The cell in which Iko was being held was dark and moist. The walls were made of old cobblestone and moss covered their surface. Iko and his lawyer were both sitting on the bed as the cell did not have a single chair or a table. They discussed their situation in hushed voices out of fear that a spy could be listening. The lawyer had just finished explaining to Iko how this trial would go. They both knew that the only purpose of it was to have a scapegoat for what happened a year prior.

  

  
• “Okay so, let me get this straight. I plead guilty, they sentence me to a couple of months, I get out, and then I can write my book in peace?”, asked Iko.


  

  

  
• “Yes, that’s the plan. Like I said, I talked to professor Mano who knew your sergeant Noba directly, and he assured me that Judge Honer only wants to satisfy the new administration”, the lawyer responded.


  

  Iko nodded but he couldn’t help feeling nervous. He knew his fate was decided before the trial started and there was nothing he could do about it. All the cells beside his were empty and the silence allowed him to hear the shuffling of feet right above him. Judge Honer, the other judges, the witnesses, and lawyers were filing into the room. Along with them, every single person from the Kingdom who wanted to see the man who betrayed them be punished. After a few moments, the silence creeped in again and Iko’s hands began to shake. The thought of everyone in that courtroom wanting to see him exiled, or worse, filled him with dread, and despite his lawyer sitting in the cell with him, he couldn’t help but feel like he was all alone in the world.

  After a few moments of silence, that felt like centuries to Iko, a guard descended down the steps and approached his cell. He opened it and dragged the prisoner towards the steps that led to the courtroom. Iko could hear his lawyer screaming something about mistreatment of prisoners but all his mind could focus on was Judge Honer and the hundreds of people waiting for him. Iko had never been one to shine in the spotlight. Even at the height of his fame, when he worked alongside the man who would become the savior of the world, he was nothing more than a common soldier. Because of this, when he entered the giant, ostentatiously decorated hall that housed the court, his legs gave out and he fell on the floor. A loud laugh rang out and Judge Honer, whose loud deep voice could be recognized from across the city, ordered silence. The guard pulled Iko back up and pushed him onto the witness seat situated in the very middle of the room. Judge Honer spoke but Iko couldn’t hear him. He felt like he was about to faint.

  

  
• “Mr. Iko!”, the judge boomed and the words finally began to register in the defendant’s mind. “As you know, you stand accused of treason. We meet here today to hear your closing words before I, and the dear judges present here, sentence you and assign the appropriate punishment for your case…”


  

  

  
• “Death! Death by hanging!”, yelled one of the judges seated on Judge Honer’s right side. “Execution for the thousands of dead at the hands of the General!”


  

  

  
• “No! Torture! Torture is the only answer! Torture him for the rest of his life!”, screamed another, this time on Judge Honer’s far left.


  

  

  
• “Silence!”, roared Honer. “One more interruption and I will be forced to ask some of you to leave the courtroom. I do not want it to come to that so please, behave.”


  

  The man composed himself and glanced at Iko. Only now did he realize that the person accused of betraying the Kingdom looked not a day older than 18.

  

  
• “As I was saying: Mr. Iko here, ex-member of the Second Division, was originally tasked with destroying the Sun Cult, the terrorist organization that plagued our Kingdom for decades. However, after years in the service , Sergeant Noba, Kajidef, Abraham, and the rest of the Second Division were convinced to help overthrow our government and install The Fire General as the leader. The Sun Cult…”


  

  Before Judge Honer could finish, Iko mumbled something. At first, only Honer heard it but when the other judges demanded for Iko to speak up, he repeated, a little louder this time.

  

  
• “The Sun Cult was innocent, the Fire General acted on his own.”


  

  The roar that followed was so loud that not even Judge Honer could bring order to his own courtroom. Instead, he signalled one of the armed guards to his side and whispered something in his ear. After a few moments, the dozen guards around the courtroom surrounded the audience and began leading them out of the hall. Screams of “Death!”, “Guilty!” and “Treason!” followed them out and the room slowly grew quiet. Once the last person left and the giant door slammed shut, Judge Honer sighed and looked at Iko once again.

  

  
• “Listen, I am a reasonable man. I have dedicated my life to justice and to the law, and I do not want to see anyone receive overly harsh punishments.”, the Judge took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. “But explain to me, why are you trying to make my job harder? Defending terrorists, and especially the Sun Cult, is a punishable offense, for which people have been executed. Sometimes without a trial.”


  

  

  
• “I’m– I’m sorry Mister Judge– I mean Judge.” Iko took a few seconds to compose himself. “I didn’t mean to defend them. I was just trying to say that the Fire General was not supported by the Sun Cult. I was there myself, Judge. If anything they were scared of him.”


  

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

  

  
• “Yes, we heard that from your lawyer before but what I am trying to tell you is that the last thing you want to tell this court is that the Sun Cult is ‘innocent’”


  

  In the most discreet way possible, Judge Honer was trying to tell Iko that this trial needed a scapegoat. And a group of terrorists that had been omnipresent these past few years, was the perfect one.

