I turn mypissed offon him. “What the fuck was that?” I demand, each word punctuated by a step toward him.
He holds his hands up in aplease hear me outgesture. “This is how the tribunal is selected. There was no way to know who the source would call. Your Chosen has been selected, that’s all that was.”
I pause, baffled by what the hell he just said. “What?” I snap.
Tawv’s gaze softens. “The source selects the Sentinels it decides are best suited for the task. That’s what the light does. It finds the person that’s right and calls them to duty. I am surprised that it selected one not of our kind, but the source has spoken, and it cannot be undone.”
I glare at him.
“You have my word, Sentinel, that until the tribunal makes a decision, you and yours will not be harmed here.”
“Well, that would have been nice to fucking know before you shot a fluorescent snow globe at my Chosen,” I thunder at him. “Next time give us the respect of telling us what’s going on. Or I won’t give you the respect of not retaliating when you touch what’s mine!” I threaten, pointing at him with my short sword.
“You have our apologies, Sentinel,” Sauriel offers, and I glare at him, Suryn, and Tawv for a moment longer before I let my sword disappear and step back to my guys.
I meet Sabin’s gaze, and he gives me a small smile and a reassuring nod.
“So Sabin now decides our fate?” Ryker asks clearly, as confused by this turn of events as the rest of us are.
“No, Sabin is one offivethat will make a ruling on what is to happen with Suryn, her Marked, and with you,” Tawv corrects.
“And how does that work?” Sabin questions, stepping forward and rubbing at the place in his chest the orb thingy just flew through.
“The five tribunal members will partake in a fact finding mission. You will interview others, take the laws of Tierit into account and then decide whether the Sovereign’s order should be upheld or a new order decreed.”
“And I’m just allowed to be a part of this even though I’m also on trial here?” Sabin asks.
“It is unorthodox, I will agree, but as I stated before, the source chooses, and that is that. You have been selected, and therefore you will work with four others to come to a decision about what’s best for Tierit and the Sentinels and Marked in question.”
“So it’s like a trial?” I query, making sure I understand all of this correctly.
“In a way,” Sauriel answers. “There will be five tribunal members that make the ultimate decision. But you are also allowed a representative for each party in question in attendance. The representative is permitted to ask questions and present information to the tribunal to help them reach a decision.”
“The other tribunal members will arrive shortly,” Tawv declares. “They will be set up in a room and begin doing their duty immediately. Do you have a representative you would like to also be included in the proceedings?”
My first response is to shout outme, but I pause and turn to the other guys to see what they think.
“So any of you moonlight as a lawyer in your past?” I ask, the question light and flippant, which is the exact opposite of what I feel right now.
Hollow laughter sounds off around me, and then everyone goes quiet in contemplation.
“I can do it,” Torrez offers. “I can smell emotions, which might come in handy somehow. I’ve also participated in interrogations as pack Beta, so there’s that.”
The way Torrez saysinterrogationsimmediately makes me curious. I make a note to find out more about that later. The other guys all voice their agreement.
“So do we also get a representative?” Kallan asks Tawv.
We all look up at the Quorum member, waiting for his response.
“Suryn of the Second has selected Sauriel of the Second to serve as her representative. As her Marked, her representative automatically covers you as well,” Tawv states.
“Oh good, we’ve been allocated as property,” Kallan snarks.
“There are worse things than being claimed,” Sabin reassures him.
“Yeah, like being executed,” Knox adds jovially.
I snort out a laugh.
