Volume Eight Wales Tinyplot Special Web-Only Edition
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SPECIAL EDITION: WALES TINYPLOT August 14, 2001
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Our Reporter's Account
Boreas's Account
Confessio-Part II
The Sandman's Statement
Part 2 of 2: Mayhem in Wales
The courtroom was packed, with all manner of spectators and witnesses.
Patrick was on hand, praying for the souls of the pagans who he encountered
among those gathered. Don Giovoni lurked in the doorway, joined by dame Lira,
and S'ou'le sat attentive, his interest drawn by the predicted execution. Two
doctors, Witte and Fairfax, attended on the accused. Ganymede, chief among
the Guardians of Justice, was in attendance to preside over the assembly.
The trial began with some amount of disorder. The sheriff was only too happy
to play the role of prosecutor. However, the city of Lincolnshire apparently
makes no allowances for a public defender of any sort, and therefore there
was no one to speak on behalf of the accused. The lady Boreas graciously
agreed, and gave her best effort.
The sheriff stated the charges:
'Angharad Clwyd stands before you accused of treachery against the people of
Lincoln, and against fair England. And the doctor Witte is accused of aiding
and abetting his attempted escape from jail.'
Then he called his first witness -- Angharad Clwyd himself -- and despite the
protests of his doctors, Clwyd took the stand. The sheriff said to Angharad
Clwyd, 'Please identify yourself for the court, with your name and place of
origin.' Lira mumbled something at this, the only word this reporter could
pick up was 'cat.'
'Angharad Clwyd, Sir Gaermyddrin,' Angharad Clwyd said, his face drawn with
pain. 'That makes you a citizen of Wales, does it not?' said the sheriff, and
Clwyd agreed. The sheriff added, 'The court will note that England and Wales
are in a state of war at present.' 'So noted,' Justice Ganymede
gaze said, his a voice smooth and courtly.
'Yesterday you explained your reasoning for being in Lincoln,' the Sheriff
said to Angharad Clwyd. 'Will you state on the record, why you came from your
place of origin to Lincoln?' 'To see if troops were being raised here,'
Angharad Clwyd said. 'But I did nothing to harm anyone!'
The Lincolnshire Sheriff addressed the courtroom. 'To see if troops were
being raised here." he says. So pitiful-sounding. He was seeking information
to use against us in our war! Is this not clearly espionage on its face?
Has he not confessed?.'
'You have invaded OUR country!' Angharad Clwyd argued, with great effort.
'Our war is not on trial here, sir,' said the Sheriff. 'You are. This case is
so simple, I am sorry it has troubled London to send us a guardian. The
prosecution rests.'
Justice Ganymede says in a courtly fashion, 'Defense, please
state your rebuttal now.' 'I will do the best I can,' the tempestuous
sorceress Boreas said, glancing around nervously, to Angharad Clwyd. She
stood, and paced back and forth, trying to think. Angharad Clwyd gulped
nervously.
As she paced, a peasant-turned-executioner pulled out a whetstone and began
to sharpen his axe. *scrape* *scrape*
'Please explain why you were sent to Lincoln for the court to understand,'
Boreas said, stuttering, to Angharad Clwyd. 'To see if troops were being
raised,' Angharad Clwyd said painfully. 'The English seek to exterminate the
Welsh. If we do not know when troops are being raised, they will succeed.'
'What has been going on in your country of late?' Boreas asked. Angharad
Clwyd said painfully, 'Ah, he ennglish have conquered most of the south, but
the north has always been free. But now, they seek to extend their
sovereignty over all Wales. When they move in, the Welsh lose the land, not
the english...I once had a farm... but they took it.'
Boreas asked, 'Do you have a wife, children?' 'Objection, your honor,' the
sheriff said. 'Must we be schooled in history before this scum is purged from
the land? This testimony is irrelevant!' Boreas glared at him. 'He has a
right to be heard!' 'The reasons for this man's presence in England were
relevant to your own case, he is merely expanding,' Judge Ganymede responded.
'Your objection is overruled.'
Angharad Clwyd said painfully, 'What do you think?' 'Were they killed by the
English?' Boreas continued. Angharad Clwyd nodded solemnly. 'They tried to
resist the taking of the farmhouse, it was burned to the ground.'
Boreas went on. 'Did this happen to many other Welsh at the hands of the
English?' 'Mostly the men,' Angharad Clwyd said. 'The green land bleeds red.'
'Now lets talk about the past few days, when you have been in England,'
Boreas said. 'Did you burn down any houses?' Angharad Clwyd said, 'No.'
Boreas continued, 'Did you kill any women or children?' 'Please, can I have a
few minutes,' Angharad Clwyd said, appealing to the judge. 'I need to
regather my strength.'
The peasant-turned-executioner continued to sharpen his axe. *scrape*
*scrape* The sound was rather...grating.
The sheriff rolled his eyes, as Boreas laid a comforting hand on her client's
shoulder. Justice Ganymede nodded his agreement with Angharad Clwyd. 'I am
sorry,' she said. 'I know this testimony is hard on you.'
'I hurt no one,' Angharad Clwyd said. Justice Ganymede responded evenly,
'That is for the court to decide.' 'I killed no women and chldren, nor men,
then,' Angharad Clwyd said.
