Nilo’s head snapped up as his wife spoke, eyes darting to where the woman stood, raising her voice at the wounded man who’d nearly lost his life. He was shocked. He knew she could be harsh and blunt, but he also knew she was kind. The prince had never expected her to treat Theodore as if he were a child who needed to be lectured. This wasn’t even his fault! His heart had been taken advantage of and he was beaten for it. Where had she found the audacity to criticize him like that? They were friends… the best of friends… and she had kicked him while he was down.

He was at a loss at that moment, not knowing what to do. Tentatively, he looked at Theodore, who had finally raised his head, but the younger man was hurt and betrayed. Gods he looked so broken. Nilo knew Theodore’s eyes were dark, but he had never seen them look so hollow. His look was despairing… “Theodore, I…” Nilo didn’t know what to say, swallowing as his mouth ran dry. But before he could try and conjure something to attempt to save the situation for the scribe’s sake, Gennadius fled the scene, leaving him the room with a silence that was deafening. The man could hear her yell down the hall, causing all three of them to flinch.

All of it was bad. Every single bit. The one good thing was that Theodore was still alive, but that was even a stretch. He was alive, but what had that costed him? And now his wife had just yelled at him unfairly… “You should go after her,” It was Damien that spoke, looking over at the door, “I’ll stay here for now, at least until my sister arrives.” Nilo was hesitant. He didn’t want to leave his friend behind, but he also didn’t want to leave Gennadius alone. Given her mood, he didn’t trust her not to punch Alan before they even did a proper interrogation. She could be impulsive and he still hadn’t forgotten the time she’d pursued an assassin.

Although, Nilo wasn’t sure that he wanted to go after her. Not in that mood and not after she had treated Theodore so poorly. But the bandaged man was rather quick to agree, “I agree that would be best, Nilo… To keep the distance between us would be wise.” His voice was weak but upset. He had never in a thousand lifetimes expected to see him like this.

“I’ll go, but I know she didn’t mean what she said, she was just frazzled. Please don’t-” Nilo had tried to defend her, but Theodore only shook his head and held up a hand. Now was not the time to talk about it. The prince already felt like he was reaching out across a gorge to try and get to his friend, but he knew that was something that would only come with time.

Nilo offered a rather solemn nod and walked out, shutting the door behind him. He took a breath and leaned against the door. He didn’t like conflict. He was even notorious for rolling over and going belly-up when it came to confrontation. But he was upset in more ways than one and he was frustrated with Gennadius’s outburst, which had made things even worse. He had expected more from her and he wasn’t blaming her for her emotions, but he was very irritated with how she had handled them. Yelling at a man who was hurt and utterly destroyed was one of the worst things one could do.

So when he laid eyes on his wife, his gaze was cold and perhaps even hurt. “What were you thinking?” He asked, pausing a few feet away. “How could you do that to him? He almost died, Gennadius, died!” Nilo exclaimed, though he tried to keep from being too loud, his face was twisted and his brows were furrowed were in concern. It was clear that this had deeply unsettled him, “He just told you about what is probably the worst thing he has ever experienced and you scolded him like he was a child. You treated him like he was stupid, like this was all his fault when he was the one who was pulverized!”

Nilo gave a loud exhale and shook his head, “This man was just betrayed by someone he trusted and beaten by the people who were sworn to protect him. And you yelled at him for it. He had injuries in there he may never fully recover from. He could be hurting for the rest of his life if something heals wrong, you know that? Hell, Theodore could still die and all you did was snap at him for doing nothing. Nothing. He needed support, not another betrayal.” They had been at his desk snuggling less than half an hour ago. This wasn’t how the day was supposed to go. It was never supposed to be this way.

“You are that man’s superior and his future queen and that should be enough for your sympathy, but first and foremost you are one of his best friends. You took the knife buried in his chest and twisted it. He opened up for the first time… and he trusted you with that. You were not there to see the damage you have done. He will not forget this.” Nilo’s face did soften, but it was only with a heavy sadness as his own heart seemed to bleed, “Gods you know I love you, but this…” He trailed off, shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks, “that was cruel and unfair. I’m disappointed, Gennadius.”

Everything was all wrong. Gods... Her fist clenched in her hair before falling at her side, the woman taking a heavy breath as she continued the violent pacing back and forth. How could this have happened?? Theodore of them all... why the hell did it have to be Theodore? She wished no harm on any of her friends, but the young man was the one among them all who would have the hardest time holding his own. And now he was in there without a damn thing she could do about it to help him... She had yet to consider that her outburst, made from fear and concern, had cut off her chances to even be there for him. She knew it was wrong and planned to apologize, but it didn’t dawn on her that there would be no second chances.

