David Bishop and the Mystic of Creation T.C. Crawford (icecream ebook reader txt) 📖

the same elderly Dwarf they had encountered on their first day in Emerald Keep – the one who had sent them off to their cells the first time.

“Hello again.” he said to them with a slight smile.

Something told David he didn’t really like humans, a feeling that didn’t make him feel any better given the circumstances they found themselves in. He assumed these other Dwarves were part of a council that would be trying them for their crime of lying to the King.

Once all of them had been brought before the counter, they were all chained together by a great chain that was latched to each of their handcuffs. The other end was securely fastened to a great eye hook on the far end of the room. When they were securely fastened in place, one of the Dwarves at the counter stood up and began the proceedings.

“Today we have brought before us a group of humans who have come to our lands unannounced and with the malintent of inciting a riot through their lies and propaganda.” said the Dwarf, reading from a scroll set on the counter before him.

“Their crimes – lying to the King. How do you plead?” he asked, looking at David and the others.

Each of them vehemently pleaded not guilty, to which the council members all shook their head silently in disgust.

“So be it. And where is your council?” asked the lead Dwarf behind the counter, looking around the chambers. “Where is Darryn?” he asked them with raised eyebrows.

“Sir, we do not know where Darryn is. We spoke with him last night but have not seen him since” replied Tyrius solemnly. “It appears he may have abandoned us.”

“Master Dwarf, can we represent ourselves?” asked Erin quickly, hoping to be able to stall long enough to give their friend a chance to show up.

She knew he said he was going to search for the answers needed to prove their innocence. Maybe he was still out there, working his way through the city, trying to get to them with the evidence needed to set them free.

The council members quietly murmured among each other for a moment before the head council member stood again and spoke.

“It is not the traditional way of Dwarves to represent themselves, however, we will give you the exception considering the unusual circumstance you find yourselves in while lacking your own representative. We will have to address a grievance against Darryn Faircloth for abandoning his responsibilities to the accused.” said the Dwarf writing down the record as the others nodded in agreement.

“I am sure he has his reasons for not being here today” said Erin, speaking loudly for all to hear. “Before he left us, Darryn told us he would be seeking the truth. He left to find out who the scouts were that were sent by the King to gather evidence to our claims of the Defiant One returning. We have no direct evidence ourselves, but we know the integrity of our claims, as we witnessed his return first-hand. What we don’t know is what incentive these Dwarves would have to lie to their King and give a false report!”

With this, the council erupted in outrage over Erin’s accusations.

“You stand before us, accused of lying to the King, and choose to use your time to make even more baseless accusations?” asked the lead Dwarf. “Have you no honor?” he asked.

“I might ask the council the same question!” shouted Erin, “Do we not have the right to stand before our accusers, to question the ones who claim they went to the surface and saw evidence contradicting our claims?” she asked defiantly.

Tyrius couldn’t help but smile beside Erin, despite the dire circumstances they were in. He had trained Erin well for her eventual responsibilities, he thought, and he took great pride in watching her grow into such a strong and remarkable young woman.

The council members quietly spoke amongst themselves again, determining whether or not she could request such a thing under the circumstances. After some time, they conceded and granted her request, having the guards bring forth the two scouts who had been sent to the surface to see first-hand if their reports were in fact true.

The two Dwarves walked up to the front of the group of prisoners while looking around the room nervously. They stopped just before the council members, awaiting their questions.

“So, you are the Dwarves responsible for our sudden imprisonment?” asked Erin, eyeing the two young Dwarves up and down with a scolding look.

They shuffled uncomfortably beneath her gaze. Erin knew they had lied, but she didn’t yet know why, and that was what she needed to prove in order to get her and her friends off the hook.

“Tell me, how did you two get chosen for such a task?” she asked.

The Dwarf on the left spoke first. He was the shorter of the two, and stockier, leaving him with the appearance of what David compared to a garden gnome back home. His attire was that customary of the Guard, but not the ornate armor that the King’s Guard wore, instead it was a more bland, reflective armor with chainmail underneath, adorned over a basic leather brown tunic and trousers that were held up by a wide black belt with a gold-plated buckle.

“We were chosen for the task by our commander.” he replied in a gruff voice that was customary to the Dwarves.

“And did he say what you were supposed to find?” she asked.

“Yes. He said we were to go to the surface and look to the West towards Eldergate to verify if the palace were in fact raised into the air by a giant black rock.” he replied smugly.

“And did you actually go to the surface?” asked Erin, incredulously.

“Of course, we did!” replied the Dwarf defensively.

“Then you would have seen that we were telling the truth!” shouted Erin suddenly, making the two Dwarves jump in surprise. “Isn’t that so?” she asked, “When you reached Draco’s Pass and you peered across the Great