Chapter 8

Rose had been in the Great Chamber a thousand times but she still couldn't help but feel nervous as soon as she entered the walls of the hall. She noticed everyone's eyes widening as soon as they got in the hall. She was not surprised at their reaction because the hall was indeed beautiful. The entire thing was made of white marble with encrusted crystals and mashed diamonds in the walls. Big portraits of Elders, leaders and heroes of Eresia hung on the walls narrating their bravery. To say that the hall was huge would be an understatement. All the major decisions of Eresia was made here and Elders were also housed here everyday. There were three rows going all around the hall on top of each other for the Eresians to sit and observe the meeting and decisions. It covered three corners of the hall except for the corner that faced the entrance of the hall. That is where the Elders sat. They sat in a semi circle format facing front. There were three Elders and each had their own table and Throne to reside on. There was only one Throne located slightly above them which belonged to the Regina of Eresia. She didn't usually grace the hall with her presence but when she did then it was understood that the matter was quite serious and she was present in the Chamber today. Rose, Eric, Lilly, Max and Jason made their way to the centre of the hall. Rose took a step infront and sat on her knees and clapped three types saying "I redde mihi respectum". She turned and signaled for the others to follow her and they did the same but they seemed confused . Jason whispered to Rose " So, this is like your guys court or something? " Rose spared a smile and quickly stood up. There was complete silence now, even children present in the Chamber today was dead silent. Rose looked up at the Elders and spoke loudly " Elders, I Ignis Letri stand before you with the Master of Eresia, Eric Osborne." There was a loud gasp from the crowd. Rose could sense restlessness starting to be grow in the crowd. She turned slightly and signaled Eric to come forward which he did but he was still not sure what was happening. He looked at the strange people sitting at the Thrones infront of him and everyone looking at him curiously. Not knowing what to do, he raised his hand and waved at everyone. Rose shook her head slowly suppressing the smile forming on her lips. Suddenly all the three Elders stood up and bowed to Eric. The most senior Elder spoke up " Welcome to Eresia Master. I am sure there are a lot of questions in your mind and all will be surely answered." He paused for a moment looking at the three friends at the back of us. " Please have a seat with your...uhh..friends over there and we shall soon begin". Eric looked over at Rose and she nodded in agreement. He bowed to the Elders and made his way to the empty seats which the Elder pointed at. The three friends followed him sheepishly. Rose didn't follow them because she knew she was not dismissed yet. As soon as all of them were seated a woman's Shrill voice spoke " So... Protector, I see that the secret of our world is very much protected by you". Rose's smile quickly turned into a scowl. She hated this voice and most of all she hated the woman whom this voice belonged to. She turned to look at Dina, one of the Elders looking at her with disdain and anger. " I do not belive that our secret is revealed to anyone other than all that are present in this room, Dina". There was again a collective gasp from the crowd. Nobody dared even dared to answer back to the Elders, let alone take their name. Dina seemed to have became more angry and shouted at Rose " You insolent girl ! How dare you call me by my name! First you bring strangers to Eresia, putting everyone at risk and then you have the audacity to speak back to an Elder! It is certain now that there is too much of your mother in you !" The Chamber grew extremely silent now. Rose was shaking with anger. " Why don't you lift your sword and we will see for sure whether I have my father's blood or my mother's? ". Both Dina and Rose looked at each other with blood in their eyes. Dina stood up shouting at the Chamber guards to seize Rose. " Enough!" Everyone felt silent at once. All eyes turned towards the Regina of Eresia. She looked at Dina and Rose with anger. " May I remind you that this is My Chamber and not your houses." She turned towards Rose, " I am disappointed in you Ignis. You are the youngest protector of Eresia, You are a role model for other girls and boys for that matter and here you are teaching them to disrespect an Elder." Rose bowed her head and listened silently not daring to raise her head as it would be considered disrespect to Regina. " You have made a mistake and you have to accept it. As the protector it was your duty to ensure that no one other than permitted individuals entered Eresia but you brought not one but three outsiders to our Land. I do not know or want to know the reason. You very well know that this crime alone is punishable by death or banishment and on top of that you have the audacity to challenge an Elder for duel in My Chamber!" Regina paused for few seconds, took deep breath and spoke again but this time her voice did not contain any anger but it was filled with authority. " While I understand the need for you to bring Earthlings to Eresia, I cannot simply dismiss it as it is a crime conducted against Eresia. You did what you had to in order to bring Master Eric to Eresia and for that Eresia is thankful and because of that only you will be saved from banishment. But you will need to bring me three Plutomas by tomorrow afternoon." Rose was shocked but she kept looking down. She knew that there would be punishment but she didn't even imagine that it would be this harsh. Everyone present in the Chamber were equally shocked, some even whispered among themselves about the harshness of their queen but no one dared to raise their voice. Eric and his friends were confused and felt a bit guilty. They didn't know that this was such a serious issue. Dina smirked at Rose. " You may stand at ease Ignis." Rose raised her head accepted her punishment without showing any feelings. The Regina than turned toward Dina " And you, Dina, you as an Elder should know better than to throw tantrums and give sarcastic remarks to our soldiers." Dina was shocked. " I know of your history with the Letra family and do not take me to be a fool Dina. Throwing insults at people and that too by using their family members as examples is beneath your status as an Elder. I am appalled by this behavior. Also do not forget that the person you spoke so harshly to is the Protector of Eresia and daughter of your senior. I hope this doesn't happen again. You Dina, will be excused from my Chamber for 5 moonless nights as a punishment for your actions. " Dina was in great shock. She felt as if someone had poured cold water over her. She was furious at Rose but more than that she was angry at herself for losing control like this. She quietly obliged with the orders of Regina and sat still with her eyes down for the remainder session.