Gennadius heard his heels before she saw him, the woman turning with words already on the tip of her tongue. They never came, her mouth falling shut at the cold gaze that hit her and stunned her into near silence. It was a look she had never received from the man, her own eyes darkening even more in response to the unfamiliar cold hurt that came at her. Or perhaps it was the fact that he kept his distance. Whatever it was, it added to the pain and frustration she felt, listening quietly as he scolded her for what she had done, the careless words that had come out when all that lay behind was a deep fear.

Not that she could do anything but listen, the man not giving her a chance to truly get a word in edgewise. He kept driving home the same point causing her to take an involuntary step back, watching him with a now wary gaze. The frustration radiated off him as he spoke his mind. The damage you have done. She had done? Her fists clenched slightly by her side as she looked away. I love you, but this... No one wanted to hear a “but” after that kind of statement, her body tensing even more so if possible.

“You don’t think I KNOW all this?” she snapped back, arms crossing over her waist. “I am WELL aware of how bad he is. I was in there... I know the damage soldiers can inflict. You don’t think I don’t realize he could be maimed for life? I’m SCARED for him, damn it!” Betrayal. Her words had been seen as a betrayal. That was the last thing she had wanted and she shook her head. “I screwed up, I get it! Why the hell do you think I walked out? Because I just wanted to have a huffing fit out here? I walked OUT because I realized I made a mistake and wanted a breath of air before I fixed it.”

Cruel. The word was still rolling around in her mind as she took a heavy breath. It was all rolling in there, sinking in just how much damage she must have caused, and the blame laid across her shoulders for it. To say she felt like a monster now was an understatement, her own heart bleeding at the hellish turn this already awful time had taken. “I wasn’t thinking, alright? I get that I screwed up, you have made that abundantly clear Nilo. So clear, so let’s continue to rub it in shall we? I get that I shouldn’t have yelled, it wasn’t my intention. I didn’t go in there planning to do it! It just came out...”

Gennadius released a sound of frustration, taking another step away as she closed her eyes for a moment, nose crinkling. She wasn’t set up for these kinds of things... “I have sympathy for him. I feel bad this happened! I feel damn bad that this happened and I feel that on my shoulders too!" Her face turned away again, and if he could have seen the look in her eyes he would have seen the pain and the fear, not to mention the horror that swirled in her depths as she was called out for failing as a superior, future queen, and friend. Her worst nightmare rolled into one painful experience of nearly losing a friend and managing to sabotage it all in a fit of fear and lack of emotional intelligence.

"Just... whatever, hell with it. It happened, alright? They are bringing Alan in now for questioning and we can figure this damn mess out.” She took another breath, shaking her head as she finally moved towards Nilo, though he was not where she intended to go, instead stepping around him and continuing towards the door that led back to Theodore. “If you’ll excuse me, I have an apology to make...”

Nilo stood there, braced against the words of his wife while she snapped back at him. He had expected it, not because she turned on him often, but because she was emotional with a naturally short fuse to boot. He understood what she was feeling, he felt it too. He was terrified for one of his best friends and the entire situation stressed him more than he could describe. The prince would be expected to handle it when all he really wanted to do was hide, but Nilo knew that wasn’t an option, not anymore. This was one of those times that he knew he couldn’t just step away.

And he also knew he couldn’t just step away from Gennadius then either. Because he did adore her with everything he had. He was extremely frustrated at that moment, but it didn’t mean that Nilo didn’t care. He did and very much so. He was just upset that she had treated Theodore in such a manner, something he had never expected of her, especially given the situation that left the young scribe entirely the victim. It had happened now and there was no point trying to pretend that it hadn’t. All that was left now was to hope that it could be fixed. Nilo knew Theodore was the forgiving type, but this was a special situation.

Nilo ran a flustered hand through his hair. “You can’t just yell at people because you’re upset.” He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m not trying to rub it in, but someone had to come out here and I guarantee both those men in there would have been far worse options! At least I know you were just emotional!” He was exasperated, but he knew he probably wasn’t going to get through to her. Tensions were high and the emotions that went with them were equally strong. All of it was unfortunate, but what was even more so was that his wife had so poorly put herself in a position where she didn’t appear to be supportive of Theodore.

Nilo knew she had sympathy for Thedore, the two were good friends. He had never once doubted that she didn’t care about the other man, but it hadn’t appeared that way, which had shocked everyone in the room. “I didn’t come out here because I think you’re stupid or that you didn’t care. If I didn’t have faith in you I would have come out here about ten times angrier.” He pointed out, knowing that if he had completely misinterpreted her then he would have been incredibly furious to see her treat him in such a manner. He was lucky he knew her better than that.

“Yes, I’m frustrated. Very frustrated. I did come out here to express that and stand up for my friend, but I really came out here because you needed to know how everyone felt without walking back into that room and being eaten alive. I guarantee that’s what would have happened.” He pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest, “Frankly, I’m still worried that’s what’s going to happen.” He had stepped aside as she approached and had even followed her when she had walked past, but now he worried that she might be walking right into a room full of flames.

