Aeron looked over to see the wheels turning in his head and rolled his eyes. The numbskull will take awhile to learn his lesson, he thought.
Now wasn't the time to deal with his sibling's stupidity, however. "Is Dad going to make it," he asked instead.
Richard nodded. "There's a good chance of it. The healers tell me that brain stabbings tend to heal without a hitch even with the Mundane's rustic attempts at healing, so there's a really good chance he'll stay with us for the long haul as long as they keep that healed. The necrosis on his human form is irreparable, though, so they'll have to remove the rotten limbs so that his draconoid form can stay healthy and avoid getting infected and having parts of his main form die off as well," he said.
Aeron nodded. The damage was still a problem they needed to work on, but the most important thing was making sure at least one of his forms was healthy and whole. It was really the best way this could have gone down, as it would have been impossible for the man to continue to rule if it had been the full dragon form that had rotted. How could he fight usurpers and participate in royal ceremonies without his wings or claws? It was still too bad though. "It will be a shame, though; Dad always liked his human form best," he said aloud.
Both princes attended the trial of those who had fought in the great hall together. They stood side by side so the gossips could see that for now they were working as a unified force. Word quickly spread through the land that whatever prince one followed, for now it was best to avoid angering either of them and risk having the prince you were loyal to hate you for your efforts on his behalf. They stood in front of their thrones which flanked the empty king's throne on the middle of the dias at the head of every court in the realm.
The magistrate lit the urn of the flames of justice. "Today we are gathered to try those involved with an attempt of regicide," he announced to the expectant crowd. "Those men before us here today were part of a plot to kill His Majesty Vovin two weeks hence. We will now commence."
Each of the shifters and giants and a few other types of people that had been there during the fight in the delegate's hall took their turns to stand and speak to the urn of justice. Most of those who had been their proudly proclaimed their guilt when their turn came and the urn of justice burned brightly in response. A few of the younger ones and the trickier ones tried to speak half truths, but still the urn knew they were not full truths and its flame would darken for each one. The crowd held its judgement in silence during each individual's turn. Then the last person had gone up, and all was still silent.
"King Vovin unified our world at a time of chaos. He brought us peace and prosperity. Those who aim to threaten his life, or his legacy, must pay the price justice demands of them," the magistrate said. The urn spit out a final verdict on a piece of paper. "The urn has spoken." The magistrate lifted the paper up to squint at the words. "Kraelek has been found to have only partial guilt. The rest are sentenced to death." A few cheers broke out in the crowd, but most were still silent.
Both princes ignored the rest of the proceedings and returned to the castle. Most of the halls and rooms were still in perfect condition and even the meeting room was still intact, but no one quite knew how so many enemies had managed to get through so many layers of security, so for now the royal family had moved their personal quarters to the Summer Palace.
Richard kicked at a piece of plaster that had fallen outside of the meeting room entrance. Aeron just stepped over it. "What are we going to do," the younger said.
Aeron summoned Wengyar from the spirit dimension. The spectral creature jumped on him and smothered him in slobber and doggie kisses until he sniffed out a smell he didn't like and pointed at the ceiling. Aeron gave him a nod and he bounded up. The two princes followed the creature up through the still gaping hole in the ceiling to visit the scene of the stabbing. Wengyar pawed at the ground where specks of red blood still remained. "Yes, my father was attacked. I know where he is." The canine whimpered. He gave it a soothing pet. "No need to worry, he's doing fine. I need your help finding someone else. Can you do that?" The pup shook his tail and wiggled in place and added a sharp bark to let them know he was on the job. He pressed his nose down to cast around for scents, all the scents of everyone who had ever been in that room from the freshest to the most stale. He sat up again and barked to let them know he was done.
"You've got him? You know what Hawthorne smells like here?" Another bark of assent. Aeron led his hound down to the bottom floor again, and they walked over to the spot he'd fought the daemon in. "Catch that scent again, boy, and catch where it changes," he said. The hound sniffed some more and quickly gave another bark. "I want you to find him, boy. Can you follow where he's gone?" Rather than answer Wengyar disappeared.
"Wait,
