Chapter 18: The Trial of the Caralid Family… plus one twipstrider

What Kejo couldn’t figure out was why the tailless slugs hadn’t taken their caravamel away from them. Instead they had been led, caravamel and all into a dark and large chamber.

Well, dark as the deepest and most ominous depths apart from the shine of a number of blue eyes.

These eyes were slightly larger than the eyes of the other tailless slugs, but then, overseers of the tailless slugs tend to be larger. Something about the stress of leadership had a tendency to cause their kind to bulk up. Naturally this means that any leader that doesn’t start getting bigger than his subjects is viewed with distrust by those same subjects.

The eyes stared at them, and whispers were passed back and forth.

One of the sets of eyes swayed a bit and there was a loud bang, following it was a confident if quite snide voice.

<Order! As Chairseer I call Order! This meeting of the Overseers of True Slug’s Forgehome of Released Opal has come together in Grand Azure’s name! Logseer! What is the log?>

The was a wooden rattling and another pair of eyes swayed, the voice that followed this time was simpering and servile.

<Huuu, yes, the log reads that this meeting is a trial of some interlopers to our glorious mines and forgehome!>

<How boring>

<I got up for this?>

<Disturbed my earth studies>

<Why are they even here?>

<Can’t we just throw them in a cell and forget about it?>

<Sounds like a good idea>

<Yes, then I can go back to sleep>

<Sleeping sounds good>

This chatter of discontentment continued for a while until there was another loud bang.

<Order! As Chairseer I call order! We will not be doing any of those things, as logical and calm people, we will follow our laws to the letter!>

There were murmurs of assent to this. Apart from sleeping, being seen to be logical and calm was something these blue eyed tailless slugs loved.

<The log also reads several other matters are to be attended to, such as the state of disrepair the ancestral gate guardians are in…>

Another loud bang resounded.

<The letter of the law is good, but logically we should bear in mind the weakness of our flesh and mind, we shall devote efforts to this trial of the interlopers and then adjourn for luncheon>

A sound like a balloon deflating came from the logseer, following that sound was a different voice to the one belonging to the logseer. This voice was calm as a lake, a deep lake, one which had many deadly fish lurking beneath its waters.

<Well, now that everything is sorted, I, Accuserseer well take over the proceedings>

There was murmurs of assent.

<I love this job> Accuserseer whispered.

<Unfamiliar denizens, state your full names, titles and species!>

“Kejo of the Caralid Family, caravamel guard, Frulid” Kejo announced, far too intimidated not to.

“Ismi of the Caralid Family, caravamel mistress, Frulid” Ismi didn’t see any profit in opposing the Accuserseer.

“Yerdl of the Caralid Family, caravamel merchant, Frulid” Yerdl wasn’t about to anger these seemingly calm tailless slugs.

<Hmmmmm, Frulids? I’ve never heard of such a creature, perhaps you are red eyes in disguise, sent to cause disorder and ruin in our forgehome!> Accuserseer mused.

<Oh, Frulids, I think I read about one of those before! I think they are supposed to be really tasty or something like that>

<Tasty?>

<Well, we were going to adjourn for luncheon>

[Sorry about this being a day late, but hey, here it is]