“Gennadius wait,” Nilo tried to get her attention, though he didn’t stop her. He just hoped she would listen. “I think you should give Theodore some time to process and calm down. Then find him when he’s alone so you two can have that conversation. He’s upset… I tried defending you, but he wasn’t receptive. You could both do well coming back to this calmer.” It didn’t change the fact he was disappointed with what had transpired, but he was still her person and was going to try to help. Whether she took his advice or not was completely up to her, but he hoped she would have enough sense to heed it.

“We should go see Alan and make sure the others who committed this atrocity are found and interrogated. Hopefully when Isabella arrives Damien will join us to write up the reports. This needs to be handled as soon as possible.” Nilo knew it wouldn’t make a difference if she took a few minutes to apologize, but he knew Theodore was feeling utterly destroyed and she was a mess internally. The last thing they all needed was an argument to make the situation even worse. “You can come back after he’s had some rest and you’ve had some time as well. It’s not going to be good if both of you are violently upset.”

The woman truly did have a short fuse, and when she was emotional, it was all hell breaking loose because she was not one who often showed something so deep, beyond the affectionate side of her she saved for Nilo. His admonishing was not helping either, the woman fully aware that she had screwed up, having gone as far as to admit it herself. She knew nothing about what she had done was right, but she did not appreciate being told that over and over. And most of what he said made no sense to her as he painted her more like a monster for an outburst made from concern. If he hadn’t had faith in her? What did faith have to with a damn thing?

At his request for her to wait, the woman’s feet slowed, finally coming to a full stop as her arms crossed over her chest, back still to him. The only reason she even did that was out of respect for him and the fact that he was her husband, otherwise he may very well have been up the creek. It could very well have been a small saving grace, or perhaps it may have closed a door that still had a chance of being open. Either way, her head slowly turned, taking in his advice before her gaze darted back to the door that led to Theodore. He had a point in that perhaps it was better to let things calm down some, which meant she would wait until later that day to speak with him.

“Fine.” It was short and to the point before she took a steadying breath, arms still crossed in front of her, though her general appearance seemed to relax in the slightest. There was a very slight shake in her shoulders over it all, barely noticeable unless one got close enough while she was standing still or happened to place a hand on her shoulder. “But I will be seeing him later to offer my apology. I would hope he knows me well enough to know it came from concern and my mouth moves faster than my brain when I am scared. I expected as much from you at least.”

Her voice was calmer than before, more of making a point than anything else as she changed direction, heading towards the war room now to take Nilo’s advice to talk to Alan first. Her face was set into a grim line, dark eyes almost scarily dark with the emotion still raging withing that she managed to pull back some in her voice. But even in her somewhat more relaxed form, her posture had shifted to the one she usually had as a Colonel with a mission in mind, straight and shoulders back despite the position of her arms in front of her.

Another sigh escaped her before she finally completed her composure, striding to the war room before swing the double doors open, eyes darkening even more and becoming steely. Alan had yet to arrive, Gennadius moving over to one of the chairs to sit down, legs crossing as she stared at the entrance to wait for his arrival. She would send this bastard to hell if she could, that was for sure. But she wanted all the answers first, to know what the hell had caused these men to turn against the young scribe in such a violent way. Despite her anger and fear, a small part of her brain still held some rational thought, and that was to dig into this story until there was nothing left to find.

She stayed in silence, letting her thoughts flow once more as her mindset shifted out of the emotional side and towards the part of her that had once commanded a battalion of soldiers. It was that Gennadius that stared down the young Alan as he was brought in, held by two guards before being released in front of the royals. Her immediate assessment was to label him as a coward, though she took a quick moment to reel her thoughts back in, determined to make a full unbiased determination. Her thoughts wanted vengeance on Theodore, but she knew more about the ins of the army than even Nilo or Damien, and those men also looked to her.

“What happened?” The words came out of her mouth almost monotone for once, the woman not having moved from her spot though her gaze was piercing. “You were there, and played a vital role in the proceedings of Theodore Valencia. In your own words, tell us the events that occurred and who was involved.” There was a civility that had not been there with her before, but it also came with almost an emotionless air to it. She did not expect the full truth from Alan, she knew better than that, but she still took into consideration he might hold some honesty.

Nilo never responded, but merely followed her from the infirmary, trailing behind her to give some space. Well, he needed some space too. Everybody did. So he just stayed a few feet back for their journey to the war room. The man would have preferred the throne room for this kind of business, but he supposed it didn’t really matter. It was just what he was used to. There was no talking between them, just silence. Nilo wasn’t sure what that meant, but he knew better than to bring it up in those moments. They could talk to each other later, right now they had more pressing matters.

It was unfortunate since he hated the silence and wanted nothing more than a conversation, but he didn’t want to risk an argument when they had just found a little bit of calm. So he was quiet. Even when they entered the war room and he took a chair next to her he said nothing. Just waited for Alan. He wanted to know the whole side of the story, but at the same time, he was somewhat afraid. Not because he thought Theodore was lying, but it was all just extremely unsettling to Nilo. One of his best friends was beaten on false claims… the court was supposed to protected.

