Fantasy Flash Collection - 3. Mindmaster

I was on duty as the Mindmaster in the court the day Simon was brought in. I sat off in the corner in my own box near the judges. Simon drew my interest immediately. He was only a year or so younger than me, as far as I could tell at first glance. He was also a rather handsome lad, or he would be if he didn’t have a large bruise over his eye that caused it to be swollen shut.

“Crown versus Simon, son of Mathias Blackguard. The charge is of raping a noble. Crown is seeking the death penalty.”

This also piqued my interest immediately. The Crown did not generally put children to death. He looked to be no more than fifteen, which was still considered a child. He also didn’t look like the type that would harm anyone, let alone rape a member of the nobility.

I recognized the young man who was doing the accusing. He was the son of a petty duke from far out on the frontier of the Kingdom. He had been nothing but trouble since he arrived in court. I talked to my father several times about it, but he insisted that he needed the duke’s assistance. The King is always right.

Evidence was presented, but the plaintiff did not testify. After all the trials I have monitored, I realized that this was a damned good indication that this was a setup. I exchanged glances with the High Judge. He felt the same.

The defense called the accused, Simon, to the stand. He trembled as he approached. He swore to tell the truth before all that is holy before sitting on the witness stool.

“Name, please?”

“Simon, son of Mathias Blackguard.”

“How old are you?”

“Fifteen, sir.”

“You had a special request?”

“I request to submit myself to the Mind Master to prove my innocence,” he said quite firmly.

The Prosecutor objected strongly, as did the plaintiff’s lawyer. The Judge glanced at me and waited for my response.

My status in the Kingdom complicated matters a bit when I was serving as Mind Master. The Mind Master experienced whatever the event was in the witness’s mind. It was rather traumatic, and a Mind Master only did it in the direst of circumstances. The Judge could, typically, order the Mind Master to do so, but not in my case. Since I was a Prince of the Kingdom, I held far more authority in the room than any other. Only my father, the King, and my brother, the Crown Prince, could overrule my word.

I looked over at Simon and saw the raw, unvarnished innocence radiating from him. I stood from my seat and strode into the center of the Courtroom. “I shall comply with the defendant’s request.”

“You can’t do this, you little whelp!” the Prosecutor roared.

I pulled back my hood, revealing my identity to all who were in the room. There was a round of gasps. Only the High Judge remained stone-faced. He knew I was there. The plaintiff looked positively ill. The Prosecutor went completely white-faced and crashed to his seat in mid-tirade.

I looked at him and watched as he collapsed from a heart attack. I could have assisted him with magic, but I felt his dying thought. ‘Gabriel assured me that this would pass unhindered. The boy has to die, or the nobility will be completely dishonored.’

The Judge ordered the bailiffs to bring the Prosecutor to the healers, while the people in the room stirred restlessly. After the man was removed, he motioned for me to come forward.

The Courtroom watched as I approached Simon. I heard Ethan, son of Duke William, start to panic. “Simon, son of Mathias Blackguard, do you understand what you are about to undertake? You stand accused of the crime of rape of a noble. If you have in fact done this, you will be put to death. Do you wish to submit to me?” I extended my hand to him.

“Yes, my prince,” Simon said quietly and placed his hand in mine.

The rush of entering someone else’s mind is impossible to describe. It is quite intoxicating to do when it is a clean mind. Simon was completely innocent of the crime. He had, on several occasions, had sex with Ethan, but almost always under orders from Ethan. The very last time had been a rape, but of Simon by Ethan, not the other way around. I could most certainly see where this would be embarrassing to the nobility.

That was when something extremely rare happened. Simon had a mindgift go active. With us so in tune, it was like a shockwave through my own system. I couldn’t quickly pull out, as it would have hurt me severely and quite likely killed Simon. I promptly went deeper into his mind and stabilized his skill. There was a side effect that I overlooked until I was pulling out of his mind. I had created a life debt between us. Magical life debts between people were unbreakable. I had just inadvertently doomed Simon to spend the rest of his life with me.

It took me a moment to focus after I pulled out of his mind. The room was in turmoil as a bailiff returned to say the prosecutor was dead. The plaintiff and his lawyer went through hysterics at the news.

In a calm, clear voice, I said over the pandemonium, “This case is dismissed by royal decree. Guards, please escort Ethan, son of Duke William, back to his father’s quarters.”

