Chương 36: Arraignment

From the accounts already given, I understood that the justice system in Hearstcliff is something of a spectator sport. In the video game it never really came up, Nathan never did anything to warrant being put on trial unless someone was just trying to kill him outright. And none of his enemies ever made it to trial either. That game was a lot of things but it was not a courtroom drama. So I'm in uncharted waters.

But knowing that trials are never closed to the public is a far cry from realizing that we're going to be trying these charges in the middle of a colosseum. The grandstands all around us were built up row after row like a gladiator's arena, and it could seat tens of thousands. Right now there was a fraction of that, but it was still somewhere in the four-digits range. The bailiff promised me that most of these people were just hanging out and not actively interested- just something to do on a Oneday afternoon.

Funny thing is, being in front of thousands of strangers when you try something for the first time is a terrible idea. But, you only get put on trial for the first time once, right?

"We now open proceedings for the trial of The Kingdom versus Lady Natalie Harigold. All parties rise. Prosecution take your podium. Defense take your podium." Normally defendants never came to this, never got to see the judge and prosecutor or the rows of spectators. My father's attorney had intended for me to sit in a waiting room and find the results after the fact. I was not going to do things that way. I stepped out on my cue, walking across the black-tiled floor.

I crossed a row of sigils on the ground, and was officially part of the courtroom now. Every word I spoke would be amplified and carried up to the repeaters built into the seats of the grandstands. Only spoken words though, small sounds would not be carried. The morning sun was chilly and pale, we were coming into early winter now and it showed. The air here was warm and well-maintained, I don't know if they had spells to cover the whole stadium. My feet tapped against the tile, and everyone was staring at me.

Cool. I'm not freaking out. On the outside. The tile here was black and slate, somber colors. This worked to my advantage, I was wearing shimmering white satin, polished silver, and splashes of vivid blue and purple. Pale skin and shock-white hair, I was strikingly visible from any part of the stadium. Everyone else here was wearing black robes or dark gray. It's like I was in a spotlight as I walked up to the defense podium. The judge rolled his eyes.

"Let the record show that the defendant has approached the podium. We will now adjourn as the court assigns counsel to the defendant for the trial to-""Your Honor," I interrupted. Various court officers gasped in shock.

"That will not be necessary, your Honor," I said. My voice carried across the floor and up into the bench seating, repeated over and over but never bursting out painfully loudly. A good system.

"I will be defending myself." The judge smirked.

"I appreciate a dramatic gesture as well as anyone but by regulation only an attorney may speak at the podiums of defense or prosecutor. So we will just-""I am an attorney," I interrupted again. That's the easy loophole, now isn't it? If you can only defend yourself if you're an attorney, become an attorney! This time there were not gasps from the court officers, they boggled in silence. The gasps came from the audience, who were now engaged much more than before.

Oh, the girl is going to actually represent herself! Yeah, it turns out it is bonkers easy to get an attorney's license in this city. I should have figured that out considering how utterly incompetent all of them are. It is harder to get a license as a busking street performer than an attorney. That's probably because the public streets are considered a higher art form.

But my father's agent in the city, Sisa, was able to file the paperwork in my name and get my license, all I had to do was complete a short examination. Open book. Also: I've spent two weeks watching every case brought before the High Court of the Council. Easy enough, Sisa just carried the Signet of the Seer over here, looked through the correct side, and then brought it back to me. I couldn't hear anything, but I feel like I caught the gist of it.

I handed my certificates to a bailiff who brought them to the judge. After several minutes of him trying to find any flaw in this, he sighed.

"The court sees that Lady Natalie Harigold is a licensed attorney in this jurisdiction, and is entitled to speak before the court. This session will continue."

"Objection!" shouted the prosecutor. My old friend, Inquisitor Pina.

"The defendant has inside information on the prosecution's case and would have advance notice of topics of questioning!" I turned to her, incredulous.

"Are you really objecting based on the grounds that I know what I'm doing? Is it really embarrassing to be you?"

"Overruled," the judge declared, and gaveled. The court reporter smirked. I'm not sure which of us she was amused by.

"There is no stricture requiring that the defense speaker be ignorant of the prosecution's interrogation. Proceed."

"Well maybe there should be!" Pina called out, jabbing a finger at me.

"If she knows my case, and she knows the particulars of the crime, there's no way the prosecution could mount a viable case!"

"How am I going to know any of that?" I asked.

