1 Judgment

In a huge dimly lit room, an apprehensive crowd of people patiently waits for something. The room, or rather the hall, could comfortably accommodate more than 100 people in the cozy seats in the audience. But the number of people in the room far exceeds that number.

Despite having place and chair for 100 people, the hall seemed to be beyond capacity. The reason: apparently each person brought at least one companion. Others, even 3 people had by their side.

But no one was bothered by the lack of comfort at this point. Everyone's attention was on the stage, which was the best lit spot in the entire room.

The stage at this time, unlike the audience, looked empty and quiet, a little ironic, since the entire audience's attention was focused only there. However, only 3 motionless people could be seen on the stage, but because they were standing still for so long, they didn't even seem to be there.

3 men, two of them are standing at the back of the stage, as if they want to stay out of sight. These two are big, strong men with green colored skin.

They wear apparently fragile armor, but it is a mistake that attentive eyes easily perceive. And despite being large, their weapons are relatively small, nothing more than a set of dual swords for each of them.

The third person is a thin man with golden hair and white skin. Kneeling in the middle of the stage, he doesn't look tall or strong. His disheveled hair and stubble clearly show the hardship and lack of care this man has gone through.

He's so thin his ribs look like they're popping out of their skin, his eyes are unfocused and dull, his skin is dry and peeling of desidratation. And despite being in such a deplorable state, no one seems to pity of him.

Maybe it's because of the handcuffs that bind his wrists and that mark him as someone who has committed a crime and is awaiting his trial. However, even criminals seem to have someone to pray for them, but this man doesn't seem to have anyone to do this for him.

No, being a criminal is not the reason for such insensitivity. The real reason is the mark on both of his forearms. A mark that apparently means nothing, just a small emblem of an old house. But everyone in the room knows that what matters is not the brand itself, but what it stands for and who carries it.

A wolf howling at the sun is the emblem's design. It is said to be the emblem of Ancient House Solis, an ancient house of Archdukes, but for some reason, 400 years ago it was destroyed. Today only the ruins of its headquarters and some documents that reveal its greatness of the past remain.

In modern times, a military organization has the right to use this emblem to mark some of its most important and honored members. This organization was founded by the first Archduke Solis, Sekemeth Solis, 768 years ago. But at some point the organization ended up cutting ties with House Solis.

Because it is such an old military organization, its deeds, conquests, accomplishments, successes and exploits are known throughout the world. The whole world has respect, reverence, esteem, fear and envy for the organization and all who are part of it.

But what did this man do to be in his current situation?

"SILENCE"

A loud voice soft and sweet but with unwavering firmness cuts through all the noise in the hall at once.

Soon, a fourth person appears on stage. A black woman positions herself a little on the edge of the stage. She is tall, as tall as the two warriors nearby, but not as strong as they are, and not as well armed.

She wears nothing but comfortable pants and a sleeveless white bluse with a turtleneck jacket, looking like she just walked out with the dog and decided into in the Hall by chance. Nobody noticed when she arrived, apparently she came out of nowhere and that certainly shouldn't happen.

"I didn't want to be here, he didn't want to be here and neither did you guys want to be here... But here we are, so let's get this over with."

She says pointing to herself, then to the kneeling man and then to the audience. Apparently, she's here to coordinate the upcoming event.

"Let's start with introductions. I'm Helena Alekseeva, Executive Director and General of Arms of Babel. I'm here to lead the judgment, cordinate the negociations and pass sentence on prisoner 365329, known as Apolo Kairis, for the crime of desertion and failure to comply with direct orders of the high command."

As soon as she finished speaking, she waved at the two guards. Then the two moved, one of the men went to the corner of the stage and grabbed a chair and brought it close to the man known as Apollo. The other guard helped Apollo to position himself correctly in the chair and gave him an injection in one of his arms.

Soon, Apollo's eyes began to water and twitch, the veins began to swell and stand out under the skin until twitching and twitching could be seen in various muscles of the body.

"No, no, no, no, no... Please leave me alone, i don't want this anymore, that's enough."

Low murmurs began to be heard, pleas of someone dying who just wants someone to end their suffering so they can rest in peace. Like someone who has lost everything and no longer sees any reason to continue his suffering, miserable and despicable existence.

It was this kind of appeal that everyone in the room heard, but even so, no one felt remorse or pity, on the contrary, some people started to feel angry.

"My son died because of you, you bastard. He was 13 and he died because of you."

A female rose from her chair and screamed, her voice burning with rage. But before other people could do the same, Helena intervened:

"The next one who breaks the rules and causes disorder in the court will be expelled and duly punished."

Everyone remained silent and had no intention of challenging his authority.

"Apollo Kairis, I ask that you pull yourself together and try your best not to resist the effects of those drugs applied to your body. They are a mixture of tranquilizers and specific hormone inhibitors for you to relax and focus only on what we are going to ask you. Are you understanding me?"

"I understand Aleks. *Urghhh* what a terrible pain... But first, I want to know where I am and what the date is today. *Ahh* I also want know what my crimes are. And *Ahhh* for the love of *Urghh * GOD, give me something for this pain"

"Lord Kairis, I ask you not to be intimate with the people around you if you don't want that your situation will get even worse. As for your questions, We are in the Supreme Court of the Kingdom of Svalbart, on the 23rd of the 7th month of the year 1343 of the calendar of the Thanax Empire. You were captured 3 months after disobeying direct superior orders to intercept and destroy a shipment of explosives intended to destroy a government facility responsible for training and educating children and youth from poor families. As far as we know, 44 children and young people died in the explosion and 103 were injured. And the pain will soon pass, this is a signal that the medicine is starting to work."

After explaining the situation to Apollo, Helena moves towards him, staying a few steps away, her eyes looking straight into his eyes as if looking for something.

And then she finds it, a glow she remembers he always had, but now it's too dim. The twinkle in the eyes of the man she admired and wanted to always have around to ask for advice, listen to lessons, be scolded, have fun, cry, sing and be silent.

However, she no longer feels kindness towards him, she feels that she has been betrayed, that everything she believed in was a complete lie. She also notes that despite being very poorly maintained, her beauty remains, but that doesn't matter to her. She just wants to know one thing.

"What do you have to say in your defense?"

Apollo can hear it in the spark of hope in her voice, but as much as he wants to say something to his best student, he doesn't know if it will work. If he's sure of anything, it's that Babel leaves no loose ends. And the wolf emblem howling at the sun on Helena's forearms is enough for him not to compromise his judgment.

But how the hell did he end up in court after all he's done for Babel? After 40 years he knows how Babel works, so he's sure that situation dont are so simple how like seems. Something or someone very powerful is behind the scenes, and that someone has something special against Apollo.