Elemental Thief Part I : Child of Calamity

Swift Judgement

"Continue."

That was all Drakos said, as if he didn't understand why she had stopped in the first place. Or he wanted to know everything before he addressed the specifics within. She had already gone so far she couldn't take it back, so she let her words continue.

"It wasn't that hard. I suppose without my powers, it would have been, but it wasn't hard to do a couple jumps, find the safe and pick it, then do a couple jumps out. I thought I was free and clear, I'd done it. I figured that if whatever I had was as important as Kethan said, I'd be done, I'd leave and never come back and he wouldn't care. Only, something changed between when I did that, and when I was supposed to hand them over. I guess Kethan tried to move first, tried to blackmail Corvin or something. I don't know, but when I showed up to the drop point, and even though Kethan's scouts said it was safe, the only people who were waiting for me were Corvin's Guards."

"I was arrested, and they spent a week or so trying to get everything back from me. I mean, other than a couple bruises from me fighting back, I wasn't hurt when they finally turned me over to the Royal guards for justice... there're rules against torture in Clairval, you can't give people the proof that they were tortured. But you can torture someone without leaving lasting injuries on the outside. In the end, I gave them the gold back, most of it. But I kept the papers. I don't know why, to be spiteful, maybe. Maybe cause on the first night, Kethan came into the room where they were trying to get me to cooperate and told me that, because I had failed, Beth was already dead. Or dying. I don't know what went on back and forth with everything, but I think the stupidest thing they did was turn me over to the actual authorities. I don't understand why they did it. Maybe they thought it would scare me. And I know you're wondering, if I could just leave, why didn't I? As I said, Kethan was the one who made me figure out how it all worked, he knew how it all worked, and knew how to stop me from leaving. And then when I was in the Royal cells, honestly, I was safer there than out on the streets. If they thought it would scare me into being grateful when I was released under the benevolence of Lord Corvin, they were idiots. My only saving grace was that I had stolen from a Peer, and if I refused to take responsibility for it, my punishments would be heavier. I had hoped they wouldn't follow me to Rulin. I'm not worth all that effort."

She fell silent for a moment to swallow the emotions welling within her, offering a shrug and looking at her feet. "But whatever I have, I think it is. I was hoping it was a time thing, that eventually whatever is in those papers wouldn't count cause it had been too long, then they'd stop caring. Revenge is nice, but it isn't worth travelling the world trying to find someone for. As long as I stayed away from Clairval for the rest of my life, after my time here, I'd be scot free. And we all know how that worked out."

"So you begged my General to put a fifteen-year-old girl into a work camp, against his morals and beliefs, because you felt you weren't safe, being so close to the Port." Drakos continued for her, when she nodded, he kept going. "Then you escaped from your work party to join an outgoing one, because you had seen this Kethan individual being escorted out of camp. Then when my commander found you and told you he was taking you back, you escaped again using this power of yours. And then you ran, into Cassaei territory, where the Wild has not yet returned, until you stumbled across a Cassaei attacking my daughters. Once accomplishing fighting and killing the beast, you then continued running, until caught by my sons and their uncle, at which point you punched Eikos in the face."

"You forgot the part where she drained her power completely, dangerously so, healing your two daughters who were gravely wounded by the Cassaei." Prince Davanos murmured softly.

"If I'm supposed to be honest, I didn't mean to punch him. It was reflex. Someone jumps at you and you defend yourself. If he had been wearing a helmet like the other one, I probably would have broken my hand, but he would have been fine." Treasa muttered, shaking her head. "But yes, Majesty. I've done all those things."