I waited for him to be escorted out of the room. Four other guards appeared in the room, and my personal guards came in from the back room to investigate the noise. “Gentlemen, please escort Simon and me back to the Palace.”

“Yes, sire.”

They formed up around us immediately, and we broke through the crowd. I left my hand on Simon’s shoulder to keep him steady and to keep the controls I put on his power intact.

The boy seemed quite content in my custody. I thought that might change once he knew all of the facts, but only time would tell. The courthouse was very close to the Palace, and we arrived quickly. We had to pass through several smaller gates and cross the moat before reaching the main gate. I could tell that Simon was in awe of the Palace.

“Surely you are used to the view by now?” I asked. I must have startled him, because I felt him tense suddenly under my hand.

“I’m sorry, your highness.”

“There is nothing to be sorry about, Simon. I’m just surprised that you still find this all that awe-inspiring.”

“I’ve been training in mathematics, Highness. My teacher feels I have a good head for engineering. I was trying to calculate in my head how much work it would take to build this gate. I’m sorry, Highness. I shouldn’t ramble.”

“Will you please stop apologizing? It is becoming tiresome,” I replied with a growing irritation.

He started apologizing again, but I gripped his shoulder tightly, and he stopped.

“What is to become of me?” he asked fearfully. I suppose since I still had my hand on his shoulder.

“I’ll explain it when we arrive at my quarters.”

“Your quarters, Highness?” seemed deathly afraid of me.

I stopped suddenly, keeping my grip, which caused him to spin around to face me. “There are some things that I need to explain to you. You will be safe with me. You have my word as a Prince,” I told him, invoking the most solemn oath I could make.

His eyes widened at the oath. I didn’t need to be telepathic to read the thought behind it.

“I’m not some sort of rakish philanderer that drags boy after boy into my bed. That isn’t something you can do with a gift as powerful as mine,” I said lightly. He would most certainly understand that soon enough.

He blushed a violent shade of red before stuttering, “I never thought that your Highness. Honestly, I didn’t.”

I arched my eyebrow.

“I was wondering why you were personally seeing to me. I thought that after you told the court of my innocence, I would be free to return to my life as a servant and student.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, Simon.”

I cut off his pending alarm with a raised hand.

“I’ll explain it when we are in private,” I said as firmly as I could. I then spun him to face forward and nudged him to get him moving.

We finished the walk to my personal quarters in total silence.

I dismissed the guards. My personal guard gave Simon a once-over before catching my raised eyebrow. He bowed low and made a quick exit.

Simon stared around my room in awe again. This time, I could forgive him. Regular servants seldom visited royal quarters. My room was probably the richest he had ever seen. I released his shoulder so that he could move about on his own. He did so slowly.

“How did you become a servant?” I asked, feeling genuinely curious about the boy who would be no more than a few feet away from me for the next several months at least. The other option was to kill him, but that wasn’t something I could even consider.

“I was a page to a minor noble family, and I was being educated with my master. There was an attack, and my master was killed, and I was severely wounded. I found out after I recovered that my parents and the whole family had been killed as well.”

“Lord Rathion,” I said, knowing the story.

He nodded. “The teacher was one of the household survivors, and he brought me with him to the capital. He is one of the more respected scholars, and he had been greatly impressed with my mathematics. He ensured that I would continue to train and earn my keep here in the Palace.”

“How is it that you fell in with Ethan?”

“Ethan needed special tutoring in mathematics, and I was also assigned to clean in his section of the palace.”

“The sex?” I asked, feeling somewhat queasy doing so.

“At first, Ethan was caring and gentle. We were only really relieving each other. It then became something more to him. He wanted more and more sex, and he was not nearly as nice or gentle. Soon, he was demanding that I satisfy him and no more. I started to avoid him. He caught me one day and took me by force. He trains daily in swordplay and other martial arts. I don’t.”

“I’ve seen him training. Please continue,” I replied tonelessly.

“After he stopped, I think he was horrified. Not so much of what he had done, but of what would happen if it got out. He wasn’t thinking clearly at all that day, and he jumped into his next plan without thought, I’d gather. He walloped me in my eye,” he touched his face gingerly, “ and he then shouted for the guards.”

“They dragged me away without asking a thing. He’s noble, and I’m only a commoner. You know the rest.”

