“Ladies and gentlemen! Please! Come to order!” The Magistrate banged his gavel on the podium in an almost futile attempt to gain the attention of the members of the Judiciary. The nobles and guild leaders continued to talk amongst themselves, ignoring the Magistrate’s pleas to come to order and begin the Judiciary meeting.
It had been over a year since Monsieur Jacques Halceux, head of the silversmiths guild, had brought a motion to the floor to remove the Night Court from the Judiciary. The Judiciary would hear arguments for both sides and determine if it was finally time for a vote, or if even more time was necessary to make the critical decision.
The argument was as old as Terre d’Ange itself. The Court of the Night Blooming Flowers held a seat on both the Council of Religious Orders and City Judiciary, and guild leaders argued again and again that this gave the Night Court undue influence in government. And circumstances in the City of Elua were perhaps turning the tide in favor of the guild leaders’ case.
The longstanding relationship between the newly crowned King Gustav de Courcel and Odilia, Second of Dahlia House, and the notion that she advised the king on more than just the baubles she preferred, lent credence to the idea of courtesans holding more sway than was appropriate. Today, a special visitor joined Aliksandria nó Cereus, Dowayne of Cereus House, on the side of the Night Court. Sitting tall and regal was Odilia nó Dahlia herself, looking ready to do battle.
Across the room, one man did not engage in idle chatter. He sat, the instigator of this fight, his gaze fixed pointedly on the two members of the Night Court: Jacques Halceaux, head of the Silversmiths Guild. A man of middling years, he had clearly once been handsome, but his work had worn his body down and grayed his hair; bitterness turned his face an unattractive mask. He hunched forward in his chair, scowling, elbows on his knees, hands clenching a silver tipped cane.
Once again the Magistrate cried desperately for order. This time, he succeeded. “My dear ladies and gentlemen!” he thundered, “I beg you to come to order so that we may begin our business and not languish here all day!”
Slowly the chatter died down and the guild leaders and nobles took their seats with sidelong glances towards the two courtesans. Night Court trained both, one would have thought they sat in a Palace salon awaiting an assignation for the grace and composure they both displayed. One would never know that their futures hung in the balance.
“We are gathered,” the Magistrate said, sounding ever so slightly impatient, “in the hopes that this issue raised as to the Night Court Guild’s presence on this Judiciary may finally be decided. Too long have we delayed this vote for reasons of varying validity, but so help me Blessed Elua, today will bring it to an end one way or another!”
Aliksandria turned her head to Odilia, looking to gauge her resolve. This was the largest attendance she had ever seen in this hall; clearly many in the city wanted to see what the outcome would be.
Aliksandria took a deep breath and rose. “My lord Magistrate, you asked me these many months gone by how the Night Court responded to Monsieur Halceaux’s proposal. I spoke the truth when I told you that, while I may be the Night Court’s representative on this body, I am not its leader. I am, however, the leader of Cereus House, and as such, I can speak for her. As the governing body of the trade guilds, this body has the power to make changes to Guild Laws and regulations. Without a voice in such matters, I simply do not see how we could continue to operate as the trade guild we are, governed by Guild Law. And as anyone who has visited Mandrake or Valerian House knows -” She paused and looked pointedly at several of the guild masters, “- Guild Law protects the very lives of some of our adepts. So, without laws to protect our adepts, I fail to see any way that we could continue to conduct trade. Cereus House would, regrettably, be forced to close its doors.”
Her hands would have been shaking if she had not grasped them so tightly as she waited.
This was an unexpected play, a bold play by the Cereus Dowayne and no few of the other Guild leaders murmured to each other, casting furtive looks between the courtesans and the leader of the Silversmith Guild. That was certainly enough to give them pause as to this venture; was it enough to cow him?
The door to the chamber, which had been closed when the Magistrate called the meeting to order, flew open. A woman of middle years, upright in posture and strong in determination, with hair the color of a Cassiline’s sword, walked in. Jocaste nó Dahlia took her place next to her Second and spoke in a clear and resonant voice, “Dahlia House echoes the sentiments of Cereus House.”
Behind her, Xixilya nó Orchis flounced in, a grin on her face, “Orchis House agrees with Cereus and Dahlia.”
Kali nó Mandrake marched up, stood next to Aliksandria, and proclaimed, “Mandrake House stands with her sisters.” One by one, all 13 Dowaynes of the Night Court entered the chamber and swore the same, that they would close their doors before they would violate the sacred call of their order.
The Magistrate let out a breath as the last Dowayne, Philomena nó Heliotrope, finished. He waved to a servant to close the door, but as he did so, he found resistance. An older woman, well into her twilight years and leaning heavily on a cane walked in, leading a line of men and women so long they did not all fit in the room. She was D’Angeline and, as such beautiful, but one could tell by her carriage and bearing that she was not now, nor had she ever been, of the Night Court. She walked up the aisle, passing the Dowaynes and stopped in the center of the chamber. She cleared her throat and spoke. “Naamah’s Servants of the City of Elua who do not reside on Mont Nuit wish to have their voices heard as well. In this hall, you have made many decisions over the years that have affected us without deigning to acknowledge that we also ply Naamah’s trade. But know this, should a king or prince find himself on my doorstep, I would not turn him away either. We stand with Mont Nuit. No Servant of Naamah in this city will ply the trade without proper representation.”
to be continued…
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