(103) Memories – 5

This evening seemed to be a series of furiously heated conversations punctuated by brief moments of contemplative silence.  This, however, was one of those heated moments.

“Yes,” Kre snapped.  “I killed him.  I killed Ser Sandiscoot.  He is dead by my hand.  I slew him.  I murdered him.  He is no longer with us because I took his life before it was his time.

“How many more ways are you going to make me say it?”  He slumped down in his chair sullenly.  “I’m guilty of the most heinous act in the world.”

Red shook her head, “No.  I’m sorry if my words angered you.  That was not my intent.  What I meant to say was that Ser Sandiscoot died many years ago.  The man you killed could not have been him.”

“I don’t understand,” Kre said, leaning forward in his seat, elbows on his knees.  “I don’t even… I mean… how would you know that?”

The red-haired woman swore a curse under her breath and tapped a finger on her glass.  “I just can’t ever learn to shut it, can I?” she muttered.

“How much do you actually know about the Dragon Knights?” Kitalia asked, seeming to change the subject.

“Well, as much as anyone knows, I suppose.”

“What you mean,” she smirked, “is that you know only what you are told.”  She took a deep breath and nodded.  “This is going to take a while.”

Red shook her head, “Perhaps we should start fresh in the morning.  I need to consider exactly what to say and how to say it.”

“You could just go with the truth.  Besides, you can’t leave something like that just hanging out there.  How do you know about Ser Sandiscoot and how do you know that he’s not the same man that I killed?”

“That… that is the longest part of the story, I’m afraid,” Red sighed.  She had this look of utter defeat on her face, as if the very topic had completely drained her.  “We really should wait until we’re all rested up.”

“Could you sum it up for me now, the down and dirty version, and then we can do the long version tomorrow?  I honestly don’t think I can sleep with that kind of information hanging over my head.

“I spent every minute after that horrible night feeling guilt over killing my friend.  A man who probably sacrificed his own life for mine in that moment.  A man who had achieved the pinnacle of honor and greatness in the eyes of the people all over Tehyn.  A Dragon Knight.  Then, I come here after dealing with half-crazed Rangers and a fully crazed elf gir… er… woman only to have you tell me that the only part of that night that I remember with any clarity whatsoever, the moment that the blue-eyed lady called him by his true name, his knight’s name… that moment was a complete lie.”

“That is not in the records,” Kitalia said angrily, pulling the sheets out of her pack and scanning them furiously.  “There is no mention of… of a woman there that night.”

Kre looked up at the ceiling and closed his eyes.  He bit his lip to keep from cursing the name of Braun Osser out loud.  Inwardly, he wished a horrible death for that man.  That conniving, scheming, petty little man that probably rewrote the entire trial in his notes to be nothing but damning for Kre.

“If she was there,” Red murmured softly, her brows furrowed in puzzlement and deep thought, “then… could it be?”

“Look,” Kre said, coming to his feet.  “Just tell me one thing, and I’ll let the rest sit until tomorrow morning.  Just tell me why you think Ser Terync Sandiscoot was already dead.”

“Because, dear boy,” Red responded, her eyes burrowing deep into his own, “I was there when he died.”

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