'Did you poison the water supply?' asked Boreas. 'Not intentionally,'
Angharad Clwyd said. Boreas asked, 'Salt the fields?' 'No,' Angharad Clwyd
said. 'Can we just presume I did nothing but look?' 'Did you cause harm to
any person during your stay here?' Boreas asked. 'I did not,' Angharad Clwyd
said.
'What was done to you while here?' Boreas asked. Angharad Clwyd said, 'Shot
by arrows, darts, and the like, poisoned, thrown down the well...' Boreas
asked, 'So you came here, without intention of harm, and were nearly murdered
for it?'
Boreas turned to Justice Ganymede, 'I am through questioning this witness,
for now.' He nodded solemnly, and asked, 'Is there any more testimony to be
presented here today?' 'Yes,' said Boreas, helping Angharad down from the
witness stand. 'The defense calls Thomas the Innkeeper to the stand,' she
continued.
The sheriff rolled his eyes. 'I will bring him to the court, though I hardly
see how he relates to this proceeding.' He returned soon, with a rough-looking
and burly man at his side.
Justice Ganymede says in a courtly fashion, 'The witness must take the
witness stand.' Thomas the innkeeper growled, but complied.
'Please state your name and occupation for the court,' Boreas said.
Thomas the innkeeper growled, 'I'm Thomas, and I'm an innkeeper. That's why
they call me Thomas, the innkeeper.'
'Surname?' Angharad Clwyd said painfully. 'I aint no sir.' Thomas the
innkeeper growled, 'So I don't have no fancy sir name.'
Boreas said, to Thomas the innkeeper, 'Do you recall who this man is?' She
pointed to Clwyd. Thomas the innkeeper said, 'He's the no good dirty
welshman who bled on my floor yesterday eve, when you and yourn drug him in.'
He snarled. 'And why was he bleeding?' Boreas asked. Thomas the innkeeper
said, 'Somebody gave him what what he had coming.'
Boreas nodded, and asked, 'Is it not true that you attempted to murder this
innocent man?' Thomas the innkeeper spat out, 'If you'd seen the way he was
looking at my sweet Lucy, you'd've done the same!'
Boreas kept her compusure, and asked, 'Do you hate him because he is Welsh?'
'Your honor, I again question the relevance of this testimony!' the sheriff
said. 'The man on trial is this Clwyd, not our citizen Thomas!' 'I am
attempting to establish the unjust persecution going on here,' Boreas said,
standing her ground despite the Sheriff's threatening mannerisms. Justice
Ganymede ruled, 'I shall allow it, but I warn ye, counsel, stay to the matter
at hand.'
Thomas said, 'The welsh are nothing but dirt in the eyes of the crown, why
should I see him differently?' Boreas continued, 'Did you witness the
defendant causing any harm, or doing anything illegal?' Thomas the innkeeper
said, 'We don't like outsiders around here. They drink our water, our people
thirst and our crops die. Any outsider is a trespasser among us.'
'The Welsh control the weather now?' Boreas said. And Thomas could only scowl.
Boreas said, 'I'm through with this witness.'
Thomas the innkeeper shouted out, his voice half-desperate as he climbed down
from the stand, 'The well, witch! The well is the very best we can do for
ourselves, and still we must fight off those who would take e'en that.'
Justice Ganymede replied, 'The preservation of your well does not seem well
served by casting a man into it.' Thomas the innkeeper scowled darkly in
Justice Ganymede's direction.
A fight broke out between an Irishman and a young baron over some unheard
matter, and the Guardian called for order. The sheriff began to grumble.
'Durned foreigners, always tussling in the streets. I oughter take ye to
gaol!'
'One more such disturbance and I will clear this courtroom!' the Justice said
firmly. 'Now then, next witness?' Boreas said, 'I call the Sandman as my next
witness.' At this, Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago blinked with surprise.
'Take the witness stand, please,' Justice Ganymede says, in a voice smooth
and courtly, to Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago. Boreas began to pace back
and forth. Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago straightened his suit and walked
smoothly to the stand.
'Objection, your honor!' said the Sheriff. 'The Don was scarcely present for
any of the events yesterday!' 'As a guildmaster, I think he is competent to
speak on behalf of his clan,' Boreas said. The sheriff rolled his eyes.
'But he was present, and the defense may call whomever she sees relevant,' a
Justice Ganymede intense gaze says fluently. 'However, if she does not
quickly *establish* relevance I will call her defense to an end.' He looked
meaningfully at Boreas.
Boreas said, 'Mr. Santiago, please state your name and occupation for the
court.' 'I happen to run a shylock business,' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago
said, with an undertone.
'A shylock business?' Boreas said. 'Could you explain exactly what that
entails.' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago said subtly, 'The shylock business
is rather simple. I lend out money to those in need and they pay me back with
interest at a later time.'
Boreas nodded, and said, 'And if they do not pay?' Giovoni "The Sandman"
Santiago said, with a subtle wink, to the tempestuous sorceress, 'They always
pay.' Boreas pursued the matter. 'Is it not true that your clan is known to
kill people who do not pay?'
