Honored (Book 2 of the In Search of Honor series)

Dan and I followed the road down toward the outer sections of the city where the main square was. Four city guards met us near the edge of the living section of the city. They formed a diamond around us, one in front, one on either side, and one in the back. It felt like I was once again heading to my own execution, but I wasn’t. This time it was Casia’s trial. I hoped so much that she would get a choice for Exile or Execution. Given the choice, I would win and she would walk freely out of the city.

The street was packed tight with people the guards pushed out of the way to make room for my chair to roll through. As we moved through the forest of people, those that saw my wheel chair stopped and pointed at it. I could hear the murmur of whispers but almost no exact words except for the word “Exile” slithering in through the din of the crowd.

We slowly progressed through the crowd until we could see the platform, then a bit further, and the guard in front stopped. “Would you like to be closer or up on the platform? I was told to escort you to wherever you wanted to be.”

I looked at the bloody platform where the souls of the dead were soaked into its ancient floors. The remembered scent of blood made bile rise in my throat. I was close enough I could see it. Close enough that I would see Casia.

“This is far enough,” I told the man in the front. I didn’t want to be up there, and my deal with Casia would be void if I interfered.

Richard Hongew, Henry’s brother, who proposed the day’s dreaded activity confidently walked onto the stage with the swagger of an Honored never sentenced to Dishonor or Execution on that stage. A man never dragged through the streets to face his death. I envied and hated that existence so contrary to my own.

“Today, people of this city, you have been saved by the Exile who sits among you,” and yet by taking the stage and saying this, this young man owned the narrative and claimed part of the credit himself.

“We will hold a vote. This vote will be for representatives to decide how a new system that is voted for will control the city. Everyone who has not chosen exile will get a vote in their district, and there will be 12 representatives to match the twelve districts.”

“How will this vote be held?” A person from the audience called out.

“Yeah, and what about more populated versus less populated areas, do we Normals matter less to you Honored?” Another voice demanded from the crowd.

The Honored man waved his hand downward to settle the crowd, “Do not worry. We will have guards to help guide you to your correct polling location. It will not need to be super correct yet since this is just a representative to help build the new system of governance in the absence of the old.”

People muttered, but there were no other called out questions. “Polling will be tomorrow at noon. There will be one station for each representative.”

How did he know that? Nothing was agreed on except for the vote taking place. Had everything for the vote been coordinated without me? I should have thought about the logistical questions of the vote. I should have been there to make sure it was decided in a way that was fair to the people.

“But I have a special treat for everyone. The King’s woman was found alive. Today, we will have a trial for her!” Richard’s voice projected over the crowd’s low rumble.

A cheer erupted from the crowd. Dan put his hand on my shoulder as guards led a progression through the crowd, and from within their midst I could see a woman dressed in just a Dishonored sack, hands tied behind her back, and dark brown curls tumbling to her shoulder. My dear sister who hated my guts. If I had listened to her and not meddled, we wouldn’t be here today, but I wouldn’t have gone beyond the Wall and met Dan. I wouldn’t have come back, started a revolution, and killed her King. But a government by the people was going to be better, right? I had gotten rid of the King that enforced the caste system and kept people from leaving. It had to be better than the King that was there. Casia’s talk of the spies troubled me. Who were they? Would the new system be able to thwart them?

Casia was led up the platform. Richard turned, scanning the crowd, and finding my eyes he smiled brightly. He was like an oily shadow of Henry up there on the stage. Henry who fought to save me from that very platform.

“This woman sat next to the King whispering in his ear. It was her who is said to have whispered the restrictive rules that made our lives hell and even the ruling to murder our beloved Exile. Somehow, she escaped the destruction of the castle that should have been the fate for one so evil,” his words were honey laced venom for me. Beloved Exile. Ha. He hated my guts.

But I couldn’t defend her. That wasn’t the agreement.

“What proof do you have of this?” A voice called from the crowd, and I breathed a sigh of relief. The crowd was intelligent. The more people, the more questions would poke holes in this man’s twisted logic.

Richard turned to Casia and asked, “What do you say, were you the King’s woman?”

She looked over the crowd, her eyes quickly scanning to where Richard had stopped, and on finding me her lips twists in a bitter grimace of a smile. “I loved the King deeply,” She proclaimed, setting the crowd’s whispering off.

“That does not answer the question. Were you the King’s woman?” Richard asked again.