His eyes were nothing but cold and unreadable as the soldier at the center of it all was thrust into the room, not too much younger than them, if at all. To be fair, they were all just barely adults and Nilo wished his father had just been there to handle it all with his wisdom and experience. Not leaving both an inexperienced prince and princess behind to handle what had become quite the situation in mere hours. Nilo’s gaze swept over to his wife as she spoke before returning to the man who stood on wobbly legs in front of them. He looked traumatized and terrified.

It was evident by his appearance that he was shocked, though the prince did not yet understand. So there were several moments of silence while he waited for Alan to explain himself, but he couldn’t seem to find the words. Nilo leaned back in his chair and crossed one leg over the other. “You were asked a question.” His eyes gave a slight narrow, “So answer it, soldier. Your existence is stretching my patience thin.” He commanded, not looking to sit here for an hour while he tried to conjure up the story he probably didn’t want to tell. That wasn’t Nilo’s problem, Alan needed to figure it out.

“I wasn’t expecting that to happen.” Rattled. The man was clearly rattled. His voice even seemed to waver. “I… They-”

“Who’s they?” Nilo reached for a random piece of paper and a writing utensil on the table. Damien entered at that moment as well, taking his seat. “I need names.” Four other men were listed off and given without protest to the prince. The paper was handed off to his advisor to have the other four fetched for their own interrogation. “Continue.”

Alan fidgeted where he stood, not meeting the eyes of anyone. “We were seen together by them… Nothin’ indecent or whatnot. Just uh… affectionate.” There was clear hesitance in his voice. It took a lot of Nilo's willpower not to cringe at the soldier’s evident embarrassment. How had Theodore been so blind to this man’s discomfort about being anything but a closely guarded secret? “They just walked away, but we split up for the night after that and then they found and started questioning me. I don’t even remember what they asked me. It was just a lot, they wanted to know about what exactly was going on.”

The man seemed to shrink. If he had been tense before, he was even tenser now. Nilo did not doubt that if Alan could disappear, he would. “I’ve heard of people being killed for being in relationships with other men… or maimed or disowned. All kinds of bad things. It ain’t against the law here, but it feels like it is.” Those words were the only ones that made Nilo feel any shred of sympathy for the man in front of him, but that was quickly gone as the story continued, “I told them that he had been flirting and touching me, making me feel uncomfortable. Told them I wasn’t attracted to men and that I didn’t reciprocate, that it had all been just him. I didn’t want them to know.”

Nilo’s hands curled into fists and there was a sharp inhale. He hadn’t even noticed that Damien had sat down beside him a while ago. “So you told these men that Theodore was essentially... forcing himself onto you?”

Alan wrung his hands, “Yes I did, but your highness, I didn’t tell them to hurt him!” The soldier was almost begging them now, “When they said they wanted me to bring him to the barracks… I thought they might threaten him, shove him at the most. I figured his status would protect him from any damage because he's a Valencia. I thought… I thought… I didn’t know they were going to beat him like that! I wasn’t trying to hurt him. I care about him. I wouldn’t have… if I had known…”

Nilo was frigid and angry beyond belief. “You lied to your friends about your lover and told him that he made unwanted advances. You could have ruined him even more so than you already have! He could have lost his job and his place in his family if your lie had gotten out.” This blubbering idiot. He was a sorry excuse for a soldier and a stain on their military system. “You just said you’ve heard of people being wrongfully murdered, yet you thought it was okay to subject him to that and save yourself? Where is your justification for that? What is your reason for saving yourself and leaving someone you “cared” about behind in your mess?”

“Your highness-”

“There isn’t one.” The words almost came out in a snarl, but Nilo managed to contain himself, “There isn’t a single reason why you should have done such a thing. You may not have laid a hand on him, but spread slander about my scribe and then left him for dead. Your words here have done nothing but prove you a coward, Alan Glenn.”

The tension in the room was strong and thick as Alan stood there, Gennadius’s gaze never shifting from the soldier, allowing Nilo to take the charge to make the man talk. She was rigid once more, leaned forward with her full attention on the stammering soldier who was struggling to get his story out. The names he spoke were stored away in her mind, a very slight twitch in her cheek as one of the names was more familiar than the other, her brows furrowing.

She was not surprised in the slightest by his discomfort, but it did not cause her to offer any sympathy towards this soldier, or even feel the slightest flicker of it. Instead, it brought her mood darker as he continued forward in the story, claiming that he had, instead, allowed the others to believe that Theodore had assaulted him. The cowardly bastard... Still, she said no words, continuing as a blank statue as Nilo continued to conduct the interrogation, giving her time to think and process what had happened, the story pretty much clear from what had already been said.

