Arbiters are expected to be neutral.

  Obviously a Holding or personal Arbiter is not considered neutral, however they are expected to perform their duties with as little bias as possible or allow another to take their place.

  Do not mistake neutrality for dispassion, nor statement of fact for absence of opinion. The best Arbiters certainly won't.

  ~ * ~

  Seb nodded to Anya as he stepped to the center of the area before Sovereign Lyselle and gave a perfunctory bow. Taking a further step to the side, now facing Anya once more he addressed all those assembled, looking at each group in turn.

  "Sovereign Lys, my Lady Lysanya, assembled courtiers. I must apologize in advance for not being able to provide exact times at which events occurred, only their order. Though I suspect certain times can be filled in by the Holding's guards and chroniclers when forming an official record."

  "When Princess Lysanya departed court yesterday she departed through the side entrance. I was in the process of entering to further my knowledge of Awakened culture and we struck up a conversation. She let me know that open Court was in session today, and as I had been instructed to avoid the Holding on such days but not told when they were, we departed together to a nearby coffee shop."

  At the murmurs starting among the courtiers he turned directly to face them. "To be clear, I had mentioned I was a newly Awakened adult and she expressed interest in how that came to pass. The suggestion of a coffee shop was to not be standing about in public when there were nearby options with amenities."

  "After I told my tale and then further discussion of Shallows life due to our shared exposure," he paused as once more the crowd muttered.

  I told you, they look for any excuse, Anya sent. For all that there was pain in the message, there was also barely contained rage at the situation.

  "When we finished our conversation I walked the Princess out to await transportation to her home. However before her transportation arrived an Awakened wearing the garb of a Royal Elite Guardsman approached and made disparaging remarks as to her right to make her own decisions. He then suggested a friendly spar, with every indication that she would not enjoy the outcome. I suggested they have it in the adjacent alleyway to avoid Unawakened notice, which the guard happily accepted as a way to avoid 'Witness cleanup duty.'"

  Seb paused, allowing himself to look at the Sovereign and judge her reaction. Her grip on her throne made it clear she was unhappy, but whether it be at his words or the events described thus far he couldn't guess.

  I hate them

  I know Anya, he answered before continuing his exposition.

  "The Princess was badly injured in the spar, however she did manage to knock the guardsman out."

  Shock and anger came from the crowd, Anya's anger at their disbelief building as well.

  "Sovereign Lys, I believe that you are familiar with the abilities that the Seneschal has had me test? I will not go into details unless necessary but the Princess' victory leveraged the information those abilities can provide, both this time and subsequently."

  The Sovereign turned to look to the corner then back to him. Seb barely noticed the Seneschal's presence even then, his posture in the shadows rendering him near invisible.

  "We are aware. This does provide a satisfactory explanation for how the feat might have been accomplished."

  At her words silence swept the hall, the Sovereign was not going to clarify the situation, everyone who was unaware of the details would be forced to accept her word on it.

  "Thank you. Due to the extent of the injuries to her Husk, which she later reported as a bruised, possibly broken cheekbone with associated concussion, broken ribs, at least one of which was poking into her organs and an arm that was more fragments than solid bone, I assisted her in making her way to my apartment."

  Before the court could react he pressed on. "It was at the other end of the alleyway, she was barely conscious and suggesting she drop her husk right next to an unconscious threat seemed the height of stupidity. I provided her with immediate privacy in my apartment as well as over-clothes that would cover any possible injuries or Awakened attire."

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The Sovereign nodded slightly so he went on. "The intent was to then escort her to her apartment to ensure no further surprises. I gave a report to the Shallows Contact however it was treated as completely spurious. We then were waiting for new transportation when the guardsman re-appeared and flung the Princess back into the alleyway before advancing on her in his War Husk."

  This time he did allow the courtiers their moment while looking at Anya. At least they recognize that a War Husk is inappropriate escalation it seems?

  Maybe, or maybe they are upset he didn't kill me outright.

  I doubt-

  I HATE them Seb, I told you how they acted, what they said and did. They have never given me reason to believe they care.

  Gritting his teeth ever so slightly at the rage he finally continued.

