It Rained Red Upon the Arena (5 page)

Hours flew by as Nick’s thoughts consumed him. His mind was going in circles. He had to prove his innocence even though no one had seen what had truly happened. He had to do this for his father. He had to prove his innocence and mourn his death later.

***

A click and clatter of steel boots was heard as the two Refect returned to Nick’s cell. “Eat this plate here. When you’re finished we head to your trial,” said one Refect.

A plate of brown mush was given to Nick through a hole in the middle of the metal cell wall. A wooden spoon accompanied the meal. It did not look appetizing but Nick tried the brown slush. A mix of mud and cow feces is what it tasted like. One bite was enough for him. “I’m good on the food. Just take me to the trial,” said Nick.

“You want to know something? You will get so hungry that you’ll be begging for this after your trial, boy,” replied a Refect as he chuckled. “Alright, put both hands between these two metal bars.”

Nick faced the Refect and put them through. The Refect to Nick’s right shook his head and said, “Turn around, smart one. You always are cuffed with your hands behind your back. Don’t worry. You will get used to this soon enough.”

Nick was walked through the cell hall and back the way he had come. The Refect held Nick’s arms with a firm grip as they walked him. “Lucky you, you got to spend the whole night by yourself in there, buddy. Normally there are a few we get every night, but don’t worry; there will be friends to be made at the arena in due time,” said a Refect as he walked Nick.

“You know I’m going to become a Refect soon after this trial. I’m not going to the arena. You better know this because one day I will be in charge of you, I can assure you of that,” said Nick.

The two Refect burst out laughing. “Funniest thing I’ve heard all day. Thank you for that,” said one Refect. “The only thing you can be assured of, young murderer, is that you will be dead in a few weeks in a pool of blood on the sandy floor of the Vincot Arena. You sound like a snobby little kid. Better learn to keep your mouth shut, Mr. Bint.”

Nick walked quietly now. He had to focus and not let the two men get into his head. He knew what he had to say to prove his innocence, but he knew he might also need a bit of luck on his side to be a free man again.

Nick was walked out the front door of the cells building and onto the porch. It was early morning judging by the sun and at the bottom of the ten stairs was a horse and carriage known as a cell hell. For instead of a horse with a carriage it was a horse attached to a square cell much like the one Nick spent the night in, only much smaller. The people of Hentrio coined the name cell hell for the men in the cell are on their way to hell.

The Refect opened the back where Nick climbed in. He sat down with his arms still handcuffed as the steel gate was shut. The cell hell began to move as the driver whipped the horse. Next stop, the trial hall.

The only time Nick imagined himself to be mobile on a cell hell he imagined he would be the one driving the criminals, not being tried as one. As the cell hell went through the streets of Vincot, he could look out and see the disappointed faces of his local neighbors. A trail of dust flew from the sandy streets as the cell hell’s wheels spun. Nick looked out and saw children playing, families walking, and farmers watering their crops. A smile was once exchanged between Nick and all of those people, but not this time. No, this time their faces stayed straight and looked at him like they would at a common criminal. Some of them pointed towards Nick to show the people near them who was riding in the cell hell. They all saw him. Nick felt like he was the worst criminal in all of Hentrio in that moment.

Nick knew he was not a criminal; his actions last night were just. Nick knew he did not need to sit on top of that man and stab him as many times as he did, but he also knew that at that moment he had no control over the fact. His body reacted to an inconceivable event played out in front of his own eyes.

The cell hell came to a stop. Nick had arrived to the court where he would be tried for murder. The cell opened and Nick stepped down. With the sun beaming down on him Nick looked at the Vincot court building and knew he had to convince the judge of his innocence or pay with his life.

***

It was mid morning by the time Nick had arrived at the court. The Vincot Court building was massive compared to most other buildings in Vincot. It was made wholly of wood, with only a ceramic stone door accompanied by five stone pillars in the front representing the five cities of Hentrio.