"The prosecution has never informed defendant what charges are being pressed. Defense is utterly uninformed as to the nature of this proceeding."

"Objection!" she yelled back. The judge rolled his eyes.

"Inquisitor, is it true that the defendant has not been listed charges?"

"We have been compiling charges right up until the start of trial, your Honor, it was not feasible to keep defendant up-to-date on this information."

"So maybe we can move past objections and you can read the charges now?" the judge prompted her.

"With pleasure, your Honor. The kingdom is going to prove that the perpetrator, La-""Objection," I cut in, letting my tone fall flat and bored.

"I am accused. Prosecution has forgotten to hold a trial before she declares me guilty." Was that a laugh from the audience?

"-that the accused perpetrator Lady Natalie Harigold has -""Objection," I said again, yawning.

"Prosecution has incorrectly identified the defendant." Pina glared.

"That the Ducal Princess Lady Natalie Francine Daria Harigold, second heir of the Central House of Harigold, Earl of Falloweast, Countess of Caintwell, Countess of Raintall, Protector of Zhudten, Dame of the Realm, Thirty-second heir of the throne of Hearstwhile, has maliciously and with-""Objection," I said.

"Prosecution has forgotten one of the defendant's relevant and necessary titles."" What?!" she blew up in frustration.

"What did I forget?!"" Esquire," I answered her, grinning with all my teeth. I've spent two weeks needling her. As soon as I realized that she could not push me around in interrogations anymore, I've been getting her more and more annoyed at me. Mostly little things. Using small affectations and certain tones of voice to frustrate her. It has built up. But she put up with it because her job was relying on it, and at least she could get rid of me during the trial. And now here I am.

Yeah, she's desperate to get rid of me.

"Sustained, Lady Natalie," the judge said.

"Now do refrain from further objections during the reading of the charges."

"Yes your Honor. I just thought it was relevant and topical to remind the court who up here is a licensed attorney who has passed the bar exam and who is not." Mic drop. Eyes turned to the inquisitor.

"What? I'm an inquisitor, we don't have to take the bar exam."

"Convenient," I said. The judge gaveled me. The charges were read.

Breaking and entering, vandalism, trespass, theft, murder, mass murder, arson, devastation, assault with magic, causing an affray, instigation, bodily harm, desecration of corpses, theft, robbery, grand larceny, violation of statute, passing alms without a license, attempted murder, rampage, obstruction, fleeing the scene of a crime, extortion, threats, poisoning, public nuisance, incurring public cost, loitering, passing sorcerous counterfeit, manslaughter, refusal to cooperate with prosecutory procedure, flight, jailbreak, resisting, impugning, atrocity, kidnapping, malingering, endangering shipping lanes, and assassination.

Even I was impressed. Damn, those were some good charges!

"How does the defense plead?" the judge asked.

"What, to all of those?!"

"How do you plead, Lady Natalie?"

"Your Honor, I'd prefer to break those up some for some different pleas. I absolutely did loiter, and I would happily plead guilty to that one. But I cannot answer to most of this complete fabrication of fancy."

"A plea, if you will." Well fuck it.

"The defendant would like to invoke the Vendetta Defense." Ooh, that got a murmur.

"The court accepts your entry of the Vendetta Defense. We will take a short recess while the panel assembles." Pina jabbed a finger at me, and crooked it to follow her. She walked to the edge of the scrinever's circle and waited for me there, arms crossed, fuming. I shrugged and strolled after her, stopping just short. Behind me, seats were being rearranged and people were filing in.

"What are you doing," Pina hissed at me. I smiled back at her without speaking. She stamped a foot.

"Where is your attorney!?" I shook my head. I walked back to my podium. She followed a minute later when she realized I was not coming back.

"We now reconvene," the judge announced.

"The court has assembled its panel of assessment. Ladies, gentlemen, lords, dames, and barons of the panel, you are seated in order to recognize or refute the claims put before the court. Your mandate is to the public good and public truth, so help ye gods. The prosecution has read the charges, the defense has entered a plea for the Vendetta Defense." The men and women of the panel were all complete unknowns to me. Mostly middle-aged. Well kept, clearly not laborers.

"Prosecution explain your case to the panel." Pina stepped forward.

"Ladies and gentlemen, lords and dames and barons of the panel, the accused perpetrator esquire has been seen by dozens of witnesses on a multiple-day rampage of murder, wanton destruction and breathtaking theft. She has committed crimes that threatened the public order, humiliated her family, stolen over eight thousand platinum crowns in currency, halted local economies, and endangered public shipping lanes.

