't make this world what it is. We mortals do," Michanar finished. Majesty had remained quiet, mostly because she really didn't know what to say anymore, but she also had noticed that some of the knights surrounding them were now moving to stand behind Michanar or behind Eluneth. Majesty knew that Eluneth noticed that too, and even Zaleria noticed it. "Sir... I am sorry about what happened, but... what about everything you taught us. What about the Code. What about Justice?" asked Eluneth. "Don't you get it yet!? This isn't just about 'Justice' anymore!" exclaimed Michanar. "This is about our survival! Not just the survival of the Order, but about the survival of all elfkind!" exclaimed Michanar, "Elf civilization is a shadow of its former self. The Dark One’s monsters have killed us by the thousands, and the only reason it slowed down is because they started to lose resources. As soon as he resupplies, he’ll strike again! The only way we have any hope of survival is if we ALL. STAY. TOGETHER!" he emphasized those last three words. "Elven towns barely interact with each other, if it weren't for us and what little resources we have to keep travelers and merchants safe, there wouldn't be any trade or commerce! Every elven settlement would be reduced to a city state, and none of them would last even a day alone against a full attack of the Enemy. You still cling to the naïve idea that we can be decent men in indecent times! There is no justice if we're all dead! We couldn't afford to delay our departure so I advance Feanor's trial to today! I couldn't just hand him over to the local authorities because that would have made the Order look like it couldn't uphold justice anymore! It would have made us look weak! It would have made the people lose hope! Everything I did, I did it for the Order, and for all elfkind!" Several elf knights moved behind Michanar. "Maybe so, Captain, but how can we be beacons of hope and justice if we ourselves can't believe in it?" replied Eluneth. "If we don't keep our oaths, then why make them in the first place? It makes the Code of the Order meaningless." More knights moved behind Eluneth. "Again with the Code!" said Michanar in disgust. "You want to follow the Code like a blind fool? Well then, according to that witch's confession," Michanar, pointed at Zaleria. "We have executed an innocent man! According to the Code, we must all kill ourselves in repentance, since we all had something to do with the case! Including you Eluneth, since you were the one that arrested the blacksmith to begin with!" Michanar turned to look at every knight around him, the ones behind Eluneth and the ones behind himself. "Tell me now, how many of you want to commit suicide, and leave everyone you know defenseless against the forces of Midnight Castle, do so. If you care about the future of elfkind, then just forget about this and arrest this fool for insubordination!" Eluneth drew her sword, as did all the knights standing behind her. "You broke the Code, and so, according to the Code, I will strike you down in the name of Justice!" "Blind puppet. So be it then," Michanar also drew out his sword from his sheath, "For the Order!" "For Justice!" yelled Eluneth and her followers as they also charged forward. Majesty barely had time to raise a magic shield bubble to protect herself. Since Zaleria was tied close to Majesty, the bubble covered her as well. From within her magic shield, Majesty watched in horror as as Eluneth, Michanar and the knights fought each other, killed each other. "Hahaha! This is even better than I imagined!" Zaleria laughed. "You... you KNEW this was going to happen!?" exclaimed the unicorn as more knights outside the magical bubble died. "Of course! I spied on these knights. I knew what they thought. I knew what would happen between them if I were captured and confessed to the murder." Majesty was at a loss for words. She remained silent. "And what will YOU do, little pony? Will you stay in this little bubble, or will you pick a side in this fight? Be careful, though, whatever choice you make will affect the life of every single elf from this day forward. Can you live with that choice? Hmm?" "I... I..." Majesty didn't know how to answer. Outside the magic shield bubble, almost every member of the Order was dead. Eluneth killed the two last knights that been on Michanar's side with two swift blows of her sword, but Michanar had already dispatched the last knight on Eluneth side, and slashed at Eluneth's back, not deep enough to kill her, but a strong enough wound to make Eluneth fall to her knees screaming in pain. Michanar raised his sword in both hands, ready to strike her down. "This ends here, Eluneth." "Nooo!" Majesty dispelled the magical bubble shield and fired a magical beam at Michanar, striking him on his back. It wasn't strong enough to put him down since Majesty hadn't used her full power, but it was enough to make Michanar turn around to look angrily at Majesty, sword in hand. "Why, you damn unicorn! I'm going to -UGH!" Eluneth had taken her chance, and had picked up her sword off the ground and stabbed Michanar on the back with it, the blade emerged from Michanar's chest covered in his blood, he looked at it as his arms and legs went limp. Eluneth then pushed him away and Michanar fell on the ground, staining it as a pool of blood formed below him and he exhaled his last breath. "Eluneth, are you okay?" asked Majesty. "I'm fine Majesty," Eluneth looked around her, she saw all the dead bodies of every member of the Order that had been in the camp lying around her. "There is only one last thing to take care of." Eluneth grabbed her sword with both hands, and placed the tip of the blade against her chestplate. "Eluneth, what... what are you doing?" asked Majesty. "I must keep my oath. I will follow the Code. For Justice, for the Goddess. I'm guilty of being involved in the death of an innocent. And so, I pay for my guilt with my life." Eluneth let herself fall forward, letting herself being stabbed by her own sword. "Wait, no!" exclaimed Majesty, but it was too late. Eluneth smiled as she laid limp on the floor, lifeless, as her sword pierced her body and a puddle of blood began to grown beneath her. Majesty closed her eyes, trying and failing to keep tears from coming out. This wasn't what she had wanted. This isn't what was supposed to happen. She wanted to save Feanor, and now everyone was dead. "Ha ha ha ha! I take it back! THIS is better than I could possibly imagine!" Zaleria laughed, standing behind Majesty, with her arms still tied securely behind her back. "There's no way to keep this secret. When others figure out what happened here, the rest of this foolish order will fight among each other, and elf society as a whole will fall into civil war, and will become easy targets for the Great and Terrible Tirek. I have served Evil Itself well this day! And it is all thanks to you, if you had killed me instead of capturing me and taking me here, none of this would have happened. NYA-NYA! Who's the fool now? I gave you plenty of outs! That elf was right, if the lie about me killing the blacksmith had remained, then their stupid order would have remained as it was, but now that the truth was discovered, there is no turning back. Now thousands upon thousands of elves will die, the days of the tree humpers are numbered! Ha ha ha ha!" Majesty rose her head, but kept her back turned to the witch. "I see now. I understand what I have to be in order to stop people like you." Majesty turned around, her horn glowed red with fire. "Are you sure you want to cross that line? Because once you do, there is no turning back. So, come on, kill me little pony, I'll die with a grin that will last for a thousand years!" exclaimed Zaleria. Majesty didn't answer, her horn flashed as she casted her spell. Zaleria laughed as her body began turning to stone from the feet up. She laughed the entire time, until she fell silent as her entire body was turned to stone. Majesty turned around and started to walk out of the barren encampment of the knights. She had to get away, away from Amrun, away from the Land of Arghayth, away from any elven land. She wouldn't even say goodbye. She couldn't face any of the friends she had made in her short stay in Amrun's palace. Zaleria mocking prediction echoed in her mind that the only thing clear in the future of elves now would be civil war, the few that would survive would remain as city states in remote locations hard to access by normal means, or live the lives of hermits, and be but prey for Tirek's army to pluck like apples from trees... and it would be partly Majesty's fault, she had condemned an entire people to be on the brink of total extinction. As she left the encampment, Majesty started to gallop into the opposite direction of Amrun, and didn't stop until the elven town wasn't even a speck in the horizon behind her.