THERE were three courthouses in Seranthia, each filling a different purpose.
Three blocks from the palace, still in the Imperial Quarter, the Commoners' Courthouse was where the arbiters ruled against thieves and swindlers, brawlers and cut-throats. Occasionally neighbours fought over the line of a fence and merchants fought for the right to display their wares at a certain place. It was guarded during the day by heavily armoured Tingaran legionnaires, and at night muscled dogs patrolled the grounds.
The Military Courthouse nearby was where they tried deserters and men who'd disobeyed the orders of their officers or showed cowardice in battle. In the days of Emperor Xenovere V, there wasn't a day when fresh bodies weren't swinging from the gallows next to the utilitarian building.
By contrast, the Imperial Courthouse was the closest structure to the palace, and the grandest in design. If a lord had an issue to resolve with another lord, perhaps his virginal daughter was engaged to a recently-discovered philanderer, here was where he came. Lords paid their taxes here, and a great deal of gilden was stored in the vaults. The bloodlines of the families were charted and updated here. Even the Emperor's offspring were registered and legitimised by the records stored in the archives.
The Imperial Courthouse wasn't somewhere where Ella could simply walk up and ask to see the records.
During the day it was the scene of constant comings and goings. Any large nation needed bureaucracy, and the Tingaran Empire was the greatest nation the world had known. Rogan Jarvish was trying to have the new Empire seamlessly replace the old, and kept the machine of government running much as it always had. Watching the building, Ella saw that high above the massive doors the Tingaran raj hada had been replaced by the new device, the nine-pointed star.
Ella could never enter the Imperial Courthouse by force. She was only blocks from the Imperial Palace, and the last thing Rogan Jarvish needed was another disturbance.
She knew the locks would be magical, rather than mechanical. With her knowledge of the runes, Ella was able to decode complex matrices, even when the activation sequence had been deliberately hidden within the pattern.
Ella was confident she could solve the codes on any locks she found. She decided to visit the Imperial Courthouse at night.
~
THE NEXT day, Ella was brought in front of Rogan Jarvish. He wasn't pleased.
"Why were you trying to break into the Imperial Courthouse, Ella?" Rogan said. "Lord of the Sky, last I knew you were on your way to Ku Kara. I didn't even know you were back in Tingara."
Ella shuffled in her seat, trying to think of the right words to say.
"You know there are wards that can detect shadow," he said. "The Primate might not have had the best knowledge of lore, but the Emperor's people certainly did. We can't have people tampering with official documents now, can we?" He glared at her.
Ella wore her green enchantress's dress, having used its power to slip past the guards at the Imperial Courthouse the previous night. She hadn't expected wards.
She was so close. She wasn't ready to talk to anyone yet.
"I… I'm sorry," Ella said, "but I can't say."
Rogan shook his head. "That's not good enough," he said. "If there's something you need, you should feel you can ask me."
"I'm digging up a secret, but I can't say anything until I know for sure. Not even to you."
"I'm sorry, Ella, but I don't like secrets, and if they're going to be 'dug up', I'd like to know why they were buried in the first place. Do you really want me to put you under house arrest?"
Ella's eyes blazed. "I'd like to see you try."
Rogan Jarvish placed his hands on his desk and slowly stood.
Ella looked up at the tall man and remembered the time, long ago, when Rogan had been trying to track her down in Sarostar to give her Lady Katherine's legacy. With his scarred face and deadly grace he'd scared her then.
Suddenly he scared her now.
"I can have my hand around your throat before you can speak a word," Rogan said calmly. "You think they don't teach bladesingers how to defeat your kind?"
Ella's neck felt terribly exposed.
Rogan sat back down. "Relax, Ella. Now, why don't you tell me what you're trying to achieve?"
Ella took a deep breath. "I spoke to Dain Barden of the Akari. Rogan, one of the Evermen is in Merralya."
Rogan drew back. "Evrin said he wasn't sure, but he asked me to build that wall…"
"Now we know. The essence drained from the pool, the portal opened, and someone crossed. Seeking essence, he went to the Akari. He took several of their necromancers with him, as well as enough essence to build the vats. Right now, he's out there somewhere — an evil creature with incredible power. I believe he will be building an army of revenants. He will come for Seranthia, Rogan. He needs to bring the other Evermen home."