As the prince finished that last of his words, Gennadius finally moved, rising to her feet and striding over to the man that stood before them. Every step was thought out this time around, her words well-considered as she stopped in front of him, eyes a mess of dark emotions reigned in as she craned her neck back to see his face. “Look at me, soldier.” Her words were commanding, clearly from one who had experience in setting out orders to soldiers. And she did not wish to be ignored this time around, though her mindset shifted from that of a princess to that of a colonel, a position she was experienced with and comfortable in. One that she held a strong hand of control with.

It was only then that her voice shifted to a lower snarl, volume lowered in a way that threatened in ways that her yelling at Theodore could never compare to. It was the voice of true disdain and disgust, not one of unrestrained emotion. “You are a disgrace to everything this kingdom was built for and stands upon. Don’t you dare walk into this room and claim you were not aware of what would be done to a man you claimed assaulted you.” Her voice lowered even further, enough that Nilo would have to strain if he wished to hear, and even then would probably have to get up and come closer. It was not done consciously though, and her intention was not to shut out anyone listening.

“The code of brotherhood among the soldiers is strong and you were well aware the moment you wrongly accused the man that he would not fair well. The attack on another soldier is considered offense enough for retaliation, but what you accused him of is far worse in the book of the men who dared called you a friend and brother. You are not a soldier. You are a coward of the worst kind,” she hissed out. “You can be assured I will throw your ass into hell for this.” She finally took a step back, hand waving dismissively as she was done with what she wanted from Alan. Nilo could do as he pleased with this coward for all she cared. The other four... they would be much harder and more delicate to deal with.

Now the wait was for the others, the woman sinking back into her chosen chair as she readjusted the sword on her belt, running her fingers over the handle. This was her territory and her comfort zone, something she needed for the hell that was sure to break loose as four soldiers were dragged in and left to stand in front of the small group that awaited them. Though these four were clearly made of a stronger material than Alan. Not to say they weren’t nervous, but by far more stoic as they were brought to face judgment for their actions.

“Fronz.” She spoke one of the soldier's names with some familiarity, once again rising as she felt this was a more personal conversation that sitting was not appropriate for. Her arms crossed behind her back as she began her pacing, a simple back and forth walk in front of them. “I would care to hear your side of the story. Choose your words carefully.” The warning was shot out with the rest of her words as she looked to the man, their postures all straightening into a military stance in response to her own stature, all customary of the more militaristic side of such proceedings.

“We saw Alan with the advisor a couple of nights ago. We were unaware of Alan’s preferences and were caught unaware by the affection shown by the advisor. When we went to ask Alan about it out of concern, he told us the man had forced himself onto him.” There was a moment where his face twitched, revealing the anger he felt towards such a situation. “We know Alan isn’t all the powerful or all that damn smart and you know the code. You don’t hurt one of our own so we sent a message to the advisor.”

Her eyes flashed in response, though she was facing away from Nilo, only the soldiers seeing the small spark of fury that jumped through her face, though she remained calm. “I would like to inform you that it is not so. Alan was not assaulted or forced upon, as spoken by his own words, but he lied to save his own pathetic ass. And that leaves you four in very deep waters for the assault against the advisor in the royal court.” It could be seen in a couple of the men’s faces that they were suddenly aware of the trouble they were in, while Destas’s face darkened at the realization that their own friend had lied to them.

“What was your message?” Gennadius asked bluntly, gaze darting to Destas now, elaborating out what she could from these soldiers. Their motive was now more than clear, but now she had to know how far they intended to go from the start if she were to work through this. After her own outburst with Theodore, she had since separated her friend from the title, now focusing on titles, codes, and motives rather than the individuals as best she could.

“The message was a warning. Stay far from the soldiers because we will protect our friends. We didn’t realize Alan was a ly...” Destas was cut off as she lifted her hand to shut him up.

“And your intent?”

“As I said... a warning.”

She nodded, finally stepping away to allow Nilo to continue as he wished, her eyes briefly darting towards Damien before she returned to her seat to watch the proceedings and to allow her time to think.

When the next batch of men came in, the pair alternated again, with his wife beginning her piece with the soldiers, something she had personal connections to where Nilo did not. Not that he expected her judgment to be clouded, but he knew she would want to take on a large part of this. For this “interrogation” portion at least. Granted, he would have preferred her not pacing in front of him and the three of them and instead just sitting as a united front, but what did it hurt? She was dealing with this in her own way and he could respect that. Their backgrounds in handling situations were far different.

If Nilo had even really ever handled situations. Caspian had truly been the only time he’d dealt with something on his own and that was because his father had been sick. But he wasn’t sure if that could even truly be considered him handling something. He had been physical with Caspian… something he should not have done. He had a right to be angry, but he had been too emotional because Gennadius had been hurt. He had not handled Caspian’s situation as a future monarch should but the prince had no regrets. That man had deserved his punishment and more for what he had done that day.

