Lith was already sweating bullets when Orion, who was wearing a silvery Royal Foragemaster robe, stepped through the crowd and joined the three Professors.
Manohar and Vastor moved to Lith’s left side, while Manohar and Orion to his right, in a square formation that left him no way out. The clothes of the Lord of the Ernas Household and of the three Professors shapeshifted at the same time.
Lith shuddered in fear recognizing the fabled Royal Fortress armor. They could be worn only with the authorization of the Queen herself, bestowing upon a normal human the power of an Emperor Beast and upon a mage the strength of a small army.
The armor appeared to be made of golden feathers that shone like a sun. The helmet was shaped like an eagle’s head, its gloves ended with claws, and a couple of wings made of energy were draped like a mantle around its shoulders.
They allowed the wearer to fly and they could also be used to intercept incoming attacks, be they physical or magical in nature. The suit made those who wore it resemble a humanoid Griffon covered in metal.
“Everyone, but the Royal Guards, kneel.” Sylpha and Meron stood up. Her voice was calm and flat as if she had asked to close a window, but the authority in her words couldn’t be denied.
Literally.
The arrays in the room forced everyone to obey at the same time, weighing down like a mountain on all those too slow to comply. Like everyone else, Lith was locked in place, incapable of doing anything but breathing while he stared at his own right foot.
“Lith of Lutia.” Sylpha’s voice echoed throughout the room like the first clap of thunder announcing the storm.
“I remember well the first time I heard this name. Back then, you were just a student of the White Griffon academy, yet your country already needed your help to face the plague that destroyed Kandria before it could spread to the rest of the Garlen continent.
“It turned you into Mage Lith, a title only those who graduate from an academy and join the Mage Association can bear. No one cared for your young age and assumed your future was set in stone.
“Then, you helped to save countless lives against Balkor and Nalear, becoming Mage Lith Verhen. The King and I personally chose your family name and bestowed it upon you, something that usually only the ancient households that are the pillars of the Kingdom can claim.
“A few years later, you joined the army of your own will and destroyed one of the ancient horrors we inherited from our forefathers. It was a feat deemed to be impossible, to the point that even the best of us had given up hope and lived in its shadow in fear.
“You made us dream a new bright future where you would become a new pillar for the Kingdom and help it thrive. It’s the reason why you became Great Mage Lith Verhen despite having barely come of age and many doubted where your loyalty lay.”
“Alas, all good things come to an end. All dreams shatter when daybreak comes. After all the Kingdom did for you ever since you joined the academy, we came to learn your intentions to quit the army and walk the lonely path of a beast.”
Sylpha’s tone turned from flat and calm to cold and sour.
Half the Banquet Hall started to grin if not openly smiling from ear to ear. The good thing about kneeling was that no one could see the expression on their faces.
“You discarded your brothers in arms of the army, turned down Lyca Wanemyre’s offer to become a Royal Forgemaster, and never deigned to contact the Mage Association except when you needed something.
“Your actions speak clearly. You treat this Kingdom, your country as if it has failed you and this can’t be tolerated any longer now that your military service is over.”
From his vantage position, Orion noticed that too many people were clenching their fists in triumph. Lith was alone. The old households considered him a threat to their power because he had quickly risen to high places they considered as their own.
The new households considered him a traitor because of his friendship with the Ernas and the Distar households. On top of that, he had never joined their political cause nor helped his peers, which had only exacerbated the new magical bloodlines’ mood with each success he achieved.
To them, Lith had squandered all the opportunities fate had presented him with to change the power scale in the Griffon Kingdom.
Orion steeled his heart, not letting any emotion transpire from his face. He silently prayed for Lith, knowing that the worst had yet to come.
“I, the Queen, and my spouse, the King, can’t tolerate it any longer because you are right.” Sylpha said.
“Your achievements as a student helped to prove that Linjos was right, changing the academy system from within and making Guilty Ballots standard equipment for all students.
“As a member of the army, you brought down the Black Star, you saved the city of Zantia from being the victim of Forbidden Arts, you stopped monster outbreaks that threatened thousands, and eradicated corruption or incompetence wherever you went.
“You faced Thrud Griffon, one of our most ancient enemies, and prevented her nefarious plan from coming to fruition at great personal cost. You discovered two Odi ruins, braving both times against ancient horrors that if not stopped might have brought the Kingdom to its knees.
“All those present can bear witness that without you, there would be Odi and Baba Yaga’s children hidden among us. Yet what did the Kingdom for you in return? We gave you a few days’ leave and a few trinkets that even the most unworthy in this room can flaunt.”
A member of the Royal family could ever apologize, yet Sylpha’s words accompanied by Meron’s nodding came really close, making all those present freeze.
“Recently, the Orichalcum Skinwalker armor you gave Royal Forgemaster Orion Ernas allowed us an exceptional breakthrough in the mystical arts and provided our mages with answers we searched for decades.
“For all of your contributions that are too many to be listed in a single session of this Court, however, we can’t allow Great Mage Verhen to live anymore. You are aware of too many secrets that can never be disclosed without endangering the lives of us all. For this very reason, today is the day you die.”
Two-thirds of the room sighed in relief, while the rest of them tried to rebel to that injustice while cursing the Royals’ name, but the arrays kept their limbs still and their mouths closed.
Sylpha stepped forward, wielding the Sword of Saefel with one hand. A mere thought of hers allowed her subjects, loyal or not, to raise their heads and bear witness.
“Great Mage Lith Verhen is dead.” She used the flat side of the blade to pat Lith’s left shoulder, then the right, and finally the top of his head.
“Long live Archmage Lith Verhen.” At those words, the blue jumpsuit shapeshifted into a ceremonial Royal Fortress armor, bearing very few spells of the real deal, among which there was the one allowing Royal Guards to move freely.
Lith remained frozen in place, incapable of making sense of what had just happened. His mind was blank from the emotional rollercoaster caused by the Queen’s speech.