Nick stepped towards the ceramic stone doors accompanied by three Refect. These three worked for the courts and helped to transport criminals to and from the courts.

The inside was a spectacle to behold. It had tall curved ceilings, massive paintings of old war heroes, statues of kings, and a wooden oak floor that shined. The court house was busy that day. Reza, Paplon, and human beings filled the court house. There were two rooms specified for a murder trial. Nick was escorted towards the door on the right and was told that his trial would take place there. The door on the let had a trial that was currently running and could last all day.

Nick walked through the lobby with the three Refect. They directed him to a small room near the court room where he was to be tried.

“Your trial is set for later today,” said one Refect. “Depending on how long the other trials take you may or may not be tried today. You may possibly be back here tomorrow. For now you will sit here and wait until it is time.”

The Refect that accompany criminals always wore full suits of armor that protected their identities. This was done to prevent any retaliation of criminals who may one day be free again. Nick had been in the company of several Refect since his arrest. Their voice and height were the only things he could distinguish between them.

The three Refect left the room, and the door was locked, leaving Nick alone. Nick sat down on a chair and leaned his head onto the table before him. It was a small room which was only lit by a few candles. It was a step up from a holding cell, and hell cell. However, it was no picnic.

He sat there in silence for many hours. He did not know how much time went by since the men left him there. All the while he was rehearsing in his mind what to tell the judge. He dared not think of what would happen if he was found guilty. He needed to prove his story for his life.

The door unlocked after a long while, and a Refect came in, holding a plate of food. He looked down at Nick and said, “It is definitely better than the food at the holding cell. This is actually real food. If the day does not go in your favor this might be the last real meal you’ll ever have, so enjoy it.”

Nick did not say a word. He looked at the meal placed before him, a sandwich and potato fries. Nick was starving at that point, he had not eaten a meal in almost a day. The Refect once again left the room, and Nick feasted by himself. His hunger had been met, but his nervousness only grew. At any one minute he would be called before a judge who did not know him. The judge did not know that Nick trained to be a Refect, the judge did not know his personality, he did not know the pain he had gone through. The judge did not know him, yet the judge would determine Nick’s entire future.

More time passed by, and Nick sat in silence. It felt like he had been there all day. Time is irrelevant when one is sitting in a room with no window and no way to tell time with the sun. All there was in that room were walls, and Nick’s thoughts revolving tirelessly through his head. So much rode on the coming moments of his life.

Three Refect come into the room. “It is time,” said one. They grabbed Nick’s arms and escorted him to the courtroom through a series of doors. In the courtroom sat Judge Bryant Gove at the center. Nick was directed to sit in a chair a few feet before him. There were a few citizens in the room and a woman who worked for the courts. The Reza woman sat at a desk and would write down the events of the courtroom through pen and paper.

Judge Bryant Gove was of Reza blood. He was an older Reza; he had to wear glasses for his sight and had white hair. His hair was long and pulled back, his skin blue and full of wrinkles. He looked at Nick and said, “Nick Bint, you are here today on trial for the murder of two men last night at The Cove Tavern. That is two counts of murder and punishable to the fullest extent of the law in the name of our king, King Dedan Hudson. We have several witnesses who have stated you were on top of one man stabbing him multiple times. You stabbed this man multiple times even after he was dead. Next to the man you were stabbing was another man also deceased. I have come to learn that this man was your father. So Nick Bint, how do you plead to the accusation of two counts of murder?”

Nick looked firmly into the judges eyes. “Not guilty. I did not murder anybody; I only acted in self defense,” said Nick.

Judge Gove replied quickly, “If you are not guilty please enlighten us of the events that occurred last night. I want to hear the events from your own words.”