When listening to the soldiers, what interested Nilo was the mention of a code. It didn’t take too long for him to understand. He knew there was a fierce loyalty amongst the soldiers and it was almost like family, if not completely so. He had never doubted that they had only attacked Theodore because of Alan’s lies, but it didn’t change the fact that Nilo was incredibly furious with all five of the men. Frankly, he would have been incredibly furious even if his friend hadn’t been attacked. Unfortunately for them, the scribe’s involvement only made him angrier. And the anger of the crown prince was hard-won.

“Your claims of this just being a warning are absolute horse shit.”

Nilo’s words had come out in a harsh snap, similar to the crack of a whip. “You ambushed my scribe and assaulted him with the intent to cause severe bodily harm. I could even argue that you attacked this man with the intent to kill and about every one of the staff in our infirmary could stand behind that accusation.” Gods was the man angry. It took large amounts of willpower not to yell at them, to snarl and lash out at them with all the obscenities he believed they deserved to hear. Instead, the prince held onto the arms of the chair, the only evidence of his struggle to stay somewhat calm written on the way his knuckles had turned white.

He took a breath then continued, regaining a calmer tone though his rage was still present. “That man is in the infirmary, wrapped in more bandages than you fools have ever been in and still has a possibility of dying from the damage you have done. I employ you men because I trust you to protect my kingdom at the command of the monarchy. It is not your place to take justice into your own hands. It was never your place. Whether the Valencia was guilty or not, you should have gone to your supervisor and reported him. If you had done that, you would not be standing here today as failures.”

“You have all violated your oaths as soldiers in the worst of ways. Frankly, I don’t give a crap that you were following some “code”. You took one man's claims and resorted to violence. If that is the code that all your comrades follow, then I must seriously look into the integrity of my military system. What you did was absolutely stupid. We are here now because instead of just hanging you five for an attempt on the life of Theodore, we are conducting an investigation. He is our friend, our brother. Yet we sit here and give his assailants the same right to tell their stories. What you four did was inexcusable, irrational, and utterly shameful.”

There was a pause as he looked over them all, really getting to see every face. He didn’t even remember their names. “I’d like to know who let you all out of your cages this morning.” Pale eyes met the gazes of each of the men who stood before him, “Because all I see before me are animals. My dog has more self-control than you have demonstrated here today. Whoever taught you that beating someone unconscious as a “warning” is acceptable has no place in my kingdom. Especially when it was uncalled for. This display gentlemen… was utterly savage.” He crossed his arms over his chest, finding his composure the more he spoke.

“What is the most unfortunate about your situation is that Alan is the best off out of your five. He was intelligent enough not to lay a hand on Theodore. What he did certainly pales in comparison to the actions of the rest of you when it comes to dealing with the law. You men were misled, but this was no accident. You all better pray to whatever deity will hear you… because you are going to need it.” It was rather sad that Alan had lied to them and that they had attacked trying to protect a friend. But they had gone about it horribly wrong. Horribly and violently wrong.

Even with the fact that they had been lied to, Nilo could find little to no sympathy for them. Not when they had been so idiotic and that had resulted in someone he loved and cared for being hurt. It appalled him. “The four of you,” He gestured to the ones that had administered the beating, “will be kept in custody in one of our empty barracks. You will eat, sleep, and live in there unarmed and under close supervision until we decide what to do with you. Alan will be kept inside one of our cells underground for his own safety. But rest assured, if he acts up, I will send him to join you. Do I make myself clear?” He questioned, to which he received a few nods, especially from Alan, who looked like he was about to soil himself.

The immediate harshness that came from Nilo earned the man a glare from her, though she said nothing and stayed back to let him proceed. Gennadius could see the strain, the way he was already struggling to contain himself and kept silent, though her mouth set in a firm line. There were pieces of his admonishment that grated with her and did not sit well though she did not argue and let them flow. First, he assumed none of these men had been injured in battle or severely beaten. The second was questioning the integrity of a military system he had never been in and a code he couldn’t even begin to comprehend the importance of. And the third was how he compared them to animals, lowering them beneath even dogs.

That was not to say that she did not agree on many of his points. What had happened was inexcusable, irrational, and yes, shameful. It was uncalled for and they had no place handling the situation as they had. Nor did she have any complaints with what would be their living arrangements while they tried to figure out how to handle this entire situation, which she already felt as though would be a hard and complicated process. Personally, she still wanted time to think, to continue to detach herself from names and try and take a step back to see everything at once from the view of both the army and an advisor who had been severely wronged.

She said nothing, nor added to the heated lecture that had just occurred, instead sitting and working through her feelings as the soldiers were escorted out. Theodore… her poor friend. The anger and ache filled her, eyes lifting briefly to watch the men leave as it set in once more that they had done it. They had laid hands on her friend. But. Gennadius took another steadying breath, eyes scrunching closed as she gritted her teeth. No, she had been unfair once today because of her emotions. There would be no more thinking of Theodore as Theodore, but once more pushing back into the mindset of stepping back from the people and only focusing on the facts.