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago smiled a little as he responded. 'Killing
people is such a bad way of putting it. Never once have we needed to "kill"
someone to repay a debt.' 'Does your clan in fact, kill people (or however
you choose to put it) for money?' Boreas persisted. 'I have never ordered a
hit on someone who had owed us a debt, they always seem to pay,' Giovoni "The
Sandman" Santiago said, with a subtle wink, to a tempestuous sorceress.
'Let's move this along, counsel,' Justice Ganymede said in a courtly fashion
to Boreas. 'Relevance.' Angharad Clwyd protested, pointing at Lira, 'She
tried to kill me, and Pinion, and most of the others.' Lira leveled a seering
gaze at him, and then went back to cleaning her nails.
'For what other reasons have you 'ordered a hit on someone', Boreas
continued. 'Specifically, why was a hit ordered on Angharad Clwyd?' 'To my
knowledge there wasn' one,' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago said. 'How does a
trial of a spy turn into a discussion of organized crime?' the sheriff
groaned. 'I don' see how my daily life affects any of thise,' Giovoni "The
Sandman" Santiago said.
Justice Ganymede says, in a voice smooth and courtly, to a tempestuous
sorceress, 'Counsel, my patience is running thin.' 'Are you aware of the
penalty for purgery?' Boreas said. 'Yuppers,' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago
said nonchalantly. Boreas peered at him. 'All right,' she said. 'I am
finished with this witness.'
Boreas says, voice hopeful, 'And I call Lira to the stand.' Lira slowly
raised herself and walked forward. 'Please state your name and occupation
for the court,' Boreas said. 'Lira and I wander,' Lira replied, almost in a
whisper.
'Where were you yesterday afternoon, at the time the defendant was being
assaulted?' Boreas asked. 'Actually, I was running alot yesterday, which
time?' said Lira. 'I heard he was hit more then once.' Boreas clarified. 'At
the time he was shot.'
Angharad Clwyd said, 'At the time you shot me.' Lira responded, her voice
almost a whisper. 'I was gathering food for my continuing journey.'
'May I take over a moment,' Angharad Clwyd said to his cousel, who agreed.
The Sheriff, inevitably, had an objection. 'Your honor, I object! 'Aggreived
as this man may be, none of this makes him innocent of espionage!'
'Sustained,' Justice Ganymede said. Angharad Clwyd dismissed Lira from the
stand, and called Boreas.
Angharad Clwyd asked Boreas, 'You saw me be shot, correct?' She nodded. 'Who
did it?' Angharad Clwyd continued. Boreas replied, 'I saw that woman taking
a deadeye aim at you.' She pointed. 'It was Lira,' Boreas says stubbornly.
Angharad Clwyd said to Justice Ganymede, 'That is all I needed from her.'
'I was aiming at a rabbit!' Lira protested. 'Clear your eyes woman.' 'I know
what I saw,' Boreas argued. 'You were aiming at Angharad!'
Angharad Clwyd turned to the judge, 'I need to get facts straight before the
witness can be used effectively.' Justice Ganymede replied to Angharad Clwyd,
'Then do it quickly, and do not turn the court into a circus.'
'Oh?' Lira laid into Boreas with a sneer. 'I was hmmm? You saw through my
eyes to know what I was looking at?' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago coughed
loudly at this.
'After that, I was chased around by three members of the syndicate,' Boreas
continued. 'Lira, Zamb, and Bella.'
'I have successfully proven she shot me, in ten seconds,' Angharad Clwyd told
the Justice. 'How quick did you desire?'
Lira disagreed. 'I did not shoot you.'
'They threatened my life if I told anyone,' Boreas said fearlessly. 'But I'm
telling now.' Angharad Clwyd said to Justice Ganymede, 'And that they
intimidaed the person who saw it.' To this, Justice Ganymede replied, 'Please
continue with the witness.'
'You admitted you were aiming at a rabbit,' Angharad Clwyd said to Lira. 'You
may then claim it was an accident, but not that you did not shoot me.'
'Look at me,' Angharad Clwyd addressed the Justice. 'I have been nearly
killed five times since I was here. Haevn't I suffered enoguh?' He paused.
'Unless my council knows any other defence, we are ready to sum up.'
Justice Ganymede nodded solemnly. 'Proceed then, followed by the
prosecution's summation.'
'I have only souht to protect my countrymen, by giving us warning to hide,'
Angharad Clwyd said, pain clouding his eyes. 'I have not harmed the English,
despite all they did to me. And I have come so close to death that taking me
farther would be cruel. Have I not suffered enough at the hands of the
English? My wife.. my children...' Here, he burst into tears. Boreas laid a
hand on his shoulder, then continued for him. 'Your honor, we seek only
justice,' Boreas she said. 'Angharad Clwyd is an innocent man.'
'Proceed,' Justice Ganymede turned to the Lincolnshire Sheriff, who put on
his smoothest grin.
'Your honor, this began as a simple enough case,' the sheriff said. 'A man
has confessed to his guilt of the charge of espionage. Here on this very
stand, he speaks of his guilt and yet proclaims innocence. This cannot be.'
'Objection,' Angharad Clwyd said. Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago chortled
with amusement. 'There are no objections in summation,' Justice Ganymede
said, his voice still smooth and courtly despite the chaos of the day. Clwyd
continued despite that. 'Espionage is defined to involve acts that harm the
others. I harmed noone.' Justice Ganymede turned a stern eye on Clwyd. 'Ye
had the chance to make your case, please sit.'
