Two days later, Kofi escorted Rocki to the court room with Whilin and Johere, an investigator hired by Fasih, trailed behind. They had spent the time in between her almost-murder and the court date talking about the procedures, so when she got in there, she wouldn't be totally blindsided. She didn't feel nearly prepared, but it was better than not knowing anything.

Even though the hearing had been thrown together hastily, the place was packed. Smaller hearings were usually private, but Rocki had been informed that since this was a court case that was so high priority, it was open to the public. The room was huge, with multiple-level balconies wrapped around the upper part of the walls and five desks in the back of the room, separated by a small divider between each desk. The space Rocki and her party had been assigned to was a on a slightly raised platform with its own desk and chairs. A similar space was a few feet away from her, assumedly where Arinda would be placed.

Most of the chatter in the room died away when Rocki came in and limped her way to the stand with Kofi, but it went completely silent when Arinda was brought in. Her hands were chained, wings bound, and she had a large guard escorting her. There were tears in her eyes, and something like concern or fear etched upon her face—not the hatred Rocki had been expecting from the would-be murderess.

When Arinda's eyes landed on Rocki, they swelled with more tears. "Savioress!" she cried, reaching her hands towards Rocki, although the guard quickly swatted them down. "Please, I'm sorry!" She wept as the guard pushed her into a chair, the soft noises echoing through the room until they finally died down.

Rocki clenched her jaw, unsure of how to take Arinda's antics. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, including Kofi's. It was terrifying, being the center of attention like this. Aley would have done fine with it, she often performed before hundreds of people, but Rocki had always been in the audience, never on the stage.

If only Aley were here. I mean, I wouldn't want her to be in the same danger as me, but I just want to hold her hand. I want that courage she has to be able to speak in front of so many people. Rocki wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying not to panic as she remembered that she would have to do most of the talking. Valicara always had the accuser speak rather than have lawyers do the talking. She would have to bring the case before the judges, then Kofi would testify, as well as Whilin and Johere. Then Arinda would have a chance to defend herself and bring in her own witnesses if she wanted.

Kofi leaned in close. "Ignore her," he whispered. "I think she's trying to gain sympathy. It looks like she's going to beg innocence."

Rocki could feel her own gaze intensify as she glowered at the desk. "How is she going to defend herself?" she whispered out of the side of her mouth. "She tried to kill me."

He shook his head. "I don't know. She must have something though. But I don't think it will matter. As the savioress, you have a lot of power. People will listen to you."

But what if I was wrong? What if I was a bad person? Would the valicara still believe me above all others?

The silence somehow intensified as a door in the back slid open and six valicara stepped out, Sovereign Faish in the front. He took a seat in a private box on the side of the proceedings where he would be able to see everything while the other five filed to their desks.

Rocki's heartbeat somehow managed to jump even faster than the terrified rabbit's pace it had already been at, and a shiver racked her shoulders as the judges looked at her, all of them bowing their heads in deference. These people are in such high positions here, yet they're bowing to me. I don't like all of this. "With great power comes great responsibility," right?

"We will begin." The middle judge's voice strong rang through the room as he glanced around at the already silent onlookers. "The accuser, our esteemed savioress Roxanne Gentil, submits that the accused, Arinda'claymee'joriesa'crever, attempted multiple counts of murder against herself. Is the accuser prepared to give testimony?"

Rocki put her hands in her lap, bowing her head. "I am." The words came out softer than intended, but the judge must have heard her.

"Then stand and begin."

Everything in her was shaking as she rose, even though she was scolding herself for it. Calm down, you've done nothing wrong. Just harness your inner Aley. We're close enough that I should be able to pretend to be as brave as her, just for a little while.

She let the silence hum as she gathered herself, then took a deep breath. "Thank you, judges. I will present my accusations in order of occurrence."

She spoke for several minutes, laying out the three times she had almost been murdered and the evidence for the counts pointing to Arinda. Her storytelling wasn't nearly as good in person as it was on paper, even though she had written everything down eloquently. It sounded flat coming from her mouth, but she was more concerned with keeping her voice at a strong enough decibel to hear than anything else.

When she finally finished, she waited for questions the judges might have. Kofi had mentioned that occasionally they would ask questions after witnesses if they felt something hadn't been cleared up. She had been prepared to answer the addition inquiries, but the middle judge only polite bid her to sit again and called Kofi as the next testimony.

They quickly went through Kofi's tales, which mostly backed up Rocki's, then Whilin's expert intelligence on the state of Rocki's body after each incident, then Johere's findings as the investigator. He concluded that the air tanks had been sabotaged, that the guns in her room had come from Arinda's factory, and that she had a small stash of a certain fluid that was known for knocking people out.