Finally with them gone and her thoughts somewhat sorted, her focus shifted to Nilo. “I want to address the fact that you seem convinced this was a murder attempt,” she started, wanting to clear up that matter first and foremost because it was a rather large determining factor for the proceedings. In her mind at least, trying to deem what the motive was, whether it was a blatant hate crime and murder attempt or something else. Clearly, she found it to be something else, but she wanted that clarified among them all. “If those men were intending to murder Theodore, I guarantee you that he would be dead. This was not a murder attempt nor was there an intent to kill. Keep that in mind. You’d be surprised how well soldiers are aware of the limit of the human body.”

Unlike before when she had addressed the soldiers while pacing, more customary to military proceedings, Gennadius now remained seated. “I do not condone their actions by any means. It was wrong, inexcusable, and should most certainly be punished. But before we going hanging them, perhaps you should consider their stories and motives more deeply than a shallow glance over.” The woman was actually holding herself together well this time around, a deep contrast to her earlier outburst she had had. This time she was using her head more than her emotions.

“They had a motive to protect, a clearly misguided one and Alan should by no means be given an easier path than the soldiers. He was well aware of what would happen through his slander. His charges easily come to slander against a royal advisor and conspiracy to cause harm. And I am certain I can think up a plethora of other charges to add. But his motives were by no means as noble as the others.” There was a pause as she looked between the men. “Not that their actions themselves were noble but again I consider the motive behind.”

She leaned back into her chair, legs crossing. “Out there, beyond your reaches when those soldiers stand alone in the middle of war and battle, the code we stand by is to protect our brothers in arms. There is not royal court, and some situations cannot be handled by superiors and the only way to protect is to take the matter into your own hands. Those who have spent longer on the campaigns and have even spent the slightest time at the borders have a harder time releasing that once in the jurisdiction of an authority that can actually take action.” She actually took the time to best explain it all to clarify Nilo's lack of faith in the integrity of his military… the one she had spent much time and energy on helping perfect.

“Keep that in mind as we decide how to handle this. This was not the time, the place, or situation for it, but in many other circumstances, Alan's life may very well have been saved.” Gennadius's point felt self explanatory, that had Alan been attacked in any way out on the field by someone who was not part of the company, whether a traveler or someone from a nearby town, and those four men had taken action, the soldier would have been saved from a situation that could have gotten him harmed or killed. But again, this was not the place for such actions. Not the situation, and not the time. It was hard to truly get across though, if one had not ever been part of the military in a way she had been.

As the men left, as did his advisor, Damien heading off to handle the living arrangements of the men who had quickly become nothing more than prisoners. They were to be searched and have any and all weapons confiscated and they weren’t going to have access to their belongings. Their stay was supposed to be uncomfortable. These men might have intended to help, but the prince simply could not get past the fact they had deemed a horrific beating the way to handle things. They had been lied to, but these actions were theirs and theirs only. And that he could not condone.

“I don’t actually believe they intended to murder him. I live with you for Gods sakes, I know what they're capable of. I said that to make a point.” Nilo stared ahead where they had stood moments ago and was glad they were gone. He couldn’t have been forced to look at them any longer. He was disgusted with the actions of everyone in that small party. “Because if I suddenly decided that I wanted to charge them with attempted murder, I could. I have more than enough evidence in the form of my friend being covered in bandages with life-threatening wounds. Because that’s how far these men decided to go.”

She kept talking about motive. Nilo understood the motive. Alan had lied and said Theodore had made unwanted advances so they had attacked Theodore. That was crystal clear. But that motive was all but garbage considering the way they had conducted themselves and the extent of Theodore’s injuries. In no way did their crappy little “it was a warning” statement make anything better for their case. Alan might have wanted Theodore to be beaten and played his cards just right. It could have all been an act. The prince didn’t know and he probably would never know.

“Unfortunately Gennadius, Alan must escape the brunt of the charges. If what he says is true, and that he just lied to his friends about Theodore, all he can be subject to is slander and maybe another lesser charge because he intentionally led Theodore here. But if he did not plan to attack Theodore, know about the attack, or lay a hand on him, he cannot be accused on the basis of “he should have known”. Because he cannot be blamed for their actions of assaulting Theodore if he stayed out of that process. There will be further interviews with them regarding that claim, but if all Alan really did was lie and invite Theodore over without planning to assault him or knowledge of that plan, he can seriously claim he had no clue and we cannot punish him for that.”

Nilo sighed and ran his fingers through his hair before rubbing his temples, the beginnings of a headache emerging. “As for this little code of brotherhood, it doesn’t have a leg to stand on when defending their cases. It’s unspoken. It’s not written anywhere in our military’s rules. It was made up by the soldiers and wasn’t officially approved or documented. It means nothing here.” The man’s voice was merely flat and honestly, rather defeated. His words weren’t meant to offend, he was just stating the facts. While she had been off learning the ins and outs of the military, he had been at home learning law. And the more he thought about the situation, the more unfortunate it was proving to be.

