Chapter 18

“While I am away, see that you do everything within your power to protect the Tree of Life. No harm must come to her. The person who dares to do her harm must deal with me.”

The Guardian’s Instructions, penned by Rigel Knotsworth, year 1002

Replacement

Kimberly closed her eyes and took a minute to calm her breathing. Slow. Deep. Breaths.

She was nervous.

It was the day of the Debate, and she had an unsettled feeling in her stomach that maybe she was ill-prepared or unpracticed. The breathing helped. Confident and determined, she thought. Confident and determined.

She took a seat at her marble table and drank from her glass of water. Glancing around, she noted how peculiar it was to see the courtroom so empty. Behind her, the pews that were normally filled with important spectators were now completely unoccupied. The lack of drones buzzing through the air made the large room seem larger than it was, like a grave that was dug too wide and too deep. Instead of drones, an old-fashioned camera was placed on a tripod in the back of the room to simply record, not broadcast, the Debate.

Without Oliver around to challenge Kimberly's request for a completely private Debate, the Justices acquiesced. ​

The Justices were just arriving on the stand at the front of the courtroom. They seemed to filter in two by two, shaking hands, patting shoulders, and laughing with each other over small talk. Kimberly spotted Justice Cratine, the only Justice among the seven who belonged to an Arboler sect. She was a gray-haired, thin woman with eyeglasses and a small chin. Kimberly knew she would vote for the Arbolers but was unsure about the rest. Justice Mallen believes in the Arboler cause even though he's a Secular, she thought. Justice Kyrus and Justice Corvel seem to be on the fence. They are the ones I need to persuade.

After the debate, the Justices would meet and vote on their own. And it was Kimberly's goal to get at least four of them to side with the Arbolers. That was a challenge because the majority of them were Seculars. The chances of winning the debate were slim.

Stop it! Kimberly thought. We can win. Stay confident. Stay determined. We can win.

The fact that most of the Justices were Seculars reflected what was happening in the Salverian society because they were nominated and elected by popular vote. Before the year 4000, most, if not all, of the Justices were Arbolers. The concern then was from what sects did the Justices come; the Ascendists, Reborns, and Servants of Life were constantly battling for sovereignty. But after the millennium year, with no Appearance by the Guardian, all that changed. The Seculars grew in number and so did the number of Secular Justices.

All the Justices had arrived. Chief Justice Sapel took his place at the marble pulpit, looking down at his drone, swiping its wide screen as if he were turning digital pages. The Debate hadn't begun, but it was about to.

Kimberly looked around. Where is my opponent?

She still didn't know who the Seculars had chosen as Oliver's replacement. They were obviously hesitant to choose one because there were still no leads to finding Oliver. No security footage. No ransom note. No body in the river. It was as if he vanished into thin air.

Kimberly tapped her fingernails on the marble table, her nervousness and impatience seeping in. She mentally went over her arguments, trying to make sure she wouldn't miss a single detail. Her focus was on the original law and the freedom of religion. She hoped the Justices would see her point of view. No, she was certain they would.

"Confident and determined," she whispered to herself, taking another deep breath.

The courtroom doors behind her opened and a man walked in, Oliver's replacement. Kimberly turned to see, her pulse racing... and groaned.

Terick Oakley strode between the metal pews with a briefcase in his right hand and a menacing smirk on his lips. He stared straight at Kimberly, waiting to see a dissatisfied reaction.

He got one.

Kimberly puckered her lips and narrowed her eyes at him, shooting him the coldest glare she could muster. She did not like this man. Unfortunately, she knew him better than most. They used to be friends back when she and Oliver were dating, but when she decided to join the Arbolers, he mocked her relentlessly and even mocked Oliver for dating one. All because of his hate toward the Arbolers and their beliefs. The Seculars could not have chosen a Branch Leader that could get any farther under Kimberly's skin than him. They chose well.

"Ah, Mr. Oakley," Sapel said. "You're here. Good. Everyone, settle in and get ready. We will begin in five minutes."

Terick walked straight up to Kimberly and extended a hand. "It's an honor getting to argue with you in an official setting, Kim. May the best Branch Leader win."

She looked at his hand and then back up at him, keeping her hands at her sides. "I intend to." She turned her direction back to the front of the courtroom, ignoring him.

Terick chuckled. "Oh, I see how it is." He lowered his voice. "You know you're fighting a losing battle, right? The Justices have already decided how they're going to vote on this; all you've managed to do is delay their decisions a little by setting up a shooting last week and kidnapping Oliver."

"I did not kidnap Oliver," she whispered furiously.

He gave her a flat stare. "So you say. But just you wait. Now that I'm the Secular Branch Leader, there might be some changes going on around Magen City."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "You'll have to wait and see. First things first; I have to trounce you in the courtroom."

She turned away from him, biting her tongue. He's trying to make me angry, she told herself. Don't let him.

"Not too difficult," he said. "All I have to do is be here and say my lines, and they'll still flaming vote against you."

She stared straight ahead, clenching her teeth. Ignoring him completely. He chuckled again and sat down in his padded, metal chair.

I can't let his words get to me, she thought. I can win this. There is a chance. I can't give up. I can't get angry. She closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath. "Confident and determined," she whispered to herself. "And calm."

Sapel thumped his metal mallet. "Alright," he said. "Let us begin."