'The defense has paraded an assortment of strange characters before the
court, as if it were a stage,' the sheriff said. 'A play, a sham, a place of
gobbledy gook and disorder. And even now, they mock the order of this court.'
Here, the sheriff paused to glare at Clwyd.
'He is changing his case!' Angharad Clwyd protested. Justice Ganymede looked
particularly stern. 'Must I hold ye in contempt to get ye under control?'
'The crown declares our laws, and the crown declares our enemies,' the
sheriff said. 'And this man is enemy to the crown, and he came into this
town to seek information against the crown. Truly he is loyal to his own
people, but they are an enemy people, and this is war. And in war,
loyalty to the enemy does not turn enemy into friend.'
Angharad Clwyd whispered to Boreas, loud enough for this reporter to hear.
'He hasn't proven any of this!' Boreas nodded her agreement.
The sheriff continued despite the interruption. 'His crime is obvious, and
punishable only be execution.'
Angharad Clwyd objected again, 'Your honour, may I have the chance to rebut
his summation?' The Sheriff kept on. 'His treatment at our hands is not
relevant to any judgement of his guilt, and does not mitigate his crime.'
'We can only hope that Sir Ganymede sees the truth in this,' Boreas said to
Angharad Clwyd. 'Thank you for your attention,' the Sheriff finished, and
took his seat.
Justice was swift. Ganymede said, 'Very well, I shall render my decision
now.' The peasant-turned-executioner, expectant, gave a quick polish to a
double-bladed axe. It shone brightly in the shafts of light which streamed in
from the courtroom windows. Angharad Clwyd sighed loudly, and Boreas crossed
her fingers for luck.
'Espionage is indeed a crime in the eyes of the English crown,' a bladesman
with an intense gaze says, in a voice smooth and courtly. Clwyd began to
cry. 'Take me back to Wales when I'm gone... I cannot rest here....'
'In such cases, the guilty is given the right under law to a quick
execution,' Justice Ganymede said. The peasant-turned-executioner carefully
stepped around behind Angharad Clwyd, who burst into tears anew.
Justice Ganymede paused. 'However.' Boreas gulped nervously, her stomach
doing flip-flops.
'This man was not given that quick execution to which he is entitled,'
Justice Ganymede said. 'He was beaten and tortured before the court was
allowed to render a decision. Angharad Clwyd shall not be executed. He shall
be banished from England for life. Never is he to return to this island, and
if ever caught here again, his execution shall be swift.'
The peasant-turned-executioner snarled angrily at these words, and the
Sheriff began to protest. 'You have been blessed by a miracle!' Patrick said,
his voice burning with fanaticism, to Angharad Clwyd. 'Show your thanks and
become a follower of the Christian God! He has saved you so that you might
join him in the Kingdom of Heaven!'
'You will live!' Boreas cried. Justice Ganymede said, 'His pains up to date
shall be accounted as payment for the crime of espionage.'
'You honor,' Boreas said. 'I petition that in the light of Clwyd's unfair
treatment, the charges against Witte also be dropped.' Justice Ganymede says
in a courtly fashion to a tempestuous sorceress, 'Petition denied.'
A sly look came over the dismayed sheriff's face, replacing the anger which
had colored it. 'Your honor, does this mean that the Syndicate and Thomas are
blameless before the court?'
'And I suggest that in the future, those accused of the crime shall be
brought before the court BEFORE their torture,' Justice Ganymede said. 'My
injuries are great,' Angharad Clwyd said, petitioning for more time. 'Ye
have one day,' Justice Ganymede said.
'But your honor, Witte was only trying to get Clwyd to a safe place when he
was grievously injured,' Boreas said stubbornly. 'Has anyone evidence to
present in the accusations against Witte?' Ganymede asked.
The sheriff whispered to Lira, 'Not often that you can be the arm of the law,
is it?' Lira replied, 'I don't know, that seems more a question you could
answer, since you so rarely do your job.'
The sheriff scowled at her, and stood. 'If I may testify to the court, as
witness to his actions?' he said. 'I didd goodsh weeeel!' a smiling young
doctor said cheerfully. 'Joostiice!' 'That is for the court to decide,'
Justice Ganymede said.
Justice Ganymede nodded to the sheriff. 'Very well.'
'I placed him in custody because I found him leading the accused spy out of
the gaol where I had put him,' the Sheriff said. 'Therefore I present Witte
himself as evidence in this case, and ask that he take the stand.' Witte
complied.
'Tell us, doctor,' the sheriff said. 'What were you doing, leading the
prisoner from his cell?' The smiling young doctor replied, 'Clywwd was in
paine!' This reporter believes that the doctor may have some sort of speech
impediment. 'Cell cooold!' he said. 'Oon goodsh weeel!'
The sheriff continued. 'Who gave you the right to remove him from the cell
where justice had placed him?'
'Joostice ?' Witte said. 'Tweh place hoort man in cooold cell ? nee! GOODSH
WEEEL! I tell ye! AYE!'
'We have already established that he was guilty, and guilty people belong in
gaol,' the sheriff said to the smiling young doctor. 'Safer in gaol than
among the people of Lincoln, surely.' 'Cell cooold!' Witte said. 'Man hoort!'