Since I had a strong telepathic ability, I was susceptible to the class system we lived in. Strange for a Prince to think that the class system was bad, but I could know what others thought and felt. I made sure to be as evenhanded as possible. I was the most popular noble in the capital.

“Thanks for explaining. I know that was uncomfortable for you. It is time that I explained a few things to you.”

He bowed his head in acknowledgement and then looked at me, his intelligence burning brightly in his eyes.

“During our contact, I accidentally triggered a latent mindpower in you. When that happened, I couldn’t pull out of your mind without killing you. I did as I was trained to do, and I stabilized your power. There is a catch, though,” I felt genuinely distressed, and he could feel it through the bond between us.

“What happened?” he asked, ashen-faced.

“I was in your mind fully when your abilities went active. There has been only one documented case of this occurring. As far as I can tell, this incident is far more involved. We have been linked together, I’m afraid.”

“Linked together, Highness?” he asked hoarsely.

“Until you are fully trained in your abilities, we won’t be able to separate more than a dozen manlengths.”

“And if we did separate more than that?”

“We would likely fall into a coma and die. You would go faster than I, but we would both likely die.”

He broke down completely. Tears flowed freely down his face as he started to cry. After a short hesitation on my part, I closed the distance between us and wrapped him in my arms. He stood stiffly for a moment before giving in. I gently stroked his back as he cried himself out.

When he stopped, he whispered quietly into my ear, “You must think I’m some sort of great baby for carrying on this way.”

“No. I understand how you feel. We will persevere. It is all that we can do.”

“Yes, highness.”

“We are bound together for the rather foreseeable future. Please call me by my given name.”

“As you wish, Justin.”

I shook my head slightly, but I didn’t say anything.

He pulled away slightly and looked around my room again.

“We need to go see my father. I’m expected in court this evening, and I can hardly spring you as a surprise upon my father. Come here first, though.”

He walked back over to me. I lay my hand gently on his bruised face and used my skills to heal him. I tapped his energy to do it, which saved me from having any drain. It always takes less energy to heal your own body than it does to heal it from the outside.

He touched his face and didn’t feel pain. The look of awe was back on his face.

I walked to my closet, and Simon stayed close. I took out appropriate clothes to wear in front of the King. Luckily, we were the same size, so he could wear my clothes. I selected similar clothes and then went to my wardrobe to pull out my symbols of office and power. I found my old trainee rankings and set them aside for Simon. We dressed ourselves, and I helped him adjust the unfamiliar clothes. I then pinned the trainee mindmaster rank insignia to his cloak. I hesitated a moment before returning to my wardrobe and pulling out another insignia of rank. It was a very special one.

I held it tightly in my hand and then consulted him. “The link between us will last for as long as we live. I think it might be possible to break it, right now, but it would most certainly mean your death and most likely my own. Do you want me to do it?”

He looked at me aghast. “No. Absolutely not, Highness. I will serve you for as long as I live.”

It was my turn to blink tears out of my eyes. That sort of loyalty was hard to come by. After I regained my composure a little, I held up the talisman that had been tightly in my hand. “Do you know what this is?”

He looked at it for a long time. “I think so, but I’m not sure.”

“It is the symbol of the Prince-Consort. It would make law what magic has already made reality. Do you wish me to do this?”

“I… I…”

“Our Kingdom accepts male pairs as easily as female pairs or male and female pairings. I know that you have been abused before by another male, but that is not something I could ever do. It isn’t possible with our sort of magic ability.”

“If it is what you wish, highness.”

I stepped over to him and kissed him on the forehead. “Only if you wish it as well.”

When I kissed him, I felt the excitement rush through him, and his thoughts lay bare before me. He was pretty willing to be legally mated to me.

He nodded.

I attuned the pin to him. It changed every color of the rainbow as it fully attuned to him. When it was completed, it returned to its golden color, though it shone with an inner radiance. It showed the actual link between us.

“Let’s go see my father.”

He nodded and fell into step at my side.

The trip to the Audience Chamber was short. The guards let me straight through. They moved twice to stop Simon, but stepped back in shock as they saw the pin prominently on his shoulder.

Father was seated on the dais in the smaller of his thrones.

He looked closely at the two of us. His look lingered for a long time on the Prince-Consort talisman. He noticed the powerful inner glow immediately. He looked at me with a great deal of surprise in his eyes, though it did not show in his voice when he spoke.

“Please explain yourself, my son.”

