Bear Coast Page 10

  “With what?” asked Trex, genuinely interested.

  “We suspect that…” Sergeant Kirra began to say, but she hesitated as Sergeant Brex suddenly took a step forward and bent over to take a closer smell of the powder.

  “… the substance is…” continued Kirra, looking on curiously out of the corner of her eye.

  Brex put his index finger into the mix to gather a small sample, brining it to his tongue.

  “Brex?!” exclaimed the tall female in shock, abandoning her previous sentence, “what are you doing?”

  Brex took out a small handkerchief as he stood back up, spitting the small sample out after savouring it for a few seconds.

  “What?” he asked, “I would have had to have done it sooner or later anyway.”

  Sergeant Kirra kept up her disapproving stare.

  “It’s probably Hirsstock by the way,” the muscular Sergeant said casually.

  “Hirsstock?” asked Sara, recognising the plant, “That nasty plant?”

  “I’m surprised that you can recognise it just by taste,” interrupted the professor, “only the Chemist’s Guild are allowed to have supplies of it.”

  Sergeant Brex smiled goofily.

  “What can I say, our investigator’s training is very thorough.”

  Sergeant Kirra gave her partner a knowing look.

  “Didn’t the potions master notice?” asked Brekiz with a hint of impatience, ignoring the interaction between the two officers.

  The three adults turned to look back to where Stavro was sitting on the stairs of the timber podium. He was being comforted by another lion soldier and looked almost worse then Tommy.

  “He said that he scooped off the top of the bag for the first potion, but mixed the contents through before preparing the second potion. The Hirsstock could have been mostly hidden in the bottom of the bag,” said Sergeant Brex.

  “That’s why I wasn’t affected,” added the Professor.

  “That doesn’t sound right,” said Brekiz suddenly with displeasure, the curly blond youth smelt a rat, “and what about the broken key? It all sounds pretty coincidental.”

  Sergeant Kirra looked similarly unimpressed with the whole state of affairs, but laid out the facts as they were.

  “They got most of the ingredients for the test form the same place that they got the cage, some dusty half forgotten cellar somewhere. Whoever originally had the potion is long dead, and if they had wanted to hide an illegal store of Hirsstock, that would have been a good place for it.”

  Brekiz crossed his arms in defiance, his conspiracy theory mind already well in motion.

  “As for the key,” continued Sergeant Kirra, “I’m surprised they were even able to open the lock at all in the first place... there is no reason to believe…”

  Sergeant Kirra looked specifically at Brekiz.

  “…or enough evidence to prove, that this is anything more then an unfortunate accident.”

  Brekiz frowned.

  “At least no one was hurt,” offered Trex, simply glad for it all to be over.

  “I hope Tommy will have no long term side effects?” stated Professor Ferric with concern, moving over to his student.

  “He should be fine by tomorrow,” offered Brekiz, avoiding the gaze of his colleague, “except for a lingering headache.”

  The words lingering headache suddenly reminded Trex that he was meant to be supporting his family at this very moment.

  “Zea,” said Trex quietly to himself.

  “I forgot,” said Brekiz, also suddenly remembering.

  Sergeant Kirra looked over with interest.

  “Sergeant Kirra,” said Trex ,moving a step forward, “can we go? My family has their council hearing at the moment.”

  Kirra looked at her partner who simply nodded, there was nothing else to discuss here.

  “Sure, you can go,” she said, “just report back to the main guardhouse in a few hours in case we have any further questions.”

  Trex nodded, turning towards the door, his mind now preoccupied.

  “Wait,” said Tommy from behind.

  Trex and his two friends turned to see Tommy still huddling with his tea. The sickly looking instructor nodded over towards the far end of the table where a small leather armband rested inconspicuously next to a scroll.

  “Of course,” said Professor Ferric, suddenly springing forward, knowing what Tommy was indicating.

  Quickly picking up the armband and a small scroll he turned back to Trex.

  “I think you definitely showed that you can handle your responsibilities as a citizen of the Lion Empire… congratulations.”

  Trex blinked a few times. Due to the commotion, he had completely forgotten about his citizenship.

  “Well done,” said Brekiz, giving Trex a slap on the back, “you’re a free lion… At least, after your year of compulsory service that is.”

  Sara gave Trex a nod and a smile, only because she knew that it probably meant a lot to him.

  “Right,” said Trex proudly, “let’s go.”

  Kirra watched the three youngster’s race out the door.

  Nearby, Sergeant Brex was smacking his lips audibly, as if his mouth felt funny.

  “If I start acting funny…” said the shorter Sergeant contemplatively, “I may need to go off duty for an hour or two.”

  “And how would I notice ‘that’ exactly?” asked Kirra sarcastically with a cheeky smile.

  A few minutes later, Trex, Brekiz and Sara were walking around the outside of the mulling crowd in front of the opened council chambers.

  Looking over the head of the murmuring masses, Trex could see that the council members were filing back into the chamber from a small side antechamber.

  “Wow, what a debate,” said a middle aged Anthro lion male as the three walked past.

  “There coming back in, I wonder which way they are going to decide,” said his female companion with interest, referring to the seating council.