The sheriff continued. 'Did you petition to have him relocated to another
location?' Witte responded, 'He hoort njeeded heelp!'
'So you've said,' the sheriff said. 'But you chose to break into his cell
rather than following the law!' Witte disagreed. 'Law ? nee law. Ye doo whaa
njeeded.'
The sheriff rolled his eyes. It was clear that the witness was getting on his
nerves. 'Eh!' shouted Witte. 'Oon he dyiing. Reeght?' Witte turned to Clwyd.
'Ye hoort mooch!' Then he turned to the sheriff. 'Eh! I nee let him die!'
'Your honor, this man's guilt is plain,' the sheriff said. 'I have no more
questions, I cannot stand to hear his prattling any longer.' And the
prosecution rested.
Boreas began. 'You are a medical doctor, right?' The smiling young doctor
nodded his agreement with Boreas. 'The weelsh hoort!' Witte said.
Boreas continued. 'How long have you been practicing?'
'All lifee!' Witte said. 'Soom yeers.' 'And do you consider yourself an
expert in that field?' Boreas asked.
'Was in greeatwar heelped all.' the smiling young doctor said. 'All experrt.
All coore wondee!' The Lincolnshire Sheriff held his hands to his head,
looking pained. Boreas continued, 'And in your expert medical opinion, what
would have happend to Clwyd if he had stayed the night in the jail?' 'He
cloose tweh dye!' Witte said. 'See goodsh all tiim nee necee.'
'He would have died,' Boreas said. Witte continued. 'Oor all tiim hoort. Leke
nee walkiing agaiine.'
I have a few more questions for Angharad Clwyd,' Boreas said. 'May I please,
please be questioned from here?' Angharad Clwyd said, his face drawn with
pain. 'Eh!' Witte said, stepping down from the witness stand. 'Clwyyd hoort
let heeme!'
'Please describe the cell where you were put,' Boreas said. Clwyd shuddered.
'Straw everywhere... and rats and fleas... I couldn't push the rats away, and
they gnawed on me...The jailors....' he shuddered.
Boreas asked, 'Were the jailors cruel to you?' And Angharad Clwyd nodded
solemnly. Justice Ganymede broke in. 'The jail conditions are not on trial
here. Have ye any actual evidence to present?' Boreas protested, 'Your
'onor, this is relevant.'
Boreas continued. 'Were you given food and water?'
'Some worm-filled moldy bread,' Clwyd said. 'No water.'
'He was hardly in there long enough to say for sure,' said the sheriff,
rolling his eyes. Boreas went on. 'And you were grievously injured?' Clwyd
nodded.
'Ye boot he hoort!' Witte said to the sheriff. 'Reely hoort I teel ye!' The
sheriff snarled. 'I'll show you the boot.'
Boreas continued. 'Is it your opinion, that in rescuing you from the gaol,
Witte saved your life?'
'Probably,' Angharad Clwyd said. Boreas turned to Justice Ganymede. 'It is
clear that Witte acted out of compassion, and in doing so saved Clwyd's
life.'
'Have ye any more evidence to present?' Justice Ganymede asked. She had
none. 'Summations?' Justice Ganymede said. The prosecution spoke first.
'Your honor, this is a simpler case than the last,' the sheriff said.
'Whatever motivated his crime, it was still a crime. Compassion does not
relieve him of guilt. He aided the escape of a prisoner, and must be punished
for it. Thank you.'
Witte stepped in with his own summation. 'I woold leke tweh saay tha goodsh
weeel was tweh saave the weelsh. Nee the weelsh hoort englesh soo wheh weelsh
see goodsh.'
'I believe Mr Santiago has a bit to say in the summation,' Boreas said.
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago grinned, and stood up. The Sandman
straightened his suit and cleared his throat. He began to pace back and
forth. 'Highly irregular,' the Sheriff grumbled. 'Make it short,' Justice
Ganymede said, with a sigh.
'This is a quite simple case,' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago said, with a
subtle wink. 'The doctor here is not all right in the head to begin with, if
I may note his teddy bear he has a death grip on and him noting he was an
expert doctor.'
'Luuck!' Witte said exuberantly, patting a teddy bear in a sailor suit
affectionately.
Boreas was a little shocked at this turn of events, and peered at Giovoni
"The Sandman" Santiago. 'Ye all knewe wheh scaared thoonder thi! Njeeded
teeddy,' Witte said. He hugged the bear.
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago continued, 'It would seem that the doctor is
not fit to think before his actions and his first thought in his crazy mind
was to aid someone.' Witte looked confused. 'Wheh ? Goodsh weel I tell ye!
Goodsh weeel! AYE!!'
'So I conclude that the doctor should be let off on a case of insanity,'
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago said. Justice Ganymede asked, 'Is that all?'
And Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago nodded.
'No evidence presented to prove insanity,' the sheriff muttered. Giovoni
"The Sandman" Santiago responded, 'His bear is evidence enough for me to
know.' And he shrugged.
'Please tell me there are no other summations,' Justice Ganymede said.
'Um, the defense rests,' Boreas said, looking nervous.
