‘What?’ Grandpa Smedry said. ‘Antagonize him by throwing him out, and you could destroy the castle itself! We’ll just have to see if he calms down. His Talent can be very unpredictable when he’s emotional.’
I could see what Grandpa Smedry was doing. I hesitated, then focused my power, trying to further crack the glass at my feet. It was an extremely foolhardy thing to do. That’s what made it exactly the sort of plan Grandpa Smedry would come up with.
The spiderwebs at my feet grew larger. I steadied myself by touching the wall, and immediately created a ring of cracks around my hand.
‘Wait!’ one of the knights exclaimed. ‘I’ll go in and ask if you can enter!’
Grandpa Smedry beamed. ‘What a nice fellow,’ he said, taking my arm, stopping me from breaking more. The knight opened the door, stepping inside.
‘Did we really just blackmail a Knight of Crystallia?’ I asked under my breath.
‘Two of them, I believe,’ Grandpa Smedry said. ‘And it was really more “intimidation” than it was “blackmail.” Maybe with a twist of “extortion.” It’s always best to use the proper terminology!’
The knight returned, then – with a sigh – gestured for us to enter the chamber. We walked in eagerly.
And then Grandpa Smedry exploded.
11
Okay, so he didn’t really explode. I just wanted you to turn the page really fast.
You see, if you turn the pages quickly, you might rip one of them. If you do that, then – obviously – you’ll want to go buy another copy of the book. Who wants one with a ripped page? Not you. You have refined tastes.
In fact, think of all the wonderful ways you can use this book. It will make an excellent coaster. You could also use it as building material. Or you could frame the pages as art. (After all, each page is a perfect work of art. Look at 56. Exquisite.)
Obviously, you need lots of copies. One isn’t enough. Go buy more. Have you forgotten that you need to fight the Librarians?
Anyway, after getting done not exploding, Grandpa Smedry went into the chamber. I followed, expecting to find a courtroom. I was surprised to find only a simple wooden table with three knights sitting behind it. Bastille stood by the far wall, at attention, hands at her sides, staring straight ahead. The three knights at the table weren’t even looking at her as they decided her punishment.
One of the knights was a masculine, burly man with an enormous chin. He was dangerous in an ‘I’m a knight, and I could totally kill you’ sort of way.
Next to him was Bastille’s mother, Draulin, who was dangerous in an ‘I’m Bastille’s mother, and I could also kill you’ sort of way.
The third one was an elderly, bearded knight who was dangerous in a ‘Stop playing your rap music so loud, you darn kids! Plus, I could kill you too’ sort of way.
Judging by their expressions, they were not happy to see my grandfather and me. ‘Lord Smedry,’ the man with the chin said, ‘Why have you interrupted these proceedings? You know you have no authority here.’
‘If I let that stop me, I’d never have any fun!’ Grandpa Smedry said.
‘This is not about fun, Lord Smedry,’ Bastille’s mother said. ‘It’s about justice.’
‘Oh, and since when has it been “just” to punish someone for things that were not their fault?’
‘We are not looking at fault,’ said the aged knight. ‘If a knight is incapable of protecting his or her charges, then that knight must be removed from his or her station. It is not young Bastille’s fault if we promoted her too quickly and—’
‘You didn’t promote her too quickly,’ I snapped. ‘Bastille is the most amazing knight in your ranks.’
‘And you know much about the knights in our ranks, young Smedry?’ the aged knight asked.
He was right. I felt a little foolish – but then when has that ever stopped a Smedry?
‘No,’ I admitted. ‘But I do know that Bastille has done a fantastic job of protecting my grandfather and me. She’s an excellent soldier – I saw her go head-to-head with one of the Scrivener’s Bones and hold her own with only a dagger. I’ve seen her take down two Librarian thugs before I could even finish blinking.’
‘She lost her sword,’ Draulin said.
‘So?’ I demanded.
‘It’s the symbol of a Knight of Crystallia,’ Big Chin said.