  “I don’t remember a debate ever getting so heated before,” said the old Anthro lion, seemingly slightly disappointed by the matter.

  “It’s such a disgrace, that poor little girl,” said a young female Anthro wolf.

  “Councillor Gerak does have a point,” said a strongly built lion male in a cold tone nearby. He was immediately glared at by his lioness companion. The debate had obviously polarised the crowd somewhat.

  “We’re never going to get through all these Anthros,” said Trex with a bit of concern.

  Brekiz looked down the side of the imposing domed building, seeing an open door.

  “This way,” Brekiz said suddenly, leading the three down the side of the building.

  A guard saw the three approach. She did not look overly impressed.

  “No public access,” said the guard impassively.

  Brekiz thought quickly.

  “We are not the public, this is Trex Tristfull. I’m bringing him to his family for the council’s decision.”

  The guard gave Trex the once over.

  “Identification?” she demanded.

  Trex quickly handed over his fine leather identification.

  “I was not informed,” she said, checking the document.

  “It was a last minute decision,” bluffed the curly blond lion, “we’re both active reservists, what’s the problem?” he asked, indicating to his armband.

  The guard looked hesitant.

  “Lieutenant Millan also gave me specific instructions to escort the apprentice of Sage Filfia,” Brekiz added, indicating to Sara, “am I going to have to go get her just to fulfil my two orders?”

  The mention of the Lieutenant’s name was enough. Not that the Lieutenant was unjust or anything, but more so that no one would take the risk of claiming to be following orders from her, if it wasn’t true. The guard took a step to the side.

  “There we go,” said Brekiz with satisfaction.

  Back in the council chamber, the council members had taken their seats.


  There were two smaller tables set opposite each other in front of the main council table on top of the raised podium. Councillor Gerak and Head Councillor Tasch sat opposed each other at the small tables, each with one assistant.

  In the front row sat Trex’s family, next to them were Katan, Sage Filfia and Captain Felx. Lieutenant Milan stood nearby, watching the proceedings from the sidelines near Gerak.

  On either side of the main seating area stood members of the public. It was behind these Anthros that the three youngsters emerged from a side door, only about five meters away from Trex’s sitting family and Head Councillor Tasch.

  “Silence in the chamber!” boomed a loud voice of an Anthro lion official to one side of the podium.

  The crowd slowly began to quieten down.

  Trex caught a glimpse of his family through the mass of Anthros in front of him. Zea was looking upset and was being comforted by her mother Sharlee. Karthen looked like he was trying hard to control his anger.

  “That bastard Gerak better not have insulted my family,” said Trex darkly, somewhat out of character.

  “Don’t worry buddy,” said Brekiz, “my grandmother probably walked rings around that fool.”

  Trex grumbled.

  “What’s going on?” Sara asked Trex in a hushed voice.

  “The council allowed a debate on a matter of public importance,” replied Trex

  “Public importance?” questioned Sara.

  Up on the podium the kind looking Anthro lioness Emeal stood up as honorary Head Councillor. Her expression was considerably more serious then usual today.

  Trex knew the proceedings and also knew that the first part of the speech was just about formalities. He continued to whisper to Sara while Emeal spoke in the background.

  “Councillor Gerak does not believe that my cousin should be allowed to attend school like everyone else. He feels it would be a physical, and moral danger to the other students and the empire.”

  “What a load of rubbish,” said Sara with conviction.

  Trex was subconsciously pleased to here Sara so convincingly supporting his cousin.

  “Unfortunately, not enough Anthros think like us,” he whispered.

  “So how does it work?” asked Sara, indicating to the council meeting in front of her. The Wolf Kingdom had a totally different way of dealing with policy, mostly behind closed doors.

  “If two Councillors disagree on a matter of policy that one of them deems to be of grave public importance, they hold an open formal debate on the matter,” whispered Trex, “the rest of the council sits in judgement. The judges also gauge how the public reacts on the issue and normally the debaters end up formulating a few key points that need to be voted on.”

  Up above, Emeal continued to speak loudly and with authority, an impressive sight, given the middle aged Anthro lioness’s shy and somewhat diminutive appearance.

  “The councillors retire and vote on the matter,” continued Trex in a quiet voice, “then they come out and give a quick summery, their decision, and the reason for their decision.”

  Trex was rushing his words to make sure he didn’t miss the start of the summary.

  “Here we go…” he added quickly.

  “On the matter of whether the halfling Zea Tristfull should be allowed to attend public schooling, as granted to all subjects by our laws,” stated Emeal, “Councillor Gerak has taken the position of the negative and Head Councillor Tasch the positive.”

  Out of interest, Sara took an opportunity to look at the crowd. She was surprised that just over a quarter of the onlookers were wolves. Somehow, the idea that they were part of the ‘public’ was novel to her, and seemingly dispelled some previously held ideas about the conditions of the wolves in the occupied territories.

  “The council has summarised the main arguments as follows,” continued Emeal, changing scrolls.

  “Councillor Gerak is of the belief that the stipulated laws, as set out in the ‘Charter of RefugeCross’ regarding the handling of wolf and lion subjects within the lion Empire, are jeopardized by the appearance of a mixed race individual. And that her allowed presence as part of our society would constitute an unacceptable point of contention regarding these clear and separate laws for wolves and lions, leading to potential hostility and unrest.”