Justice Ganymede said, 'Very well then, I shall render my decision now. Witte
was acting with compassion for Clwyd, tis true. However, that does not excuse
him from his actions, and unlike Angharad Clwyd, his punishment was not
enacted before trial.'
Justice Ganymede continued. 'Therefore, Witte is ordered to spend six months
in prison, and his teddy bear will be confiscated to cover his tax debts to
the crown.'
'WHAT!' Angharad Clwyd cried.
'Nee!' Witte cried. 'I TELL YE NEE!! LUUUCK!' Patrick tried to comfort the
grief-stricken young doctor. The peasant-turned-executioner polished his axe
with a mournful look in his eye. There would be no execution today. The
defense continued to protest. 'You can't do this,' Boreas said. 'It is too
cruel!'
'I teddy luuuck I njeeed teeddy!' Witte said. 'I tweh scaared wit ooot eh!'
'Will the crown accept payment aside from his teddy?' Justice Ganymede
relented. The sheriff shrugged. 'I don't want his rotting teddy,' he said.
'Let him tend to the people of Lincoln for free, forever. And their
livestock!'
Boreas gasped, and the Justice pondered the offer. 'That will repay us for
the trouble he has caused,' the sheriff said.
'In that case, I will suspend his prison sentence,' Justice Ganymede said.
'The convicted is hereby ordered to tend to the livestock and people of
Lincoln, until his debt is repaid.'
'He hasn't caused trouble,' Boreas said, going into hysterics. 'All he did
was save a man's life!' Angharad Clwyd tried to comfort the young doctor.
'The non-sheriff non-Thomas people seem friendly.'
But one of these so called 'friendly' people had had enough. The
peasant-turned-executioner let out a terrible cry, and ran straight at Clwyd,
brandishing his axe! Clwyd struggled briefly, but soon crumpled to the dirt.
Witte stepped in too late, managing only to kill the peasant in the process.
'Njeeded newe sooool!' Witte explained. Boreas burst into tears.
'This is an outrage!' Justice Ganymede stormed. 'Is this your doing??' he
demanded of the sheriff. 'It is all his doing,' Boreas snarled
hysterically.
Lira said, 'Justice in this town I guess, if they cant do it legally, they do
their will illegally.'
The sheriff shook his head. 'He's just a citizen who hates the Welsh, same as
me.' Lira turned to the sheriff. 'You are not inocent in anything.'
'But I didn't put him up to this,' he protested. 'You could ask him yourself,
if you hadn't killed him.'
As Patrick knelt before Clwyd's body and said a quiet prayer, Lira said,
'Your honor, if it please the court.'
'This is an abomination,' Justice Ganymede says in a courtly fashion. 'The
town of Lincolnshire shall pay for its poor execution of justice by losing
its judgment against Witte. So ordered!'
'Sai, ye are free to go,' Justice Ganymede said to Witte. The Justice glared
icily at the sheriff. Then he turned to Lira. 'What have ye to add?' Lira
sounded dismissive. 'You've already passed judgement, case settled.'
Justice Ganymede said, 'my apologies, but I asked if there was any other
evidence or summation to be made.' Lira countered, 'My apologies, but I was
not available at the moment.' Just then...the strangest thing happened. The
body of the welshman, on the floor of the court...moved?
Boreas did not notice at first. 'The Sheriff will go free if you do not
speak,' she said to Lira, with a great show of tears and hysterics. And then
with great joy, she cried, ''e's not dead!' And Patrick declared, 'It's a
miracle!'
A slight flutter of breath bubbling with blood escaped the lips of Clwyd.
Justice Ganymede shook his head. 'Egad, this is madness.'
'Doc, I think you're needed,' Lira said. Justice Ganymede turned to Witte.
'Don't just stand there, attend to that man!' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago
sat back with a sly grin playing across his face.
Lira spoke to the Justice. 'Might we speak, while they tend to the corpse?'
Lira began to whisper quietly. 'The Sheriff has been trying to raise
problems, he came to me and asked me to aid him in his quest against the
Welshman, but we could not.'
'Go on...' Justice Ganymede said.
'Yous will pay one way or another good sheriff,' Giovoni "The Sandman"
Santiago whispered to the now-accused sheriff. The sheriff only chuckled.
'Doubtful, I have done nothing,' he said.
'You are a disgrace to the community, that's what you are!' declared
UggaBagugga.
Lira continued to whisper. 'He asked for our assistance, but we could not aid
him. then yesterday before the man was taken to jail, for lack of better
word, both he and Thomas admited to hatred for the man and his kind, saying
the likes of none of his kind should suffer life.'
Clwyd gave a slight moan, as all within earshot of Lira's whispered testimony
took a particularly harsh look at the sheriff. He spoke up 'Whatever she is
accusing me of, I am innocent,' the sheriff said. 'She herself shot this man,
I did nothing to him.'
Ganymede was direct. 'Did ye hire the Syndicate for the purposes of punishing
the Welshman?'
The sheriff shook his head. 'Never.' Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago coughed
loudly at this.
Boreas withdrew into herself and chanted a spell. A soft wind blew over
Clwyd, restoring his breath.
'Have ye any evidence?' Justice Ganymede asked. The sheriff spoke up again.
'I believe that it was Thomas, the innkeeper, who hired the Syndicate.'
'That was following his flirting with Thomas's daughter,' he continued.