“I was serving duty as the Mindmaster of the Court. This young man, accused of a crime, requested that I scan him. I did so. He was innocent of the crime he was accused of. During the scan, his latent mindpowers emerged.”

My father blanched.

“I did what I could to save us both. In so doing, I tied us together, I’m afraid. There was nothing I could do to prevent that. I did my duty as I saw fit,” I finished.

My father looked closely at the insignia on Simon’s shoulder again before nodding in understanding. “You did as I would have done, my son. What is your consort’s name?”

“Simon, son of the late Mathias Blackguard.”

The King possessed a perfect memory. “He served Lord Rathion. You were brought here with heavy praise from one of our best scholars. How did you become accused of a crime?” he addressed Simon.

He was cut off by the approach of the Chief Warder of the Palace. He was in charge of all the servants and staff in the palace complex, as well as everything else that went on without the need of a Royal Decree. His name was Gabriel.

“Majesty. I must object. This boy has raped a nobleman.”

There was a gasp from one of the guards. It was impossible to tell which one, though I suspect that it was the youngest, a boy of fifteen, like Simon. The gasp was ignored.

The King raised an elegant eyebrow at his Chief Warder. Simon had taken a step back, looking down instead of anywhere else. I stepped forward.

The Chief Warder started to say something, and I cut him off coldly, “Chief Warder Gabriel tried to have Simon executed on false charges to protect the nobleman who had raped Simon. The other young man involved should be dealt with, but the event shall not become known to the public. Simon will not speak of it.”

Gabriel responded hotly, “We can not take that chance.”

“That is not your decision, Chief Warder,” I responded as cold as he was hot.

“Nor is it yours, my son,” my father replied thoughtfully.

“I beg to differ, Your Majesty. I am the Mindmaster of record in this case. By your own laws, I found this boy innocent of the charges laid against him. Furthermore, Chief Warder Gabriel is directly indicted in this case by the dying thoughts of the Royal Prosecutor. Falsely accusing the innocent of a capital crime is punishable by death.”

Chief Warder Gabriel went as white as a sheet.

My father took pointed note of that before speaking. “Simon, Prince-Consort, do you abide by Prince Justin’s assertion that the crime committed against you shall not be discussed?”

“I will not discuss it, Majesty.”

“Then this incident is closed. We will discuss a suitable punishment for the indecent actions by the nobleman and the proper punishment of the Chief Warder for failing to keep me informed of the situation.”

“Yes, Majesty,” I bowed my head to my father.

“I will see you this evening at the Court Dinner,” he replied.

I took it upon myself to ensure that my orders were carried out and that Ethan had been returned to his room. I arrived and found the guards standing on either side of the door. Simon was silently trailing behind me.

“Is Ethan inside?” I asked the older of the two guards after he saluted me.

“He is, your highness.”

“Good. Make sure that he stays there. The King is deciding his fate.”

I started to walk away when the door burst open from within. Ethan was standing there, his hair tousled. He had his sword in his hand and a look of hate upon his face.

“How can you take the word of that… that… peasant over me?!” he screamed at me.

The Guards both drew their weapons. I waved them both back.

“I’ve seen what happened when I was in Simon’s mind, Ethan. The King is deciding your fate for your… indiscretion. I suggest you leave it at that before you do something that shall require retribution.”

He growled as I turned to walk away. I heard him take a step, and I spun around, drawing my power to me. My arms cackled with lightning, and a strong wind came out of nowhere in the castle. “I said drop it.”

He went as white as a sheet. His sword clattered to the floor, and he went back into his room. The younger of the two guards looked like he was on his first rotation. He was not more than sixteen. He looked as though he was going to wet his britches or turn and run himself.

I allowed the lightning and wind to dissipate. The older guard looked on wearily. The younger one still looked frightened. I walked over to him and held my hand out to him. I could read the fear in his eyes as he looked at my hand. He didn’t hesitate, though. He put his hand in mine immediately. I soothed his fear and calmed him. He stood up straighter, and a look of confidence returned to his face. I smiled at him as I released his hand.

The young man saluted, and I returned it.

I walked back towards my rooms with Simon trailing silently behind me.

I heard the guards’ voices as we walked away.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, sir. His Highness showed me that I had nothing to fear from him.”

“Aye. Good lad, our Prince Justin.”

“Yes, he is, Lieutenant.”