The Right Side of History (Schooled In Magic Book 22), Christopher Nuttall [books to read romance TXT] 📗

Gordian walked around her and took a seat beside the hooded figures. Emily sucked in her breath. Nine jurymen... if she recalled correctly, a simple majority would be enough to convict. She tried to pick out the faces under the hoods, but it was impossible. Master Tor had explained the reasoning, a long time ago. The individual jurymen, drawn from the White Council, had no power as individuals. It was only as a group they could convict people bought before the Shadow Chamber. She shivered, again, as she realized that she’d been brought before the chamber. Some of her classmates had argued it didn’t exist, that it was little better than a rumor. She knew better now.

Master Tor snapped his fingers. A low chime echoed through the air. “The Shadow Chamber is now in session,” he said. “Emily, Daughter of Void, has been brought before us to answer charges.”

His eyes moved to Emily. “How do you plead?”

Emily kept her temper under firm control. “I cannot plead,” she said. Master Tor might look like Jean-Luc Picard, but he didn’t have the starship captain’s passion for justice. “I have not been informed of the charges.”

Master Tor looked impassive. “The Prosecutor will read the charges.”

Master Lucknow stepped forward. “There are a number of separate charges filed against Lady Emily,” he said. “Breaking the Compact, by accepting an aristocratic title, destabilizing the balance of power and inciting rebellion. Introducing dangerous and potentially forbidden techniques, ranging from gunpowder and steam engines to batteries. Interfering in the affairs of her betters, including the operations of no less than three magical schools. Challenging a tutor to a duel and killing him in cold blood.”

Emily leaned forward. “And how many of those are actually crimes?”

“The accused will be silent,” Master Tor said, flatly.

“It is true that many of the offenses are relatively minor,” Master Lucknow said. “However, two of them are extremely serious. It cannot be denied that Lady Emily’s innovations, the so-called New Learning, have had an extremely disruptive effect on society. The new method of writing alone has put the ability to communicate in the hands of everyone, including people who lack the maturity and perspective to handle it. We have seen kingdoms shake, even fall, because of her innovations. This is a clear breach of the Compact, even if it was not intentional. She had a duty to consider what her innovations might do before she released them.

“Furthermore, Lady Emily is deeply involved in the politics of Zangaria while trying, at the same time, to present herself as both a humble apprentice and a champion of the Allied Lands themselves. She is a baroness, with immense personal power; she is, after fighting for the queen in a civil war, practically the greatest aristocrat in the kingdom. She did not have to involve herself so deeply and, practically, she could have declined the honors showered upon her by two successive monarchs. Again, this is a clear breach of the Compact.”

He paused for effect. “The most disturbing aspects of her innovations, however, are the magical ones. She has devised a means of long-range communication, private communications, that can be easily abused. Chat parchments have been used to break down wards and sneak through mental defenses, as we saw - only a few short days ago - in Laughter. Worse, she has devised a means of permanently storing magical power. She has, in a single stroke, upended our society. What can be done - what cannot be done - by a person with a battery and bad intentions?

“It is a point of law, of course, that an inventor cannot be blamed for the effects of their invention. The alchemist who first devised a basic lust potion cannot be held accountable for what someone else does with the recipe. But there is a certain responsibility, on the part of the inventor, to ensure it doesn’t fall into unsuitable hands. They should take all reasonable precautions to ensure the recipe isn’t stolen. Lady Emily did not. In some cases, she practically ensured that everyone in the community knew how to duplicate her innovation. In others, she did not take anything like enough precautions to protect her designs. The only reason I can talk freely now, about the batteries, is that the secret is out and spreading. My oaths no longer bind me.”

Emily let out a breath. She’d done everything she reasonably could do to keep that secret from getting out. And yet... she gritted her teeth. There was no way any reasonably impartial court could blame her for someone copying the chat parchment spells, turning them into weapons and putting them into use. Hell, the secret wasn’t wholly hers. It had been Aloha who’d come up with the final version. She decided not to point that out. There was no point in getting both of them in trouble.

“It cannot be denied that Lady Emily has done great things,” Master Lucknow said. “But it is also clear she’s dangerous. She’s shown a willingness to interfere in matters that are none of her concern, to the point she tries to push around people vastly more experienced than herself. She meddles in situations she does not understand, throwing the established order - both magical and mundane - into chaos. The crisis we are facing now is a direct result of her meddling. She must answer for her crimes.”

Crimes, Emily thought, sarcastically.

“The prosecution believes the charges cannot be answered,” Master Lucknow said. “There is no dispute over the facts. Accordingly, we request that the court moves immediately to judgement.”

Emily opened her mouth to object, but Master Tor spoke first. “The accused has a right to respond to the charges,” he said. Emily could have kissed him. “Lady Emily, the floor is yours.”

Master Lucknow stepped back. Emily composed herself with an effort. Nine jurymen... one too weak to stand against her enemies. Another weirdly familiar, as if she knew him from somewhere... the remainder strangers. Had Master Lucknow rigged the jury selection? She