The courthouse proved to be similar in design to those that he had seen on Earth. White stone pillars held up an overhanging rook. Marble tiled stairs lead up to a small courtyard in such a way that people were forced to look up at the building just a little. A subconscious reminder to the viewer that they would not be above the law, perhaps?

“Lord. We will take you directly to the magistrate. This matter should be handled swiftly,” said the militia captain.

Blackthorne inclined his head but said nothing regarding the captain’s words. He doubted the matter would be handled swiftly at all. He did, however, ask about Sonja. He had seen her nowhere along the route.

“Ah. I do not know of her whereabouts, lord. If she is here, then she is no doubt seated already.” The captain inclined his head then called out an order to his men. Four of the twenty militia men stepped forward. The five men led Blackthorne up the steps and into the building.

The entrance of the building was barren of decoration. The walls were white, and the brick work immaculate. The militia captain passed Blackthorne off to a balding middle-aged man who had been pacing nervously until that moment. Once their duty was fulfilled the quintet of guards left with all possible haste while they maintained their professional decorum.

The middle-aged man looked Blackthorne up and down for a moment then shook his head. “Come with me, Lord…” he practically choked on the last word of that sentence but managed to speak his name before he went silent. “Blackthorne.”

“Is there a reason why you think that you can speak to me in that manner?” asked Blackthorne in a calm and measured tone. The man absolutely stank of corruption. A single glance into this man’s eyes told him many things about how his morning was going to go. The images present in the man’s surface thoughts nearly made him vomit.

The man, supposedly his attorney, snorted once more. “With all due respect, if any is due, you are no lord. I don’t know what you did to the militia, but it is clear from your attire that you are merely a common dreamer putting on airs.”

Blackthorne looked at the man for a moment then snorted. “It doesn’t matter what you think. Show me where I need to go then politely go back to where a miserable little man like you belongs.”

“How dare you!” snarled the man. He poked Blackthorne in the chest with a bony little finger. “Do you know who I am?”

“I don’t care who you are,” replied Blackthorne. “Take me where I need to go, and keep your mouth shut while you do it.”

“I refuse to be your lawyer! You’re on your own,” replied the man.

“Why would I need a lawyer? If that’s all you’re here for then you’ve wasted your time,” said Blackthorne.

The man laughed in Blackthorne’s face then threw his hands in the air. “Whatever you say, Lord Blackthorne. You’ll get my bill for the time wasted.”

“I won’t be paying any bill for services not rendered,” replied Blackthorne smoothly. “Nor did I request that you render any of said services.”

“The hell you won’t!” exclaimed the lawyer. “I’ll turn you over to the crown for impersonating a noble!”

Blackthorne casually asked, “Will they have someone check my title just like the militia captain did?”

The lawyer snorted at him. “Feh. The militia captain is easily impressed…”

Before Blackthorne could speak to what the man had said, another man approached them quickly. It was a page of the court, a young noble, who had been tasked with locating Blackthorne. The magistrate did not want to be kept waiting.

The lawyer waved the page off then snorted at Blackthorne once more before he left to go find a seat. He wanted to witness this fake noble make a fool of himself.

The page led Blackthorne through a series of hallways and then walked him into a large open area similar to a small arena. There were random people seated in the stands nearby, one of which was Sonja. Next to her sat Scraggles. Strangely, both the alchemist and the grocer whom he frequented sat nearby as well. He recognized quite a few people in the audience, as a matter of fact. There did seem to be quite the turn out for this trial.

Sonja gave him a quick wave and offered a smile. He waved back, an action that caused much laughter among what had to be a few hundred spectators. It was a strange way to hold a trial, but it was fun so far at least.

He was led to a small circle inlaid with red stone. A short wall was to his immediate right, but its purpose was not immediately apparent. Though, he did suspect that the little turd who caused this mess was on the other side of it.

On a nearby dais sat a man who wore dark black robes. He had what might be the world’s bushiest snow white eyebrows and a pinched face that had been reddened due to annoyance. The moment that Blackthorne’s eyes met the eyes of that judge a foul odor permeated his nostrils. Scenes from the man’s life began to filter through his mind. Blackthorne’s eyes narrowed due to what he saw, but he said nothing.

“I see that the esteemed Lord Blackthorne has chosen to grace us with his presence at last,” said the judge.

Blackthorne looked up at the judge then said, “You can thank the lawyer previously assigned to me for wasting everyone’s time.”

“What do you mean? When were you assigned a lawyer?” asked the judge.

“There was a man waiting for me in the hallway who claimed to be such,” said Blackthorne.

“Ah. I know nothing of this matter. Normally there are no lawyers involved in such proceedings,” said the judge.

“I did not ask for one, and he decided to insult me the moment that he had me alone instead of taking me to the court room.” Blackthorne took a breath, fully intent on speaking further.

A familiar voice spoke up from the other side of the wall. “Your honor, this is all incredibly tedious. Can we dispense with this criminal’s excuses? I’m a busy man.”

“Ah. Yes.” The judge looked to the source of that voice and nodded then looked over to Blackthorne. “As you are late to this trial, you will be required to pay a penalty one fifty thousand—”

“No,” said Blackthorne.

“No?” asked the judge.

“I won’t pay a penalty for being late,” replied Blackthorne.

The judge stared at him aghast. The color left his cheeks then suddenly flared back into them with such excitement that even his bushy eyebrows seemed to shoot forward slightly. “How dare you!”

Blackthorne stared coldly at the judge. “Don’t take that tone with me.”

“Do you see, your honor?” asked the plaintiff. “He has no respect for his betters!”

“I can see that!” exclaimed the judge. “Blackthorne, I find you in contempt of this court!”

“As well you should,” said Blackthorne. “I certainly feel nothing but contempt for this highly contemptible court.”

“You dare to make a mockery of this court so brazenly!” shrilled the magistrate.

Blackthorne took a deep breath and strongly inheld the stench of corruption that permeated the air. He gazed confidently at the judge. “You’re one to talk. Wasn’t it you who took a one hundred twenty thousand Jerin bribe from the plaintiff two days ago?”

“What?” asked the judge, his eyebrows seeming to deflate due to the shock. His reaction was priceless and did not go unnoticed by the crowd. An uproar echoed through the room for a moment as people cried out for more information.

Too shocked to speak, the judge could only stare in bewilderment as Blackthorne continued, “The man who pretended to be a lawyer is named Enrich Eidd. He is the same man who took the money to your secret special meeting place down in the southwestern part of town. It took place in the special room of that secret private brothel. You know, the one of which you are a founding member?”

The more he spoke, the more the judge began to think about all of it. The stench of corruption around him washed outward like a tidal wave. The man was garbage head to foot.

“He works for that pile of shit Dallen Davrin, the Plaintiff. So, excuse me if I can do nothing but act like this entire trial is a farce,” said Blackthorne.

“I have never heard such bold and blatant lies spoken in this court in all my years as a magistrate!” said the judge while he shook his head. “Never in my life have I been so insulted!”

“With a face like yours, I’m sure that too is a lie.” replied Blackthorne sarcastically.

Some might think him quite stupid for his actions, but these people did not know his life. Once before he had been hauled in front of a judge and had his life ruined when he had done nothing wrong. He refused to even pretend to go along with a court trial held by the pinched face rodent on the stand.

“Do you have a death wish, fool? Do you think that since you are a dreamer, you are above the law?” asked the judge. He was far too surprised by the recent events in his court to show pretense. He legitimately wanted to know if the defendant was insane.