  "The Princess fought back in her own War Husk and took lesser injuries compared to the first encounter. Cracked exoskeleton and ribs in the same location as on her Everyday Husk. The same abilities as previously mentioned provided an upper hand, resulting in the guardsman, Rios as he identified himself, being decapitated when his War Husk failed to protect him from a blow."

  "The transport arrived almost immediately afterwards, I escorted her home while providing a second, harsher report to the Shallows Contact. The Princess took the time to tidy herself and catalog her injuries before sleeping. To be completely clear as to the situation, we slept separately and then made our way to court this morning."

  The last was delivered while looking up at the Sovereign, his words coming as close to a rebuke as he could come in this case.

  Be careful Seb, please be careful.

  It would be easier if you weren't so angry. And if she hadn't said what she did.

  He held Lys' gaze for a long moment then dropped his gaze, purposefully gazing at Anya then the court. "The only remaining recounting being the nature of the injuries to her True Self, are there any details requested first?"

  "How can we trust your recounting of the events, let alone of her injuries?" a courtier asked, far enough away that Seb could not make out details of his appearance.

  "The injuries to her husk are repeated as she stated them. Her True Self injuries I can report having seen, if only sufficiently to determine their presence. As to the rest?" he turned back to Anya's mother and answered her rather than the court. "You are aware of my lack of affiliation, and even lack of awareness of the Princess's existence prior to yesterday. I gain nothing by lying and I am certain Rios has been discovered and tidied up after exactly where I reported him to be."

  "You are correct, and he has been. We did wonder how the events unfolded without the death of our daughter but did not consider your abilities. How did you manage to convey the information to her?"

  "I managed, with effort, to establish a band with her during the first encounter when Rios sent her to the ground near where I stood. The band still existed when the second encounter occurred."

  "My thanks for your efforts then. And I've been advised you only had one lesson in establishing bands until now?"

  "Yes your Majesty, but fear and chance of death have a way of forcing me to focus."

  Even the courtiers murmured in agreement at that while Lyselle nodded. "They can. Proceed with the injuries to her True Self."

  "All these injuries are due to bleed through from her Husks. The only time Rios came into contact with her in her True Self was when he flung her into the alleyway and her clothing seems to have absorbed the injury. The first is the injury to her ribs. Her opinion is that they are not cracked but are the most painful of all the injuries. I did observe that they extended to the base of her rib cage but looked no further and can attest that moving rapidly causes her severe discomfort. I would ask my Lady to reveal the injury to her arm and to her face."

  Just show them then you can cover them back up. Let them see what their attitude wrought.

  Anya slowly pulled up her sleeve, the harsh bruising vivid on her pale skin. The silence that followed only deepened when she revealed her face, not even her 'inappropriate' appearance or lack of Husk drawing comment in light of the bruise.

  "Rios' assault on her Everyday Husk was extremely deliberate. He only ever landed one strike before allowing her the chance to steady herself and return. He also made it quite clear that should she try to run he would deal with me before seeking her out once more. Were she in her True Self or Unawakened I would consider those injuries crippling if not fatal."

  "Who are you to judge the severity?" the same courtier called out.

  "He need not judge, I can state that by guard training standards the injuries would be considered unsalvageable. During my second training dive a guard sustained injuries and was sent back to the Holding in True Self with orders to abandon the Husk and rebuild, they were less extensive than what Rios inflicted on me."

  Anya turned to glare at the courtier, daring him to question her judgment about her own injuries. When he remained silent she re-adjusted the hoodie, covering her arm and head once more. See?!

  Please Anya, just a moment longer and we can hopefully leave. Glare at me if you must, just stop reacting to them until I can actually show my own reactions, Seb pleaded, his jaw aching from the rage she was constantly projecting.

  "I will not repeat the statements Rios made about the Princess, even if I could remember them exactly," Seb took back up. "However, he made it clear he was intending to teach her a lesson and his pattern of attacks would support that. When he attacked wearing his War Husk he did tell her she would pay, that no one would defeat Rios without consequences, especially her."

  "Unless there is more your Majesty, I would request you allow my Lady and I to take our leave and make arrangements to see to her well-being."

  Looking more closely Seb could see that her fingers had actually dug into the chair during his recounting and that she had to put true effort into lifting her hand and gesturing to her Seneschal.

  "He will ensure you have what you require."

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