The Kingdom of Dawn

Chapter 14: Reuben's Discovery

Reuben felt his feet land on solid ground. He always closed his eyes when magically transporting himself, but when he blinked them open, he could still see only darkness. "I thought I circumnavigated that spell." Reuben muttered to himself, while groping around in the blackness. "They must have modified it since I last looked into it." Suddenly, something hard struck Reuben in the chest. He fell backwards, expecting to hit his head on the ground, but instead found himself falling. The air around him was getting constantly warmer. Throwing out his hands, he quickly muttered a few more words, and a gust of wind picked him up and carried him back to solid ground. "Now to see where I am and who attacked me." A few more muttered words produced another wave of magic, which settled over Reuben, restoring his sight. Blinking away the bright light, he looked around the cave he landed in. There was a cliff behind him, with lava beneath it. A dragon stood off to his left, angrily swishing its tail.

The most surprising thing he saw however, was the bed in the corner of the cave. On it lay a man, the shadowy light in the cave making him impossible to identify. Reuben walked forward to inspect the figure, and let out a cry of suprise. The man on the cot was the last person Reuben expected to see, yet there he was. "I thought I killed you," Reuben said as he turned around to leave. The man was singed, and his eyes were a milky white, but he was definitely alive. Upon hearing Reuben begin walking towards the exit of the cave, his hand crept along the wall towards his sword. He grabbed it, and it looked as if he was going to lift it, but a cave gnome walked up and gently removed his hand from the hilt. "Not today, your lordship. You are still weakened from the fire."

That was all that Reuben needed to hear. "I will finish what I have started!" He with this cry, he grabbed the sword and raised it high above his head. But before he could stab the figure, the dragon grabbed him from behind and flung him over the edge of the cliff. His arms windmilled through the air, but it was his cloak that saved him. It caught on a projection on the edge of the cliff, and, grunting from the effort, Reuben grabbed the edge of the cliff and heaved himself back up, dropping the sword onto the ground at the cliff's edge in the process. He quickly regained his feet and sprinted out the door as a fireball flew at him. As he sprinted, more words escaped his lips, words intended to keep this stranger from completing his purpose.

Estrella stood rooted to the spot. How could Reuben just disappear like that? More importantly, what gave him the right to call her father backwards, and claim that she had no right to rule? Lord Marten stepped forward and examined the place where Lord Reuben had spoken. He looked the ground over carefully, stooping down to touch it multiple times. With a wave of his hand, the other justices stepped forward, and everyone began to talk. Snippets of conversation floated over the buzz of the crowd. Something about energy, something else about king Petra, quite a few mentions of the magic rebellion. Finally, Lord Marten stepped forward and spread his arms. The crowd became silent, and he began to speak.

"Let it be known that Lord Reuben of the house of the Sun is found guilty of betrayal against the royal family and the kingdom of Dawn, of treacherous speech against the royal family, and of the use of magic, an act which was banned by the King Petra 5 years hence. He is hearby sentenced to lifelong exile, a sentence which can not be lifted but by the ruler of Dawn. If he is seen inside the borders of this kingdom after 2 days from this time without verification of such pardon, he shall be put to death. Such is the law of the land."

"Why did it come to this?" Reuben muttered to himself as he rode his horse Malech swiftly towards the west. "Why did I use my magic then? Now I am exiled for life, and if I reenter Dawn later, I could be killed on sight. I know these laws by heart? So why did I break them. It will be much harder for me to complete my task now. Lukas will beat me, and then I will lose my inheritance, and quite possibly my life. What have I done?"

As she strode out of the hall of justice, Estrella was glad. Reuben was out of her life forever, she was to be crowned queen in one week, and she could finally rest in peace, not having to worry about not waking up in the morning. Life was good, and she was determined to enjoy it.