«And you are sure that Laithorian technology is being used by pirates?»
«Yes. I’ve seen it first-hand.»
Hunter saw one of the Royal Guards approaching the Empress and whispering something to her ear. And though her expression hadn’t changed, her eyes squinted. She replied – quietly, and the guard walked off.
«Which of the contraband found on MSS Lyssandra have you retrieved from pirates?» the Empress asked the man.
«The contraband we had in our possession was retrieved from a smuggler.» Wolfin said. «We were investigating a trail of some pirates to find out where the tech was, but we had to return to Velutha, as we were approached by bounty hunters and found out that Serena was wanted under the guise of false accusations against her.»
«Ah… yes, that I saw in the extracted memories Serena had sent us.» the Empress glanced at one of her council members and nodded.
«We shall start the Royal Trial as soon as Serena Dal Thara-Lyss will be brought to court to face her charges.» the man, dressed in strange wide clothing stood. «In the meantime, you are free to stay here.»
Chapter 5. Trial
The wait took some time. Hunter felt his nerves becoming even more strained – he was not only anxious to see Serena, but worried that it was taking so long for her to be brought before the Empress at all. Lindon and Wolfin seemed to be even more tense, though at the start they were the ones telling the Terrans to keep their heads cool.
Hunter felt like something was terribly wrong.
Finally, after what seemed like at least an hour passing, the doors to the hall opened and everyone turned to see a group of people. Hunter flinched, only to be stopped by Lindon, as the people walked in.
However, everyone saw that the prisoner that was brought, wasn’t walking herself. On the contrary, she was being dragged by two men, who carried her by her armpits, while her legs dragged on the floor.
Wolfin frowned, seeing Serena being seemingly unresponsive.
Hunter, seeing the procession, barely recognised Serena. He flinched forward, wishing to approach, forcing Wolfin and Lindon to catch him from running up to the woman, who seemed to be heavily beaten and barely conscious – if at all. All three men watched in horror at the state Serena was in, realising they could do nothing in the circumstances they were in. The only one to do or say anything at that moment was only the Empress herself.
«What is the meaning of this?!» Empress Alathea’s furious tone reverberated through the throne room. «Where are her clothes? And why is she in such a pathetic state?»
The woman watched the prisoner with a dangerous squint in her golden eyes.
«During the very first day she resisted us when we were searching her for any weapons, my liege.» Lazarus Dorn Kalun said, bowing. «I beg your forgiveness.»
«And her hair?»
«It was cut for safety reasons – her own and ours, my liege.»
«Liar…» Serena forced out, fighting through the pain and humiliation.
The Empress tilted her head:
«Prisoner! Are you calling him a liar?»
Serena tried her hardest to lift her head, even though it felt impossible:
«I am… See my memories, my liege.» her voice sounded pained, raspy and very weak. «See how corrupt this man is. And his father… and a few others…»
«You demand memory extraction to prove your words?»
«I do.»
The Empress closed her eyes and leaned towards one of her councillors, listening to his advice. Finally, the royal waved aside:
«Bring the doctor to monitor the procedure.»
«I hereby give my consent to have my memories extracted without the use of any stimulants and painkillers.» Serena breathed out. «I wish for the extraction to have no ways of being undermined by any sort of drugs.»
Lindon noted how Lazarus suddenly lost colour in his face.
«You are aware how dangerous it is in your current state?» the Empress squinted.
«I am.»
«Very well.»
Hunter felt Wolfin’s hand squeezing his shoulder.
«How dangerous is it?» the Terran exhaled, panicking at the sight of his lover being so injured and mistreated.
«She could lose her life.» Lindon replied, gritting his teeth. «But she has a reason for this risk.»
«I’ve never seen anyone being in such a state after prison…» Wolfin mumbled to himself. «What did they do?»
They watched as Royal Guards took the prisoner from the prison guards and carried her to the medical pod that slid out in the far end of this hall – closer to the Empress and her counsellors. A thin, sleek looking man approached the pod and the prisoner, carrying a scanner, checking her state and Hunter noticed how the man frowned deeply, seeing the results. The medic glanced at the Empress and seemed to hesitate to start the procedure for some reason.
And while this was happening, Serena was only trying to stay awake. She was on the brim of losing consciousness, but kept herself awake only because of her stubborn wish to show the Empress and all the counsel what was happening right under their noses.
She hoped she would have enough strength to withstand the memory extraction – she had a whole week of pain and memories of what has been done to her to show them.
«I highly recommend a stim shot to be made.» the medic leaned in, when Serena was put into the pod.
«No.» Serena whispered, her voice failing.
«Then you must know how harsh it will be on your body in such a state.»
«Yes. I do.»
«Is the prisoner ready?» the Empress asked, and something in the tone of her voice felt off.
«Ready, Empress.» the medic sighed, looking into Serena’s eyes.
As he began the procedure, Serena felt her head bursting with pain – at first distant and faint, but then becoming stronger and overwhelming. Her abused body clenched in a spasm, causing her even more pain, and almost throwing her into the darkness of unconsciousness, but she powered through, biting down onto her lip to try and keep herself from collapsing.
To someone else the procedure seemed to have been taking only a few minutes. For Serena it was a struggle that lasted almost as long as her confinement. A few times she felt her consciousness slipping, only to be brought back in a fit of pure hatred for the men who had used her, while she awaited trial.
She tried hard not to let out a scream of pain, knowing well how many eyes were fixated on her at that very moment. But a few stray tears still burst from her eyes, sliding down and leaving her a faint, cold reminder that she needed to live through this.
When the torture finally ended, she felt her muscles relaxing, and her sight slowly becoming darker.
She might have given them the proof she needed to… but she didn’t know what will happen next. The rest was up to the Empress. Losing her consciousness, Serena wished that her sacrifices would serve their purpose and bring criminals to light.
Hunter,