A Reaper

Gladius smiled, clearly amused as the trial continued with almost mechanical ease. He occasionally glanced toward Corvin and Sai, a faint smugness in his eyes, before flashing the crowd a reassuring grin.

“Okay, this’ll be difficult, but I’m sure we can…” Sai began, but when he looked at Corvin, he saw the boy staring blankly ahead, barely breathing.

“I… I’m dead. I’m so dead,” Corvin muttered, voice cracking.

Oh crap, now you crack? Sai thought, frustration mounting.

Sai stepped forward, his posture composed despite the tension. “Permission to cross-examine both the witness and Mr. Ebron.”

The judge gave a short nod, and Sai made his way around the table.

He addressed the first witness directly. “What happened after you, uh… ‘apprehended’ Corvin?”

C-ti, seated stiffly in her chair, shifted slightly and leaned forward. “Soon after, we engaged in a fight. It ended with us pinning him for our own safety.”

“Please continue,” Sai said, voice cool but sharp. “Don’t be shy now.”

C-ti narrowed her eyes but complied. “Then you, along with prisoner number two and three, attacked us. Someone shot arrows toward us, and you even drew your sword.”

Sai locked eyes with her.

“Judge,” he said without breaking the stare, “I request that the witness be required to elaborate clearly and fully. She’s leaving out details.”

The judge nodded. “Miss, you are required to speak the full truth in this court.”

C-ti leaned back with a reluctant sigh. “After we were overwhelmed, there was mention of… talking things through, before we broke free.”

“Thank you for that honesty,” Sai said. He then turned to Ebron, who had taken the other witness seat. “Mr. Ebron, how did you feel when you first heard Corvin yell inside the mill?”

“Scared,” Ebron admitted quietly. “Not threatened. Just… confused and scared.”

Sai leaned forward. “Do you believe he deserves to die for what he did?”

The question hung in the air like a guillotine blade.

Ebron blinked in disbelief, clearly horrified. “No! Absolutely not!”

The judge scribbled something down on a parchment. Gladius’s smile remained fixed, but a faint twitch pulsed along his jaw. He rose.

“I’d like to call Corvin for questioning,” he said, and gestured to C-ti to vacate her seat. Corvin was practically slumped in his chair, his nerves fraying.

“Now then, prisoner number one,” Gladius began with a mock-welcoming tone, “why did you enter the mill?”

“Because—well, uh—we were looking for shelter. We’d been sleeping outside for a day,” Corvin stammered.

“So you decided to break in?” Gladius said, voice twisting with accusation.

“No, wait! That’s not what I meant!”

The judge banged his hand on the table. “Order. No yelling.”

Corvin shrank visibly, eyes downcast.

Sai jumped in, redirecting. “Mr. Ebron, did you by any chance forget to lock the mill door that evening?”

Ebron paused. “I… you know, I think I did.”

The judge leaned forward, striking one of the charges with a line of ink. “If the door was left unlocked, that disqualifies unlawful entry. There was no forced intrusion.”

“Now,” the judge continued, glancing between them, “the charge of resisting arrest is less clear. Thoughts?”

Sai replied before the others could. “It wasn’t arrest. It was an ambush. There was no identification, no protocol—just masked people attacking us out of the blue, in fact we thought it was one of our friends knocking before Corvin was attacked”

Gladius rose, hands calmly folded. “I understand your loyalty. But Mr. Harven feared for his life. And resisting village authority is a serious charge.”

The judge raised a hand to stop him. “Authority must also act with clarity and discipline—especially when it draws steel before a word is spoken.”

For the first time, Gladius’s smile faded.

The judge tapped the desk thoughtfully, then reached for his gavel.

“Based on the evidence presented—”

“Wait!” Gladius interrupted, his voice cutting through the plaza.

He turned slowly to the crowd, a mischievous gleam in his eye.

“There’s one major detail we’ve all conveniently left out speaking of their friend,” he said, pacing to the center of the stage. “These travelers were journeying with a Reaper.”

The crowd stirred. Murmurs erupted.

“A Reaper?” someone gasped.

Gladius smiled wider. “Yes. A scythe-swinging maniac. And not just any Reaper—one clearly imbued with some sort of pain-nullifying magic.”

Gasps followed. The fear was real now.

“I fought him,” Gladius continued, hand over his heart, “and barely escaped with my life.”

“This is absurd!” Mira stormed up onto the stage. “What even is a Reaper? Reith wasn’t one!”

Gladius pointed at her with a shaky finger. “Then how do you explain the scythe? Their signature weapon. They infiltrate groups—earn trust, blend in—and then they destroy armies, kingdoms, towns. They target the strongest first.”

He looked Mira up and down with theatrical disapproval. “Seems like he got to you, didn’t he?”

Mira clenched her fists but said nothing.

Gladius turned back to the crowd, now feeding on the drama.

“I not only saved this village from that creature—but I saved these young fools from themselves.”

Applause scattered. Murmuring rose.

“We are lucky Gladius was here.”

“Maybe they’re all Reapers.”

“Gods help us…”

SLAM.

Sai pounded the table with his palm. “Enough!”

The crowd stilled.

“I’ve only known Reith a few days—but he stayed up an entire night to protect us from wild animals, shared what little food he gathered and helped us. That’s not the work of whatever you are talking of. That’s just a man doing what’s right.”

Gladius chuckled darkly. “Stayed up all night? No sleep? That only proves it. A Reaper, without question.”

More whispers.

“That explains the scythe…”

“They don’t feel pain…”

“Who else travels like that?”

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows across the stage.

“Order,” the judge barked, slamming his gavel again. “That’s enough speculation. But… the allegation cannot be ignored.”

He straightened in his seat, face stern.

“With this added charge—of aiding an enemy of the realm—I am sad to say i have no other choice.”

Corvin tensed.

“You, prisoner number one, are sentenced to immediate execution.”

The silence hit harder than any gavel.