  

  
• “And as you know, the coup, which WE fought against, wiped out the Sun Cult.” continued the judge. “Most of those who helped orchestrate the coup are dead. There is only one person left who had access to the Second Division, who communicated directly with the Fire General, and who was fighting against us in the capital while the coup was happening. That person is you.”


  

  Judge Honer waited a few seconds to let Iko respond but when the defendant didn’t, he continued.

  

  
• “Like I said, I am a reasonable man and I believe in innocence until proven guilty. However, if you were in my position, what would be the logical conclusion? From my understanding, you were low in the Second Division’s hierarchy. If we assume that you are guilty of treason, all the pieces fall into place, and it makes sense that you would be the only one to survive: with no offense, you didn’t really matter to them. If we assume that you are innocent, then a lot of events just don’t make sense.”


  

  The Judge once again took a break but just as he was about to keep going, Iko finally spoke, choosing his words very carefully.

  

  
• “Judge, I want to make it clear: I am not saying that the Sun Cult is innocent. But I assure you, no one in the Second Division knew about the coup until it was too late. At least no one that I knew, including Sergeant Noba. When we found out, we rushed to the capital to help the army. The reason why we fought on the wrong side, temporarily, is because we were given wrong orders by people working for the Fire General. Dear Judge, you were there, you know how chaotic things were, especially in the South of the city, it was easy for anyone to get confused, let alone if we were given the order to attack the city’s guards. In the heat of the moment, when we were told that our own capital, with our own friends and our own families, was under attack, we didn’t think that those telling us to defend it were wrong. We simply acted as we always did.”


  

  When Iko finished, he looked at Judge Honer but the man did not seem convinced by his words. He looked at his papers and addressed Iko once again.

  

  
• “Mr. Iko, we have here documents that show that, one month before the coup, your brother-in-arms, Kajidef, suddenly left the Second Division’s encampment for a few days. Now, I would like to ask you: do you know why he left?”


  

  

  
• “I do not.” answered Iko.


  

  

  
• “Very well, therefore, it is possible that he travelled to meet with the Fire General and help plan the coup as well as the massacre that followed?”


  

  

  
• “Maybe but what about what happened after the coup? Didn’t the Fire General despise Kajidef and parade him across the street? Why would he do that if they were working together?”


  

  

  
• “Because he betrayed him! You said yourself that the Second Division fought on the wrong side temporarily. Apparently Kajidef needed to be punished.”


  

  

  
• “No! It was because Kajidef knew something that, in the end, destroyed the General and ended his reign!”


  

  

  
• “Then what was it?! What did Kajidef know?!”


  

  

  
• “How would I know that! If I knew that I’d have stopped him myself!”


  

  

  
• “No! There was nothing! And the General was stopped by guards who died in the process.”


  

  

  
• “Kajidef stopped him! Not your guards!”


  

  Judge Honer stopped himself from responding with another shout. He took a deep breath and composed himself. He glanced around at the other judges around him who, as he had instructed earlier, stayed quiet. He then looked at Iko. He could tell the boy was passionate but he understood nothing of politics. By refusing to take any part of responsibility in what had happened, he was setting himself up to receive the harshest punishment the court could offer. As the silence drew on, the other judges began looking at Honer nervously. The new king and the new administration had entrusted the judgment of those responsible for the coup to them and none of them wanted to have their newly acquired authority questioned. On the other hand, they all respected Honer. He was the oldest, he actively participated in the fight for the capital, and he seemed to be the most familiar with how the military, which the accused Second Division was a part of, operated. As a result, Honer commanded complete respect wherever he went and that was especially true in matters of the law. This court had a total of five judges, each from a different background, as a way of making sure that justice was kept objective. In reality though, Judge Honer, from Deria, the province which held the capital, had the most power. This was for two reasons: Firstly, this entire trial had been conducted in Derian, and other languages, like Ghiorian, or Asidian, were only used when a witness needed a translator. The second reason was that the new administration wanted a fast trial. Many, including the king, wanted an easy scapegoat that would take the entirety of the blame for the coup and the massacre that resulted from it. The truth was that the old administration had their own part in the blame but the most crucial thing right now was to restore trust in the king. And if that meant letting one young man die, then so be it.

  

  
• “Mr. Iko, we thank you for your participation.” said Judge Honer. “As you know, you were the last person we needed to hear from so we will now go into the chambers and discuss the case.”


  

  

  
• “No, please let me…”


  

  

  
• “This will not be necessary Mr Iko,” interrupted the Judge. “Thank you again for your participation in this trial.”


  

  

  
• “Can I please just say one more thing?”


  

  Judge Honer took a pause. Even though he was ready to discuss the case, his curiosity won over and he let Iko make his final statement.

  

  
• “The truth is that Kajidef was a great man without whom we wouldn’t be here right now. He was kind to us, he was loyal to us, he was the best person I’ve ever met. We owe everything to him and if you want to exile or execute me for defending him, fine. I will die knowing I have defended his name until my dying breath.”


  

  The judge didn’t respond and with these words, Iko let himself be escorted back to the cobblestone cell. There, alone, he contemplated on whether his appearance in front of the court affected the judge’s decision. A part of him believed it didn’t affect it at all. At this point though, all he could do is wait for the judgment and comfort himself with the idea that he defended Kajidef’s name until the very end.