Her unique abilities made it easy for us to determine exactly where she went and what she destroyed, the nature of her attacks is unmistakable. The case of the prosecution will outline the dangers of this impudent child with a history of willful behavior, who has decided that her magical powers gave her absolute power over life and death. She has seen fit to invoke the Vendetta Defense, and the prosecution will establish that the defense is inapplicable because no malefactor acted against her.

We will be bringing in witnesses of the rampage, as well as character witnesses relevant these charges, and the results of this inquisitor's own interviews with the defendant."

"Very good. And the defense?"

"Bad guys burned down my home, destroyed my life, endangered my family, injured me grievously, and killed dozens of my close companions. I tracked them down and took revenge as allowed by law."

"Objection," Pina sneered.

"The individuals that were killed in your rampage were not involved in the attack against your ancestral manor."

"Yes they were," I said plainly. Just statin' facts.

"How?"

"How what?" I asked back. Pina composed her self. She forced herself to stop being annoyed by me.

"Lady Harigold, the Vendetta Defense only applies if the crimes committed were vengeance against those who wronged you."

"Yes, they were." Just statin' facts.

"Could you explain how?"

"I could but I will not." Murmurs from the court, and the panel, and the stands. I was making waves! Bad waves. The judge was smiling slightly.

"Lady Harigold, it is customary to reveal the method by which the victims of a vendetta were deserving of vengeance."

"Yes your Honor. But violation of custom is not one of the charges I am being tried for." I tried not to sound smug. Maybe I succeeded. Someone laughed real good at that one, but I did not look away from the judge. His face was growing darker.

"Lady Harigold, I am afraid that I must insist." His voice was darker too.

"I was informed by the inquisitor who stands as prosecution that establishing evidence of action, motive, or means is not necessary beyond the circumstantial. If the prosecution only needs to establish their case based on speculation, possibility and hearsay, then the defense is under no obligation to demonstrate an evidentiary link before the court."

"Objection!" Pina snapped, gloating.

"If there is no evidentiary link, there is no Vendetta Defense!"

"There is a link," I said calmly.

"The persons I attacked were those who wronged me."

"Then state how!" she demanded.

"No." Excited rustling from the gallery now. Sometimes a simple flat denial has power that wordier defense does not. Pina glared at me. I continued, "As indicated earlier, violation of custom is not a charge I am currently arraigned for." The judge ran his hand down his face. He had that "it's gonna be a long trial" expression. I wanted to sympathize. But, the whole proceedings here was a farce and I was not going to be complicit in a farce just to ease his day. He shook his head.

"Lady Harigold, if the prosecution is able to establish a case of evidence, will you reveal the means by which you established the link of your vendetta?"

"No your Honor. Stating those facts in an unsecured open court would endanger myself and my family. I cannot be compelled to reveal information in open session that would endanger myself or others." Pina was enraged.

"If there was information of that nature you should have revealed it in private interview instead of waiting for the public stand!"

"You did not ask about any of that," I said.

"I did! I asked you-""You did not ask whether it was safe for me to answer. You did not offer confidential disclosure. Not once. The only questions or interviews you took with me, from the first day to the last, were every time intended to wring a confession. Not once did you ask about the conditions or circumstance." She glared. I glared back.

"You're really bad at your job, Inquisitor. I would be so embarrassed if I was in your position." The judge gaveled wearily.

"Lady Harigold, please. Prosecutor, would it be possible for your case to establish factually that there was no link between the victims and the vendetta? With positive evidence and no speculation?"

"Your Honor, that degree of surety is impossible even in a case much simpler than this!" A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"It would be if you had tried," I said.

"But no evidence was gathered, so no evidence can be consulted."

"Your Honor, this child's outbursts must be brought under control! She is disruptive and chaotic!"

"Your Honor, the prosecution's case is so feeble that she has devolved to name-calling."

"Strong enough to prove you're a murderous and conniving tyrant and a constant danger to the public well-being!"

"Both of you stop," the judge gaveled.

"Inquisitor, what evidence can you present?" She was glaring daggers now.

"Your Honor, the prosecution now intends to demonstrate for the court that the Lady Harigold, herself, did set fire to her family's ancestral manor, and in the aftermath used that same fire to justify a rampage of destruction and theft." I was staggered. What the fuck did she just say?!