'As your honor may know I was out of town most of that day,' Giovoni "The
Sandman" Santiago said, with a subtle wink. 'When I came back in to
find everyone talking with the sheriff and thomas I was told the sheriff was
wanting to hire us.'
'Never!' said the sheriff.
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago continued. 'But ofcourse my clanmates did not
accept this because I was not around for the approval.'
The sheriff argued further, 'It was all I could do to keep him away from your
Syndicate, trying to attack him.'
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago said, 'I have a contract here that was
not signed by my clanmates that states the Sheriff put out a hit.'
'Hrm, let's see,' Justice Ganymede says fluently.
'I can't... can't move,' Angharad Clwyd moaned painfully. Witte nodded. 'Ye
goot ye leegs oon arrms breeken agaaine.'
As the doctor and Boreas tended to his wounds, Angharad Clwyd asked with
great effort, 'Hwhat's happening?'
Ganymede began to ask after the contract, when the sheriff volunteered. 'I
believe I found that contract when I brought Thomas in here earlier,' he said.
He handed a contract for the death of Clwyd, signed 'Thomas' in a scrawl, to
Lira. The sheriff continued, 'You'll see that it doesn't involve me at all.'
Lira handed the contract to Ganymede for his examination.
'Is that Thomas's handwriting?' Angharad Clwyd asked.
'You didnt bring this into evidence earlier?' Lira questioned to the sheriff.
'I found it when bringing him in,' he replied.
Justice Ganymede compared the contract to some pre-trial papers filed by the
Sheriff, and gasped in astonishment. Justice Ganymede said, 'They are the
same writing!' He raised the contract for the death of Clwyd, signed 'Thomas'
in a scrawl high in the air above his head.
'Ha!' Boreas cried.
Justice Ganymede turned on the sheriff with a threatening and angry gleam in
his eye. 'Ye wrote this!' The sheriff scowled. 'Your deception has gone on
long enough!' Justice Ganymede said. 'Bailiff! Take the Sheriff into
custody!'
The sheriff cried out, 'I admit nothing!' as armed guards appeared in the
doorway. Justice Ganymede says in a courtly fashion to him, 'Ye'll be
imprisoned until such time as your trial proves ye guilty and ye are
sentenced to be executed.' The Lincolnshire Sheriff was then dragged from the
courtroom under heavy protest.
'The exile of Clwyd stands, and Witte is hereby exonerated,' said Ganymede.
'Court is now adjourned.' The participants filed out of the courtroom, Boreas
bearing up Clwyd with her magic, and the others wandering out with varying
levels of confusion.
Ganymede gazed around the empty courtroom. 'Egad, what a morass.'
-=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=-
Boreas's Account
It was a beautiful day in Lincoln. The birds sang gaily. Well, no. They
weren't singing anymore, but the wind did whistle through their skeletons,
making a song of sorts. I was just fetching the nightingale to come have tea
with the rest of the skeletons, when I saw something very frightening indeed
-- Lira taking aim at a helpless peasant. It was bloody murder!
Now I've seen people die before, even done it myself a time or two...or
perhaps three. Certainly no more than five. But I never killed anyone who
didn't fight back. She was so cold and cruel shooting that chap. Seeing that
scared the wits out of me and all I could do was flee. I felt like there was
a great typhoon rushing inside my head. Blinded by my tears, I stumbled
around Lincold for quite some time. There were murderers around every corner
as I fled this way and that.
When I came to the town square, it was a ghastly sight. The poor man's
body had been stuffed into the well! I screamed and cried, and well, it's all
such a blur I don't know what all I did. To make things worse, Lira and her
Syndicate fellows showed up, as if to survey the damage they had wrought. I
fled, but they followed me. One of them, a very menacing black man, told me
that I'd be next if I breathed a word of what I'd seen.
Then the sheriff showed up, but he didn't do much to take things in
hand. He even accused me of the murder, and I could barely keep my feet on
the ground, much less defend myself. If I told, I'd be murdered as well.
Things just got stranger from there on. The poor murdered chap started
groaning! He came alive again, with nary a spell. Turns out he hadn't been
dead at all, but he was as near to it as I've ever seen. A smiling young
doctor was there to keep him alive, but he was horribly wounded.
Now the almost-dead chap was one Angharad Clwyd. He'd been shot, shoved
down a well, and poisoned, but still wanted dead just for being Welsh. The
three of us (the Welshman, the good doctor Witte, and I) fled all over the
county looking for a safe place to rest and heal up. We left the sheriff to
find who did it to him (I still hadn't told), but I don't think he was much
interested in that. He seemed sorry Clwyd wasn't all the way dead.
That nasty innkeeper Thomas confessed the crime. Seemed like everybody
was in on it. But who did the sheriff toss in gaol? The victim! He said Clwyd
was a spy. Of all the nerve! Luckily the doctor rescued him. But then the
sheriff arrested Witte! Good thing my friend Rowane was there. He helped
persuade the sheriff to let the two stay the night in the Royal Stag, until
the trial the next day.
The trial was a bloody mess. The judge was a decent fellow -- Ganymede of
the Guardians of Justice. But poor Clwyd and Witte had the terrible
misfortune of me representing them. I did my best, and even stayed calm and
acted proper for most of it. But it was hard trying to show what injustice
had been done, and that they were both good men, not criminals. And I
couldn't get those Syndicates to admit what they'd done.