“My father and I went out for a meal,” said Nick. “We decided to go to The Cove Tavern. We sat down at a table in the back corner and were talking for a while before a drunken man came over to us. He was saying things like ”they were worried about you,” and “I was invited,” implying that he was sent to kill my father. After he said those things he pulled out his sword and cut my father’s throat. When my dad fell to the ground he put a final blow in him as he drove his blade into his head. I reacted; I tackled him and I pulled out my dagger blade. I stabbed him multiple times to prevent any more attacks on my father or upon myself. I killed him in self defense. There was no murder done by me. My father was murdered by that man.”

“So you plead your innocence through self defense?” asked Judge Grove. Nick nodded his head in agreement. “If that whole grand idea of a story is true, then why is it that the coroner found seventeen stab wounds in the unidentified man’s corpse?

“I was scared and mad,” said Nick. “I had never killed a man before. He was my first. I wanted to be sure he was dead. I acted quickly, but not quickly enough to save my father. I would never kill my own father. I could never even fathom the thought of it. I only killed that man clothed in black because I feared for my life. That man had just taken the person I loved the most from this world in front of my own eyes. I wanted to be sure he was dead, but I was also acting in frustration. It all happened out of nowhere, it all happened so fast. Yes, I stabbed him numerous times, but that doesn’t make me a murderer.”

Judge Grove looked down at a few papers on his desk. He looked back at Nick and said, “You know, I have been doing this for many years. The things you say just do not add up completely in my mind. The good news is that we have a witness from last night who has come down to the courts to explain what happened. Sir, would you please rise and state what happened last night?”

A man seated to the back left of Nick surrounded by other civilians stood up. He stepped forward to the front of the room and Nick realized who he was. He was the waiter who was serving Nick and his dad. He was the one who also saw Nick driving a dagger into the man’s chest.

“My name is Henry, and I am one of the waiters at The Cove Tavern. Last night I served this young man and an older gentleman at one of our corner tables. It was a normal night and everything seemed fine. I took their orders. After about fifteen minutes the food was ready and I walked out to serve them. When I went around the corner I was shocked at what I saw, two bodies lay on the ground and this man was stabbing one of them.”

Henry pointed at Nick with disgust. “I say he killed both of them, if you ask me. I don’t know the motive behind it, but I am sure he wanted them dead. If this young man could stab someone seventeen times, then I don’t want him to walk the streets as a free man. A man that is capable of doing this is capable of doing it again and again.”

“Enough with the opinions. Thank you for your description of the events,” replied Judge Grove. “So we have here a witness to one death that occurred last night. Mr. Bint, after reviewing your case beforehand and hearing this statement you have to understand that the evidence of your story cannot be proven. There is no way to prove that you did not kill Christopher Bint. However, there is also no way to prove that you did. The man you saw stabbing may have indeed killed Christopher, he may not have. Because there is no real evidence besides the fact that the sword fit the man’s sheath, your charges for the murder of Christopher Bint are hereby dropped.”

The room sat in silence as Judge Grove looked down at his papers. “Mr. Bint, there is also no way to prove your intent of self defense besides your own word. We have a witness who just described what he saw, also others were questioned last night where the events occurred and many said the same things. All of it is documented and on my desk right here. We have in possession a dagger in which we believe you owned, is that true?”

“Yes, that dagger is mine,” replied Nick.

“That dagger was used to stab a man to death gruesomely. As I stated before, the man was stabbed seventeen times. You are 17 years old according to our records here, you are not technically an adult but you are going to be charged as one as you have the capabilities to think and act as an adult,” said judge Gove.

Nick’s heart pounded faster and faster as the judge was speaking. His palms were sweating and his eyes were open wide.

Judge Bryant Gove looked down at his papers once more. He flipped through them before once again looking at Nick and saying, “There is no way I can justify the death as an act of self defense. There is no way I would have you walking the streets at night. The same streets my little boy and girl walk, Mr. Bint. By the power given to me by King Dedan Hudson, king and protector of Hentrio, I hereby find Nick Bint guilty of murder of an unidentified male last night. You will be sentenced to two years of participation in the Vincot Arena. If you were found guilty for both murders it would have been four years. Case dismissed.”