"Reunited..." - Chapter Seventy

Reunited...

Chapter Seventy

By Douglas E. Gogerty

Prince William was filled with regret. Over the last several weeks, he had behaved horribly. He let the power go to his head, and he was now paying for it. He wanted to respond to the emissaries, but his lungs were too filled with smoke. All he could do was cough. However, he was resigned to his fate.

The Prince was surprised that the people gathered did not kill him immediately. He expected to be shot on site. However, his captors treated him much better than his father's men would have treated anyone in the same situation. He was grateful for that. He decided to express his gratitude as soon as he could clear his lungs.

His captors checked him for weapons and led him into the back of their truck. He did not know where they were taking him, but he was happy for every moment that he was still alive. His coughing began to subside as the truck moved along. He tried to breath in as much air as he could. Soon, he was able to talk.

He began to utter some sounds, but he was instantly silenced by a rifle butt to the ribs. He began coughing again, but it was short lived. He bowed low to the soldier who struck him. He decided that he would not utter any additional sounds.

Eventually, the truck stopped. The Prince was pushed out of the truck and he saw the many orderly rows of tents. There were thousands of tents organized neatly along a central road. The tents fanned out along secondary roads. The Prince assumed the flags denoted the allegiance of the tent owner. It was quite the impressive arrangement of temporary living quarters.

The Prince did not have much time to admire the camp as he was rushed into a large central tent. The man in charge of him pushed him along to where he was wanted. He did not have a chance to look around much. He wanted to marvel in the scenes of it all, but he simply was not allowed.

Once in the tent, he noticed a chair next to a wall on a small raised platform. He was pushed to that spot and roughly placed into the chair. They attached his hands to it, but the Prince had no intention of struggling. He felt sorry for his actions, and he was ready to face the consequences. Nonetheless, he was shackled to his seat.

The Prince realized that he was in a makeshift courtroom. There was a large raised table to his right. To his left were a pair of tables placed upon the floor with a few chairs behind them. Straight out was a seating area. It appeared that his trial would begin soon, as people began streaming into the tent. The rows of seating began to fill up. However, the tables remained empty.

He recognized a few people in the crowd. They shouted and pointed at him. He was now thoroughly ashamed of his actions. He decided to not look at the crowd any longer. He simply put his head down and closed his eyes.

The roar of the crowd steadily rose. It appeared that there would be plenty of people to watch this spectacle. The crowd noise was almost enough to urge him to look up, but he decided it was best that he did not. He just sat there waiting. With the events of the last several days, he was very tired, but his anxiousness kept him awake.

After quite a long wait, the Prince heard a gavel and the room quieted to a soft murmur. The Prince continued to hang his head. He heard someone say all rise, and he attempted to comply. However, his shackles prevented him from standing. Instead he lifted his head to see the judge sitting at the raised table on his right.

"Be seated," the judge announced and everyone took a seat. "Who do we have here?"

"We are not sure your honor," came a reply from the Prince's left. "Please state your name for the record."

The Prince looked around, and decided that they were waiting for him. He was not sure what he was going to say.

After a brief bit of coughing, the Prince stated, "My name is William Thorbjornson."

"Is that all?" asked an attorney on his left.

"It is all that is relevant," replied the Prince.

"Do you not claim to be the new sovereign over our fair land?"

"Mr. Prosecutor, you are out of order," stated the judge.

"I am sorry your honor," he replied.

"While I appreciate all of your interest in this case," the judge began. "There will be no convictions today. This man has rights -- even if he is not a citizen of your land. He will need representation. We are just giving him a preliminary hearing and nothing more. It is here that we will decide what to do next. I will have not tolerate any outbursts. I will act to remove anyone disrupting this proceedings. Have I made myself clear?"

Above the grumble of the crowd several individuals said Yes, your honor.

"Mr. Thorbjornson," the judge continued. "Do you know why you are here?"

"I believe so," the Prince replied.

"Would you like to elaborate?" asked the judge.

"I am afraid that if I do, those statements would be held against me."

"Fair enough," replied the judge. "Let me describe the particulars. A group of mercenaries were hired by one of the local warlords to facilitate some fighting. These men were fierce warriors, and that warlord soon became powerful. After months of fighting, it was decided by most of the parties involved that the fighting should stop. However, these mercenaries were not convinced. A truce was called, and these men went away. Do you follow so far?"

"Yes your honor," the Prince replied.

"Good. The warring factions came to a settlement, but no one knew how to handle these mercenaries. Upon their return, an envoy explained to these men that the war was over, but the asserted to place you on the throne of a new kingdom. Does this sound familiar to you?"

"Yes your honor."

"Very good. Now, we need to decide if you are a threat to us. That is why you are here. If you wish to explain yourself, we are willing to listen. On the other hand, we can grant you counsel and we can go through a complete jury trial. Nevertheless, everything will be determined today. The people willing, you may survive the day."