The judges didn't show much emotion during the testimonies, only a twitch of a wing or a tightening of the face here and there. Arinda, on the other hand, quietly cried throughout all of it, shaking her head at times, although she didn't raise her voice to object.

"Have all the testimonies from the accuser been heard?" the middle judge asked when Johere sat.

Rocki glanced down her desk at the other valicara, who were already staring back at her. Kofi nudged her with his elbow, nodding at the judges. "Uh, yes, thank you, judges," she said, dipping her head at them.

His eyes shifted to Arinda. "Is the accused prepared to give testimony?"

She bowed her head, sniffing. "Yes."

"Then stand and begin."

The brunette carefully rose, pushing back her seat a little. She took in a shuddering breath, clenching her bound hands. "Honored judges, my fellow valicara," her eyes landed on Rocki, "esteemed savioress, I would never try to hurt anyone, much less the most important person among us. I am ..." She raised her eyes, blinking hard. "I am horrified that anyone would think that I would be capable of such things. I have always been an upright valicaran; I do my part to help with the war and I have never made trouble, nor has anyone in my family. In fact, my family is known for their assistance in the war against the dreadful sariun.

"When I heard the savioress was here among us, I was ecstatic. I've only ever wanted to help her. I made sure she knew she would have a friend in me when she arrived, I helped Kofi get his ship ready to take her to safety, I tried to help her a few days ago when she started losing too much blood. She had begun to panic, so I was trying to settle her. I told her what I was doing, but she must have gotten scared because she fell out of her chair. I didn't want her to hurt herself, so I tried to get her to settle again, which is when Kofi entered. What he really saw was me on my knees trying to calm the savioress so she wouldn't lose more blood."

Rocki's face sunk into a deep scowl as she listened to more and more lies pour from Arinda's mouth. Kofi's hand rested gently on her arm, prompting her to look at him, not bothering to veil the fury on her face.

He leaned in close, lips brushing her ear. "I know. Stay calm. The judges believe you."

She glanced at the five valicara before them, not seeing a change in their stony demeanor. If he says so, I guess.

"The savioress and ending the war are the most important things to me," said Arinda, tears choking her voice. "I beg you to understand that I would never do anything to compromise either of those things." She sobbed a little, dropping her head.

There was a long silence.

Finally, the judge on the far right spoke. "Arinda'claymee'joriesa'crever, are you accusing the savioress of lying?"

Her eyes widened. "No, judges. Never. I just think she perceived my intentions wrongly."

Rocki almost jumped out of her chair to protest, but restrained herself when Kofi squeezed her arm. She was glad she kept silent though because another judge spoke up.

"What do you have to say for the other two attempts on the savioress's life?"

She raised her chin a little. "They are not related to me, judges."

"Why doesn't your story match up with the savioress's?" another asked. "She said you told her that you were going to test a gun on her, then pushed her against a wall."

Arinda touched her chest. "The poor savioress was losing so much blood that she must have been hallucinating. I would never hurt her like that."

The center judge looked at Rocki. "Would the accuser like to counter?"

She glanced at Kofi as she stood, making sure she wasn't doing anything wrong. He smiled slightly and squeezed her arm again before letting her go. "Judges," she said, "I know myself. I don't..." the word fled her for a moment, sparking panic until it came back "hallucinate, and I find it hard to believe that both Kofi and I would perceive her as, uh, dangerous if she wasn't." She took a second to breath. "I know how serious of an accusation this is, a-and I don't make it lightly. I have no doubt that she—uh, that Arinda was truly trying to kill me."

"Do you have any thoughts to a motive, Savioress?" a judge asked.

She glanced at Arinda. "I-I mean, she's a weapons dealer, right? As far as I can tell, her family is a big name in producing weapons for the war. If the war is ended, you know, she's down a lot of money. By k-killing me, the war goes on for who knows how long, which means she'll stay rich for the foresabl—um, foreseeable future." She cursed herself silently for stumbling so much. Public speaking really wasn't her forte.

The judges nodded thoughtfully. "I call to vote," said the center judge. "Are there any objections?" Silence. "Then we will proceed. The accuser and accused may be seated."

Rocki watched the judges carefully as she sat back down. They each pulled out a small paper and bent over it, taking their vote by paper ballot it seemed. Murmurs rippled through the audience seated above them.

A hand threaded through the back of her own, squeezing lightly. "Are you all right?" Kofi whispered, bending his head near hers.

Rocki tilted her chin to angle her face more in his direction. "I think so." Her limbs felt shaky, and her heart was pattering rapidly, but she felt confident that they had enough evidence against Arinda. "Public speaking makes me nervous."