The soldiers who had administered the beating would get the punishment they deserved, but Alan? Nilo wanted to bury him in hell but he couldn’t. The man was nearly innocent and Gods it frustrated him. He knew Theodore would be trusting him, but he also knew he couldn’t make Alan pay for more than he technically owed. It would be a decision that would haunt him, but he doubted he could justifiably do anything but have the man fired from his position as a soldier. And even that was a stretch. He could barely get away with that and it would probably be due to the fact his superiors would no longer want him.

“They might have claimed that they were just “protecting” Alan, but this? No. Absolutely not. This is not and would never be considered protecting. They only looked into one side of the story then went in and beat a man half to death. Gennadius they were utter fools about it. They are not only expected, but required to report these things, not to take matters into their own hands.” He sighed and his eyes traced the floor, “You said these men have knowledge of the human body and its limits, so that means they knew exactly what they were doing. It means they knew that Theodore could possibly die from these injuries and they didn’t care.”

In the beginning, he’d thought that maybe, just maybe these men were good. That they were good people that had made a mistake. Nilo always tried to see the bright side, but he wasn’t finding one. “Four men are not needed against one defenseless one. This wasn’t protection, this was outright violence. Alan might have lied, he might have told them that Theodore had made him uncomfortable, but nobody told them to beat someone half to death to send some sort of sick message. They made that decision on their own. It might have been a damn stupid one they regret and they might have been lied to, but they are wholly responsible for what occurred today.” Nilo spoke, giving a sad shake of his head.

“They made their choice… and now they must pay for it.”

It was her turn to listen, the woman leaning forward with her elbows to her knees, head turning to look at the prince who spoke. Quietly, Gennadius absorbed his words while watching him, taking in his gestures and nonverbal cues that gave away how he was feeling. Not that the tension, frustration, and stress weren’t already rolling off him in waves. Her own stress was painfully still there despite the calm nature she had managed to put on, because like it or not, her husband was very upset and she feared for the soldiers' lives. As she feared for Theodore’s life.

“From Theodore’s story, Alan sent him a letter that brought him to the place he was attacked. That is clearly in conjunction with him being very active in the proceedings, whether or not he laid a hand on Theodore. It meant he was fully aware that something was going to happen, and by his own words, he knew that terrible things happen in such situations. So I think conspiracy to cause harm is more than a fair and provable claim.” That was her first point that she felt pertinent to make. Because there was no way in hell Alan was going to get away with this. Though, she had a feeling even if Nilo would not go forward with the charges she would whole-heartedly defend, once word got out in the army what Alan had caused, he would be as good as on his own.

“And yes, at some point, in a different situation, that very well may have saved a man’s life,” Gennadius argued. “And no, I am not condoning physical violence as a go-to resolve. And I do agree that they must be punished, and I will definitely and willingly be happy to be part of the process of making sure they pay. It was stupid and they sure as hell were wrong in what they did. But I need you to consider.” Her eyes turned straight forward as she leaned heavily on her arms, shaking her head. “They have disgraced their position and what the army stands for, but there should be consideration behind merit, intent, and the situation of what happened.”

Again, her head swiveled towards Nilo, dark eyes searching his form. “Suppose for the sake of argument that Theodore was like the rest of the Valencias? That he only thought about his power and fame? Now take this into consideration and suppose he really had assaulted Alan. Now if those soldiers had attempted to get Theodore’s side, would he have admitted to such a thing? No. And if they had gone to their superiors, nothing could have been done either. Now, this is not the scenario that happened, but I am throwing out a possibility in which the soldiers most likely painted a picture. This does not condone their actions either, but keep it in mind.”

The only reason Gennadius was fighting as hard for the soldiers as she was was simply because it was something she understood and could see from their point of view. What more could be said for Theodore? He had been terribly wronged and he would get his justice. That was the end of that conversation or argument, but it was a totally different story for the soldiers whose lives sat in the balance. She wanted to give them some benefit of the doubt... Because who was to say what she would have done had she been in their situation? Granted, she could not imagine actually harming Theodore, but out on the field she sure as hell would have given some kind of warning had someone assaulted her friend.

“I can’t make you keep that in mind, or the fact that sometimes that is the only way to protect others when we are out there alone... but I will be. They made a bloody, horrible, indecent, and disgusting mistake, yes. But it was a mistake and from what I saw, they are well aware of what they’ve done. Unfortunately, soldiers don’t tend to grovel if they’re worth their weight and will always put a stoic face on. It's how the proper, uncowardly ones are trained. But next time you go down to talk to them, watch their eyes.” She paused, taking a breath as she glanced towards the doorways and leaned back in the seat once more.

“For now, perhaps it is best we each do some more investigation into this whole event and take time to think through it and come back to it tomorrow.” Gennadius stood as she spoke, running a hand over the back of her neck. “I would still like to go find Theodore and offer an apology. And I would like to see how he is.”