Derek recognized the voice and turned towards that corner as the old Ancestor stepped forward. Having been dismissed and sensing the sheer power from this man, Baron Nicholas acquiesced. He lead his people from the room, taking Derek and his family with him.

Arriving at the guest house, Derek washed up before joining his family in the main room. There he sat with his mother and recounted the events of the trial. He started with the fight between the chaos wolves and the demons and finished with the defeat of the greater demon and the disenchantment of the hell gate. The effectiveness of Belany's enchantments held a particular interest for the mages in the room. He then told them about the oddity of waking in that cottage and seeing the three elderlies there.

They were all stunned that he had been able to destroy a greater demon, these things were legendary for their might, afterall. But he was able to explain how the enchantments had enabled his victory. He took out the heart and sighed, “It’s a shame. I acquired the heart of a greater demon for my coming of age ceremony and now we can’t use it.”

His grandmother smiled sadly at him when she heard that. Of all of those that were there, the others might have had an idea of the benefits of the ceremony, but she was the only one that knew for sure. This greater demon heart would have been a truly great boon for him in the ceremony.

They spoke for a while and food was served. An hour or so later there was a knocking at the door. When Nicholas checked it he found Richard along with a pair of servants who had brought lanterns to light the way. When Richard saw Nicholas he entreated, “Baron Nicholas, I must see Rebekah. Is she in?”

Rebekah spoke up, “Richard, now is not a good time. What do you want from me?”

He shook his head as Nicholas led them in, “I hate what happened tonight. You know I wasn’t there. I was with my children who were ill as my wife is now. After what happened tonight you know I wouldn’t bother you but for Belany, her condition has just worsened.”

Rebekah frowned as she grabbed for her cloak, “Worsened? What is that girl Orena doing? How can she worsen at this time?”

Orena was Richard’s wife. Aside from Rebekah, she was the best holy mage in the clan. It could be said that the only people who had truly treated Rebekah and her family well were Richard and his wife and children. It helped that Orena, Belany, and Hector had all been her pupils and that they had formed a tight bond together. Rebekah might have broken ties with the clan but these were her beloved pupils. There was no way she would let any misfortune fall upon them.

As Rebekah gathered her cloak, pouch, and staff, Eona gathered her things as well, “Rebekah, let me come as well. I am sure I can help with this.”

When she heard this, Rebekah smiled and nodded. In the years of proximity with her daughter-in-law she had gained a real appreciation of her skills. She gave a lantern to Ovid to carry for them and had Alicia carry a basket of medicines she had brought out. Before leaving Eona reached up to kiss Derek on his forehead and whispered, “Go to sleep. In the morning I will come wake you.”

Though he wanted to go with them, Derek was quite tired so he followed his mother’s instructions and went to his room in the guesthouse. He woke the next day to the sound of his mother’s humming as she delved his schema. She was seated on the edge of his bed and her hand absentmindedly played with his hair while she checked and made minor modifications to the different formulas within it.

He smiled at her and waited for her to finish. When she did so she looked at him, “Your wounds are healed and left only little scars and you are ready to tier up again. You are already on the verge of tier two. Where did my little boy go? It’s not fair. Soon you will be so strong and have no need for your grey haired mother.”

He smiled at her teasing, “Mom, that’s not true. I will get strong and build you the most beautiful palace and no one will ever be able to look down on you again.”

She smiled at him and tweaked his nose, “Don’t promise me a palace. I want grandchildren. At least six. You had better get to work.”

He gawked at her and his face turned red. Six children? Did she think they fell from the sky? And first off he had to meet a suitable girl. He didn’t even know where to start. He looked at her seriously, “How about two palaces? With a garden between them?”

She laughed at him and stood up. Ever since she had taken the wyvern’s blood and had her ailment cured her vitality had continued to increase. He had never seen her so energetic. It made him happy to see her in such form. He cleaned himself and dressed before meeting her and the rest of their family for breakfast.

While they were eating his grandmother told them all of Belany’s condition which had greatly improved with her and Eona’s help. Both Belany and Hector had recovered during the night. They were doing much better.

Derek was really happy to hear this and asked if he would be able to see them. His grandmother smiled and said, “Yes, while they should still rest most of the day, I imagine this evening we will all be called to the clan hall again.”

That evening it was as she said, the Patriarch personally came to invite them to the clan hall. This time every important person of Redwyrm had come. Derek and his family stood with the people of Windreach. They were joined there by Ander who gripped his shoulder firmly when he came up. This man really was as solid as a stone and Derek felt that stability emanating from him. Ander stood next to Rebekah behind Derek and said some quiet words to her.

