6 Chapter 6- Corruption of the Innocen

Frederic stared blankly at the iron bars of his cell as he heard the footsteps of the captain of his platoon slowly grow quieter and quieter.

His mind was hazy, and he attempted to remember what had happened last night. Memories came flooding back to him as he recalled his renouncing of the surfacers guild, and his conversation with his wife.

He thought back to his fight with the assassins, and couldn't remember anything past the fight. He clearly had not been taken captive by the surfacers, as he was within the empires prison, and the one who came to see him was the captain of the empires 3rd platoon, of which he was a distinguished soldier.

He deduced that either the empire had discovered his identity as a surfacer, or that they had witnessed his abilities and deemed him to be a threat to the empire, particularly because he had hidden the abilities to prevent suspicion.

Frederic laid down on the hard concrete slab, and twisted and turned as he wondered what would become of his family.

As worries filled his mind, he made the resolve to turn himself in, and to beg for the lives of his family.

He would plea that they had no relation with him or the surfacers, and beg that they be freed and allowed to live peacefully.

Frederic turned once more, and as he decided this, peace filled his mind, knowing that there was at least hope for his family.

After being threatened by the surfacer assassins to sacrifice his family, and fighting to the death to protect them, this was a fitting end for someone like him who had come to disturb the peace within the empire. Comforted, he fell asleep.

Morning came quickly, and the captain of the guard banged on the iron bars to wake Frederic. Startled, he awoke to the sound of the captains voice.

"Get up Frederic. Its time for the trial. I don't know what you have to say for yourself, but whatever you're guilty of, you had better turn yourself in for."

Frederic lightly smiled, accepting his fate, and was lead out by the captain and two other soldiers.

He was lead down a long corridor which lead to some large wooden doors, carved with intricate designs. Passing through the doors, a large courtroom was laid out before his eyes, and the judge sat at the center podium, ready to begin the hearing.

To the left side was a group of nobles, all outfitted in suits and ties, and to his right stood his wife, who was also bound by handcuffs, and the children were nowhere to be seen.

Frederic could not see that his wife's hands had been mutilated, as they were behind her back, but he gave her a reassuring look, as if to say "This is my problem, and I will take care of it."

The guards pressed him down onto a kneeler, and attached his legs to it with cuffs so that he would stay kneeling. The judge brought down the hammer with a "knock", and began the hearing

"We shall now begin the trial of Frederic Ruffield, who stands accused of unknown affiliations with an assassin group, and of withholding magical power from the empires knowledge, despite being a Lieutenant in the empires 3rd infantry platoon. Everyone, please rise".

The nobles and the various groups who were in the stands all stood, and the judge continued.

"We will begin with a witness testimony. Miss Patricia Larkins, you may come forward and state what you witnessed."

The woman who had passed by the previous day, and called for the guards stepped forward. She was a poor woman, dressed in a ragged dress, with long black hair.

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She was clearly nervous, and not used to being in a formal situation, as she was merely one who happened to pass by after the incident. She walked up, trembling, but mustered up her courage and began to speak.

"I.. was walking down 4th street yesterday night, at around 4 am. I came upon a group of about 20 men, all dressed head to toe in black outfits. All of the men had been killed- some throats were slit, others had stab wounds, and all of them laid dead. In the middle of them, wounded and unconscious laid the man accused."

The judge waived his hand, signaling her that she was free to leave.

She walked out of the courtroom, and one of the nobles handed her a sack of money on the way out as payment for her testimony.

"Frederic Ruffield. What say you to this? For what reason were you involved in the matter? What affiliation did the group have?"

Frederic looked upwards and braced himself to speak.

"Your honor, I have full intention to confess in full all that I know, so that whatever punishment I receive may only be placed on myself, and so that my wife and children may be allowed to go free."

At this statement, his wife began to cry, kneeling down in horror under the knowledge that her husband would be deemed a traitor to the empire, and most likely would be executed.

"I have come from the surfacers guild as a spy, in order to infiltrate the empire to cease the magical experiments that have been ongoing within our walls. After meeting my wife, and having two children, I decided to live a peaceful life and cut my ties with the surfacers, so that my wife and children would not have to live out of fear. As a result of this, a number of assassins were sent after me yesterday, and I dispatched of them. That is the situation. If you brand me a traitor to the empire and execute me, I have no qualms, however I beg of you, please allow my wife and children to live. They have no knowledge of my sins, and are innocent."

The judge patiently listened and appeared to be in a state of thought. After a few minutes of thinking, accompanied by plenty of murmuring among the empires nobles, he brought down his hammer once more to instill order.

"My decision is this: The surfacer, Frederic Ruffield, shall be executed tomorrow by guillotine due to his crime of infiltration and betrayal to the empire. The decision of what will occur to your family will be postponed for later discretion. Jury, do I have any objections?"

The jury remained quiet, and all silently agreed to the decision. Frederic, on the other hand, began to scream in agony.

"I beg you your honor, please do not allow my family to incur any harm!! They are innocent of my sins!"

The guard near him slapped Frederic to shut him up, but Frederic continued to struggle and beg.

"Take him out" the judge stated, and the guards grabbed him to take him away, struggling to undo his chains from the kneeler.

His wife also continued to scream and cry out for him, as he struggled and attempted to get the guards off him. Finally, they managed to take him out, and the doors to the court shut.

"Order in the court" The judge stated, as he banged his hammer a few more times.

The court, now empty of Frederic, remained its session.

"Now that we are rid of the traitor, we will decide on the fate of his family. My verdict is that the wife and children will be placed under the experimentation committee as test subjects to further our magical discoveries. This shall be a fitting punishment to the one who attempted to stop such research. For the sake of taking back the surface, we the empire shall continue this path."

Once more the jury silently agreed, and Annabelle passed out from the shock she received from the verdict. Knowing that not only herself, but her children would be used as human test subjects for the rest of her lives, she was unable to comprehend the situation, and couldn't stay aware any further.