  The crowd murmured, obviously mostly undecided on this point, though the silence of many indicated a placid agreement, even if they didn’t want to openly admit it.

  “He’s just playing on the fears of most Anthros against change,” whispered Trex to Sara.

  Sara was mildly surprised that Trex had commented to her instead of Brekiz.

  Trex, however, suspected that Brekiz may have deep down agreed with the idea to some point.

  Councillor Emeal continued.

  “Councillor Gerak is also of the opinion that Zea would constitute a physical threat upon her reaching maturity.”

  The murmurs of the crowed grew louder.

  “As evidence of this, he has referenced accounts of the few other halflings which have appeared throughout history,” stated Emeal coolly. She indicated well enough with the tone of her voice that she didn’t agree with the material.

  “Written by a bunch of close minded racists who caused the problems in the first place,” whispered Trex darkly.

  Sara was at a loss for words, not really knowing Trex or the history of halflings well enough to say anything of value.

  “On the basis of the presented information,” continued the Councillor, seemingly hesitating to state what was written in front of her, “Councillor Gerak has recommended that Zea Tristfull should be removed from her family and institutionalised.”

  “What?!” said Trex in shock loudly, causing some of the Anthro wolves and lions nearby to turn around.

  Brekiz grabbed his friend, trying to calm him down.

  “Take it easy buddy,” said Brekiz, grinning cheesily at the members of the crowd and a few guards nearby who had heard the outburst and turned around.

  “You haven’t heard what my Grandmother said to counter him yet,” said Brekiz out of the corner of his mouth.

  Trex’s outburst was partially muted by the sharp increase in general noise. This point in Gerak’s argument was obviously one step too far even for the more conservative in the crowd.

  Sara looked from the angered Trex over to Trex’s family and the others in the front row. Suddenly she understood why Zea was so upset. Sara’s eyes moved down the row to focus on Sage Filfia, who was sitting impassively, much to the young female wolf’s surprise. Sara put a supporting hand on Trex’s shoulder.

  Emeal took a breath, stroking back her shoulder length red/brown hair while waiting for the crowd to settle down a bit.

  “Order!” boomed the loud voice of the official nearby.

  The noise quickly settled, allowing the speaker to continue.

  “The affirmative…”

  She indicated towards Councillor Tasch.

  “…has argued that the ‘Charter of RefugeCross’ was a necessary extension of the Imperial constitution in respond to the unique duel race population of RefugeCross, and so can hold no contradiction to the constitution itself. As such, article three of the constitution clearly states the right of all races to the status of subject under our laws, and therefore to public education.”

  “There you go,” said Brekiz encouragingly, but it was obviously too soon.

  “During rebuttal,” continued Emeal, “Councillor Gerak challenged the notion under the argument that a single halfling does not constitute a race, merely an…. Acciden…t… ”

  Emeal hesitated.

  “I believe I called her an abomination,” said Gerak loudly from the side, with a snide satisfied tone.

  Sara and Brekiz instantly increased their grip on Trex, who was smouldering.

  The crowd burst into life again.

  “Thank you councillor,” snapped Emeal impatiently, glaring at Gerak, “there will be no need to interrupt again.�
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  Gerak shrugged, smiling with satisfaction. The slick Councillor sat back in his chair. He gazed down at Karthen, enjoying how the bare chested Anthro lion was struggling to restrain himself.

  “Its just words,” said Sara bitterly, finding the whole thing entirely too bureaucratic, it was much easier in the Wolf Kingdom.

  “Words mean everything to a councillor,” said Brekiz knowingly.

  “After a, heated, debate regarding the interpretation of race,” continued Emeal with increased energy, obviously wanting to get the whole thing behind her now. “Councillor Gerak ended the debate with a call to vote on two points in his capacity as debate initiator. These points, Councillor Tasch accepted with one stipulation.”

  “Here it comes,” said Brekiz.

  “The council has voted on the matter,” stated the standing councillor, all eyes on her.

  Emeal’s voice suddenly betraying that what she was about to say was not as she desired things to be.

  “We have arrived at the following conclusion. An individual halfling does not constitute a new race under the definition interpreted within the constitution. Zea Tristfull is not to attend public schooling and has no rights as a subject of the Lion Empire beyond that which is given to her under the guardianship of her parents.”

  The crowd instantly grew louder again, reacting strongly to the decision, but in many different ways.

  “What does that mean?” asked Sara above the noise of the Anthros around them.

  “It means that Zea won’t be taken away,” said Brekiz, trying to see the better side of things.

  “It means that my cousin is effectively a prisoner,” said Trex bitterly, “she’ll never be able to leave her parents, never be able to travel on her own.”

  “In regards to the stipulation!” said Emeal loudly, getting the attention of the crowd again.

  “In regards to the stipulation,” she repeated, “as requested by Councillor Tasch. Councillor Gerak’s own arguments compel us to accept the notion that if a second unrelated halfling is to be found, the status of halflings as a race will be accepted… and the original motion will be overturned.”