"You did great," he said reassuringly.

"Thanks." Her eyes traced a valicaran that was walking behind the judges to collect their votes. She put them in a box, closed the lid when everyone's papers were inside, then walked over to Faish and leaned down hand the box to him and whisper. He nodded and she stepped back, averting her eyes. He opened the box again, took out each paper individually, and unfolded them, eyes hungrily skimming the words.

When all five were accounted for, he put them back, closing the lid as he stood. "The judges have decided." Hi strides were long and confident as he moved to the center of the room, glancing around at the valicara above him. His gaze landed on Rocki before he spoke again. "They find this case in favor of the accuser." All eyes cut to Arinda as she wailed, putting her head in her hands and wrapping her wings around herself. "Arinda'claymee'joriesa'crever, you are sentenced to death for the attempted murder of the savioress. Your fate awaits you this very evening."

Rocki gasped sharply, although the sound was lost under Arinda's sobbing and begging. Her head snapped around to look at Kofi. "They're going to kill her?" It came out louder than she had intended; Whilin leaned forward to look at her in surprise.

Kofi glanced at Faish, but it didn't appear he had heard. "Yes, of course. She tried to kill you. Attempted murder of a savioress is no small matter."

"I know, but ... death? Couldn't they just put her in prison or something?"

His eyebrows pushed together. "She tried to kill you."

"But she didn't!" Rocki pressed. "I'm still alive, and she should be too." She looked over her shoulder at Arinda as her guard forced her to stand. She turned back to Kofi, eyes wide and worried. "Kofi ..."

"What do you want me to do?" he asked helplessly. "The sovereign already decided her punishment."

Rocki's gaze landed on Faish, but she hesitated. A loud cry from Arinda, however, threw her into action. She jumped out of her chair and practically bolted to Faish. He raised his eyebrows in surprise as she halted in front of him, whispers reigning down from the viewers above.

"Sovereign Faish, please, don't kill Arinda," she begged, hands opened to him helplessly.

His eyes widened. "Respectfully, Roxanne, she tried to kill you—three times in fact. We can't let that stand among our people."

"I know, I know, but can't you just put her in prison or something?"

"I don't think—"

"I don't want her to die," she interrupted. "That has to account for something. Please, Sovereign Faish, don't kill her. What ... what about a plea deal?"

His eyebrows pushed together. "What do you mean?"

"A plea deal. How about if she admits to trying to kill me three times, you hold her in prison instead of killing her?"

"But she has already been decided as guilty. It won't change anything. In fact, it will make her more horrendous and worthy of death."

Rocki ran her hand through her shaggy hair. "Maybe it doesn't make complete sense, but it will make me feel better. I don't ... I don't think I'll be able to sleep if I know she's dead."

He sighed a little. "I have no place to argue with the savioress—the people would riot." He gave her a wry smile. "You're more softhearted than I had expected from a savioress." Her eyes cast down towards the floor. "But," he continued, "maybe that's not a bad thing. Guard! Hold a minute." Arinda's sobs abated slightly as she and her guard stopped before they could exit. "Arinda'claymee'joriesa'crever, the accuser pleads for your life, and I am inclined to bow to her wishes. She asks that you admit to your crimes, and in return you will be granted life, albeit in a cell. Do you accept these terms?"

Arinda hesitated for several long moments. "I do," she finally said.

"Then deliver your admission."

Her guard took a small step back as Arinda gave herself another moment to breath and gain composure. "I admit to attempted to murder the savioress on three occasions. The first being on her trip to Sheere when I sabotaged her air tanks; the second when she returned from Sheere and I constructed guns to shoot her in her room; the third when she was brought to my room after a sariun attack and I made her pass out so I could kill her by asphyxiation." Murmurs attacked the air around them harshly from their audience, punctuated with sharp gasps.

"But why?" asked Rocki, pressing for more answers. She had her would-be killer right here; she might as well know why she did it.

Arinda nodded at her, sighing a little. "It's like you said, savioress, with you here, the war will be ending soon. Then productions will slow in my family's factory. I just did what I thought was best for us." She met Rocki's eyes. There was no guilt or regret in her—Rocki had no doubt the valicaran would still try to kill her if she had the chance.

Rocki shivered a little. "You can take her now." She watched the guard lead Arinda away, heart still beating wildly. The judges left right after her, and as soon as the doors closed behind them, the whispers from their audience erupted into loud conversation.

Kofi jumped up and hurried to Rocki's side. "That was impressive," he said with a grin. "You have heart; both courage and compassion."

"I was not expecting soft-heartedness from a savioress," admitted Faish before also smiling at her. "But perhaps it isn't a bad thing."