Shortly afterwards Prince Kylin arrived with his two stolid knights. They stood next to the Windreach delegation and shared some kind words. Derek could see Belany and Hector standing with Richard and Orena. Belany waved to him and he smiled back. He was really glad to see the two of them well.

As the rest of the clan entered the hall he also saw Elton and Feros who occasionally glanced his way with ashamed faces. When the last of the clansmen had arrived the Patriarch stood and spoke to everyone. “Thorne clan, dignitaries of Redwyrm, honored guests. I must apologise to you all. The festivities that were intended for this year’s coming of age ceremony have been tainted by the foolish acts of a single man.”

He looked around the hall, making eye contact with several of those gathered, he then spoke once again, “Guards bring the prisoner in.”

From the end of the hall the guards brought Elder Jacob forward. His hands and feet were bound by iron chains. When he arrived before the Patriarch, the Patriarch began again, “Jacob Thorne, your actions this week have sullied the good reputation of our clan. Even worse, after investigation it was confirmed that you stole money intended for another family in the clan and embezzled some of that money for yourself. You also coerced Elder Tanner into giving a distorted representation of the events of the coming of age trial and also falsified the testimonies of your sons.

“All of these actions have a tremendous impact on the reputation and honor of the clan. The scale of your scheming and your crimes have been enough to tarnish your reputation so much that you are no longer qualified to bear the rank of Elder. Nor can we continue to allow you to oversee any integral part of our clan. You are stripped of the title of Elder and all of the benefits and responsibilities of the posts you held as such.

“Your elder sons have rendered much merit and have begged leniency from me in your name so the Elders and I have concluded that your punishment will be to receive twenty lashes for every thousand talents you stole from Jared’s family. The punishment for embezzlement from the clan will be included in that. Coercing Elder Tanner and falsifying your son’s testimonies are each worth fifty more lashes. This comes out to a total of five hundred and fifty lashes.

“You will receive the lashes tomorrow morning in groups of fifty and your health will be maintained so that you can complete this punishment on the morrow.”

Jacob’s face paled. He knew how brutal the whipping would be but even worse, he had lost his place as an Elder of the clan. He knew he was lucky not to be executed for what he had done. When Prince Kylin had brought forward the receipts for the tribute he knew there was no way to avoid scrutiny. All of those plans fell apart last night.

Now his reputation had been ruined in the clan and there were very few who would even talk to him much less work with him. Even his own sons had distanced themselves from him. He knew that there was nothing he could do about it at this point either.

The Patriarch waved to the guards, “Take him away.” Once the guards had left with Jacob the Patriarch then turned to Derek. “Derek and Rebekah, please step forward. I know that last night was a harrowing night for you. When Derek returned from the mountains we accused him of desertion and even found him guilty of it due to the false testimony provided by Jacob and Tanner.

“Today, I heard from Belany and Hector that this was false, as Derek had claimed. I was then able to confirm it with Elton and Feros. Derek didn’t desert his companions, instead he covered for their retreat and fought the demons by himself. He even killed a greater demon in single combat and we rewarded him with scorn and suspicion.

“Even worse, over the last ten years we have allowed Jacob to steal from them and persecute them with impunity.”

He then looked to Rebekah, “Then after we wrongfully judged her grandson, Rebekah still came to the keep to heal Belany when her condition worsened last night. For all these reasons I speak for the clan when I say that I am sorry to you. We were wrong. The two of you are integral to our clan. Not only is Derek not guilty of desertion, but he is a real hero of the clan.

“From now on Rebekah’s family is no longer to be considered an external branch of the clan but an internal family. They are to be given the rights and privileges associated with their new position.”

He sighed, “I know that you were greatly wronged last night so I will not try to keep you. Just know that you still have a place here.”

Derek looked from the Patriarch to his grandmother and smiled at her. He knew that she had regretted being pushed out of the inner clan years ago by Jacob. She smiled back at him then turned to the patriarch and said, “Thank you for reinstating us but after the coming of age ceremony I intend to take my family to meet with my husband and live in Windreach for a while.”

The Patriarch nodded, “So be it. In the name of the Thorne Clan I decree: Elders Jacob and Tanner have been relieved of their roles as Elders for their crimes, Jacob Thorne’s whipping will commence tomorrow morning and proceed until completed, Tanner Thorne will be in seclusion until deemed worthy by the Ancestors, Rebekah Thorne’s family is elevated to an internal branch of the clan, and the Coming of Age Ceremony for Belany, Derek, Elton, Ferus, and Hector Thorne will commence on the night of the next full moon in a few short weeks! I hope we can all put this farce behind us and come together to celebrate the bright future these exceptional young talents are heralding for us!”