In the end, Clwyd was sent to exile from England (I'd never want to come
back here if I were him anyway.) and Witte was made to work off his sentence.
He almost lost his dead teddy, so I suppose it could have been worse.
The peasant turned executioner tried to kill Clwyd anyway, getting him
even more almost-dead, if that's possible. After that, Lira told what she'd
done. That nasty sheriff got his, for it seems he was the one who'd hired the
Syndicate. His trial's tomorrow, but I don't know if I'll go. Lincoln is a
tough little town.
-=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=-
Confessio-Part II
On my journey north to Scotland to find my old home, I passed through a
troubled Welsh country that was much changed from my memories of old. The
Welsh people were in strife with Britons called the English, who were by no
means Roman as far I could discern. This was strange beyond compare, but I
found at a nearby tavern a brew that seemed God's Cure for this
puzzlement. After a healthy dose of this Ale all seemed to be as it should.
The wondrous concoction also seemed to stir the Holy Spirit within me, for
I soon found that I could hardly contain my thoughts and desired to shout
the promise of Salvation aloud. Standing at a well in the drought-stricken
Welsh township of Lincoln (for as the Spirit of God moved me I was sure
that it would fill the well with water, if the people of the town proved
worthy of such a miracle), I began to shout tidings of His Love and the
path to Redemption.
The Lord sent a Welsh troublemaker named Clwyd, however, to test my resolve
and to keep me humble. At every joyous and priceless sentence that I
gladly shouted to the people from a heart which was filled with the Love of
God, this Clwyd mocked my Holy Words.
I ignored this insolence for a while and carried on--and I am sure that
many of the pagans felt the stirrings of the Spirit within their hearts at
my words--but alas I finally proved weak and lost my temper, which had been
honed to a fine edge after so many years with the Irish. I shouted some
things that I soon regretted, and of which I am too ashamed to repeat the
words.
I left the well in sorrow at having failed the Lord's test, but I soon felt
better after another dose of His Holy Medicine at the tavern. I decided to
find this Clywd and apologize for my harsh words, but alas I found a
horrible sight at the well--Clywd had already paid the price for Blasphemy,
being now naught but a broken body at the bottom of the well.
The locals brought the body to a nearby tavern and began to investigate the
attack. I, however, knowing that it was ultimately the Hand of God that
had cast Clwyd into the well--and therefore being uninterested in the
worldly instrument of the punishment--retired myself to another tavern
which stocked the medicine for which I was beginning to thirst again.
As I stumbled down the stairs of the tavern from my room the next
day--feeling none to well--I heard the locals speak of a trial that was to
take place that afternoon. Clywd had survived, it seemed, only to face
trial for being a spy. A kindly physician was also charged for helping the
spy to escape prison, but such is the price when you defy God's Will.
I knew at once that this was another opportunity for me to show God my
worthiness. He was giving Clwyd just enough time before death to find
Salvation, and I was to be the instrument of that Salvation. Before
Clwyd's head was cleaved on the executioner's block, I was resolved to
Baptize it into the Christian faith.
I spoke with Clwyd throughout the trial, begging for conversion before it
was too late. The pagan will is strong, however, and I received little for
my efforts.
As the Lord always uses tragedy to bring good, it was found during the
trial that the corrupt sheriff was behind the many attempts on Clwyd's
life, and so he was exposed for what he was while doing God's Will. Clwyd
was allowed to go free by the merciful judge--and it seemed for a moment
that all would be well for the defendant--when, with no warning, the rogue
executioner's axe neatly cut off Clwyd's head.
This was quite a shock, and I was saddened at my failure to convert the
pagan before the end. I fell to my knees and prayed with fervor for the
Lord to forgive me and to show me the way to redeem myself for this failing.
My faith proved strong, for it was then that a miracle occurred.
Clwyd's lifeless body began to stir. A sorceress--who was obviously an
angel in disguise sent to answer my prayer--brought Clwyd fully back to
life, giving me another chance to bring God's love into this hard pagan heart.
Clwyd, know that your life is but a gift from God, brought back to you
after your death so that you may find Salvation through His Grace. How can
you deny His Power, his Mercy, and your Fate after such a miracle? Bring
yourself before me to be Baptized into His Church, and show your gratitude
for His Gift.
Your Humble Servant,
Patrick
-=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=-
Giovoni "The Sandman" Santiago's statement
After hearing word from a loyal source while I was out of town, I came back
to find my clan in the thick of a heated murder mystery. As I was told of the
thin gs that had started to go down a couple of trials were underway. I
attended the trials to make sure nobody pointed fingers our way just because
of who we are.
During the trials I ended up on the witness stand, to my surprise. But of
course nothing I had to say was remotely relevant to either case since I had
been out of town the day before. As the trials came to a close the Sheriff
decided to play dumb as well as cross The Syndicate. He learned very quickly
that doing so wasn't the greatest of ideas. For he had signed a contract for
a hit and one way or another The Syndicate was going to make him pay. Once we
showed the contract to the judge, it was a done deal. Luckily for the Sheriff
law prevented him from dying a slow painful death to the Syndicate.