Garrett - The Fifth Consort Led

The Fifth Consort led through a series of corridors purposefully designed to confuse attackers. Confused, Garrett could only blink when they reached their destination. Called the Sanctuary of the Guiding North Star, it looked a lot like the kind of place where a person could get beheaded for making eye contact with the wrong person.

His hair was still wet and his shirt wasn't tucked in all the way.

"I'm not sure I would use the word 'Sanctuary,'" he said.

"Everyone considers the term ironic," agreed Consort Su.

She adjusted his bangs with her fingers and straightened his shirt. They sat. Important people arrived. One of the important people suggested Garrett shouldn't be there. Consort Su nearly beheaded the old man. The Emperor and Empress arrived. Everybody stood, saluted, and waited for the Emperor and Empress to sit. Once that happened, everybody else sat. The only thing Garrett knew was that he wasn't going to say anything.

He almost said something to calm Consort Su down when it looked like she might kill the Emperor, but thought better of it. Matters continued to escalate. There was tension. There was heat.

"If true," said Tianming Duke, "then she's the one you should accuse of rebellion!"

TheThird Prince killed him.

Garrett barely saw the strike. The Third Prince's compensatory broadsword hadn't moved. He was the only son of Second Consort Jin. She was the oldest daughter of Eastern Duke. Eastern Dukes had patronized Dao Peak Abbey for generations. Jian Peak Abbey only trained male gigolos. Dao Peak, in contrast, had an even mix of genders. They were all athletic.

Garrett would have fit right in.

But really. Weren't those swords too long and too wide?

Dao Peak Abbey used those long, wide swords in creative ways. They stabbed with the sharp edge, whipped with the blunt one, slashed with the point, and blocked with the flats. Rather than swing in big arcs, Dao Peak's monks whirled their weapons around like short staves or long rods. 

Long rods….

Jokes aside, Dao Peak Abbey's forms were flowing and beautiful despite the ungainly weapon. And maybe, just maybe, there was a functional purpose to the overly long, overly wide broadswords. They were so long and so wide, onlookers had to keep looking at them. It was a distraction. While Tianming Duke was distracted by Parsifal's long, wide sword, the Third Prince struck with his short, hard fingernails. It wasn't the nails themselves which killed, of course. It was a ripple of force controlled by the metaphor of the nails. That ripple cut right through Tianming Duke's throat.

Brutal.

Ministers wailed and pulled their hair. Officials dropped to the floor and bemoaned the end of civilization. Even the intimidating wight called Alistair Sand appeared concerned. The woman next to him looked shocked – although in an approving way. Consort Jin's face suggested the duke got what he deserved, but maybe not when and where he deserved it. Garrett couldn't see Consort Su's face. Her body language, however, indicated approval. Rangiku and the Empress were unreadable. 

The Emperor jumped around, pointed his finger several times, started and stopped himself from saying something, raised both hands in frustration, and collapsed back onto his bench. It was impossible to tell whether he was too angry to respond, or too shocked – or too tired.

"The Third Prince has executed Tianming Duke for treason," said the Crown Prince.

The Emperor inhaled but couldn't find words.

"Crown Prince!" protested the Prime Minister in the Emperor's place. "There was no treason! There was only innuendo and conjecture!"

"The Third Prince has executed Tianming Duke for treason," repeated the Crown Prince. "Wife?"

"Husband?" asked Crown Princess Esmaralde.

"Take the Mithril Guard and secure Tianming Fortress," said the Crown Prince.

Esmaralde saluted.

"Special Agent Dust?" asked the Crown Prince.

The woman beside Alistair Sand saluted.

"Provide your expertise to the Crown Princess," said the Crown Prince.

"Crown Prince!" protested the Prime Minister again. "There is no legal basis for such actions!"

Esmaralde turned and walked out of the "Sanctuary." Giselle followed her.

"Third Prince," said the Crown Prince. "Detain yourself at Pearl Cloud Palace."

"Isn't that too absurd?" asked the Prime Minister.

"Prime Minister," replied the Crown Prince. "The situation is absurd."

"I will comply," said Parsifal.

"If no evidence is found," said the Crown Prince, "he will admit fault and accept punishment."

"Yes," Parsifal agreed again.

"Under these circumstances," said the Prime Minister, "if evidence is found, who will believe it?"

"My wife is a force of nature," said the Crown Prince. "She solves problems with force, not by manufacturing evidence."

"The Third Prince killed Tianming Duke," said the Prime Minister. "If no evidence of treason is found, the Third Prince must face punishment. But then the question of evidence works in reverse. It's always possible no evidence will be found because Tianming Duke and his minions were careful, after all. If the consorts and Her Majesty take that position, can the Third Prince be punished?"

"No," said Consort Su.

"In that case," said the Prime Minister, "a duke will have been killed and nothing will be done about it. The Emperor's authority will be diminished. Discontent will rise. If, however, evidence of treason is found and Tianming Duke's family is dispossessed, the Emperor will remain strong. Anyone who considers the facts will understand this. Consequently, no one will believe the evidence – even if it is genuine – and discontent will rise. Third Prince! Why couldn't you allow the Crown Princess to investigate first?"

"The Emperor's intention," said Parsifal, "was for the Fourth Prince to kill Tianming Duke."

"Presumptuous!" roared the Emperor. "Enough! Dismissed! Everyone is dismissed!"