“He loved me, a mere Dishonored. He brought me out of drudgery, and raised me to stand next to him. He was not your enemy! He loved everyone here!” Casia screamed to the crowd, her body shaking like it was cold, but the City within the dome was always at a perfect temperature for life.

“You did not answer the question!” Richard’s voice rumbled cutting off her next words.

She cocked her head, staring at him. Her lips parted slightly, then closed. Then, she smiled, her eyes sparkling with tears, and she muttered something.

“Say it louder for the crowd,” Richard commanded, his back turned toward me as faced off against Casia tears.

“YES!” She screamed, tears streaking her face. “I loved him and you can’t condemn me for love!”

He laughed, “But I can condemn you for outlawing Exile. For making it so that no one could choose to leave. I can say that we should follow your laws and put you to death here and now!”

“No!” I screamed, but my voice was lost in the roar of the crowd like thunder rumbling through the heart of the city, but not abating or moving.

“Execute her!” People shouted.

“Give her the option of Exile,” I heard another voice shout.

Richard motioned and the crowd grew quiet. “Who here is for Exile or Execution?”

Wait, her trial wasn’t even finished! It hadn’t been decided that she was even guilty.

A couple people started to raise their hands, and a voice screamed, “Don’t give her a bloody option. Give her what she gave us! Execute her!”

“Execute! Execute! Execute!” A cry started up, and the people speaking up seemed to be eaten up by the crowd.

“NO! No! No!” I tried to scream against them, but the crowd was chanting and pumping their fists. A black bag was raised over Casia’s head, and I could see her triumphant smile beaming at me as the bag was lowered and cut her off from me.

I pressed the button to move my chair forward, to save my sister, but the chair wouldn’t move.

“CASIA ,” I screamed. A hand gripped my shoulder tightly, and a voice I didn’t know whispered in my ear, you promised to do nothing if this is what the people chose, and anyways, there is nothing you could do. The spies have always had this under control.”

I twisted my neck to see it wasn’t Dan next to me, but piercing blue eyes like a forge’s flame in the darkness. I couldn’t forget those eyes. “Christopher,” I whispered.

“The spies will always be here in the city. There is no way to weed out us, when the people of the City are so easily swayed.”

Casia was shoved forward onto her knees. Her head forced down to the block. I looked away, back toward the man who was so calmly standing where Dan should have been. I heard the thunk of the blade, and the second thunk, her head. Everything felt so wrong. The leeching sickening sharp acidic smell of iron and blood filled the air. Images of the dead lying on top of me. I glanced back at the stage, unable to stop myself, and I saw her body, her headless body slowly tumbling away. Her blood filling seeping into the stage, joining my father’s blood, Bryan’s blood, Kyle’s blood. All dead because of me. I killed her. My stomach rebelled and bile filled my mouth and for a second I thought I would puke, but I somehow swallowed it back down. My stomach rumbled, threatening to cover my lap in the bile I served to everyone around me.

“With your sister dead, the last of those that defied us have been defeated. We’ve appreciated your service to the spies, and have decided to release you. For now. You are free. Do whatever you want. You are no longer required to set up the government of the city. If your choices lead you back to us, we will welcome you back with open arms,” his hand lifted as he finished, and I wretched my eyes away from the macabre scene in front of me, only to see the retreating back of a Wall cloak slipping into the crowd, and Dan pushing through, stumbling forward, and wrapping his arms around me.

“I got cut off by the crowd, I couldn’t get through. I was so terrified something had happened to you. I couldn’t live without you,” His words were a rambling panic, but I didn’t really care anymore.

I was in that state again. I’d been like this before. Cold. Uncaring. Cut off and the world around me simply the din of lives going on. I looked down at my hands. They were so clean for someone so bloody.

I took a deep breath. The people were cheering around me. The crowd was wild and celebratory, and here I was, my silent little diamond held in Dan’s cold embrace.

He said I was free. He said I had served my purpose well. Were the spies just Wall agents? He said they would always be there. There was nothing I could do. All I did was cause people to die. Was Richard their newest agent? Had his desire for vengeance made him an easy target? Had I been such an easy target as well.

I patted Dan’s arm. I was a monster. At least the cyber people had rules controlling them, but if they were of the Wall, were they involved as well? But if I became one, this guilt would be gone. These emotions that were my wall would be broken down to nothing.

“I’m finished Dan. I’ll watch on the sidelines as this City runs blindly into its fate, but I’m done with caring about what happens. When the great Exile happens, I will leave the city and head into the Wall with them. I will leave and become a cyborg like you.” I leaned my head against him. There was no fighting this anymore.