"I am Malric Solmar, victim of Revian Corvus' assault." Malric's tall stance made the long strips of white on his neck more prominent--bandages, discolored with a thin strand of violet. "He attacked me and my friends and then tried to feign ignorance and convinced his instructor that I was the one that--"
"Enough! We only seek introductions, not your individual cases. That will be ventured in due time." A wooden gavel banged against the hard metal that clung to the voice's seat.
The one to speak was another of the seated men, positioned just left of Beldrum. His hair was puffy, two fluffs of white curling inwards into his scalp.
"And you, Defendant?" the third person asked, his hair a trailing black that laced his shoulders.
Revian stepped forward, taking a moment to trace the expressions of Malric and his family, thinking on how exactly they perceived him.
While the mother had a fiery scorn that seemed as if it would leave to lash out at him at a single word misspoken, the father stood calm yet indignant, the tension in his limbs a crude reminder of whatever strength lied within him.
Revian didn't wish to step on the beast that laid inside, so he took one long exhale, quieting his rampaging heart.
"My name is Revian Corvus, better known as The Silent Knight," he said quietly, stepping back at the behest of Varek's hand on his shoulder.
The three above each nodded at his words, resting their voices for a moment to allow the tension to settle.
"Corvus, hm? Good, good," Beldrum spoke, raising his hand forward with clasped fingers, "then, let us begin the court proceedings."
Without warning, a blaring white flashed across the room, heating the room from its intense luminosity. Without so much as a single thought, Revian raised his hands forward in defense, allowing himself just enough space to keep his eyes open.
As the light died down, the object being materialized became conspicuous, surging in its ambient mana. It was a large projection, the source of its image a bright purple sphere.
The image flashed forward like light poking through a hole, turning to the hospital room that Revian'd originally awoken in.
"This is the location of which the Plaintiff claims they were assaulted," Beldrum echoed, pointing his finger to one location in particular, "where Revian is alleged to have rested after an arduous class trial."
Varek turned his head away in shame, a peculiar act that Revian didn't quite understand, but there were much more vital matters to attend to.
Revian could be seen where Beldrum's attention was directed, the sheets ruffling at his unconscious shuffling.
Just get to the point, he thought to himself, his cheeks blush from the embarrassment.
Like the scratching of a chalkboard, a sharp shrill resounded as the image panned forward in time, past when Class F had entered the premises, and just a little bit past where Malric had first appeared.
"Now, with the given context, we'll look into the order of events through Malric's physical memory." Beldrum stepped forward, tossing a thin panel with a label too far to read into the flaring purple powering the projection. It plopped, then assimilated within it, the point of view changing in an instant.
Before, the projection's video hovered in distant third-person, but the scope of its image constricted, two circles of black evidencing the perspective being within someone's eyesight.
"Hey, Revian, I've come to say that there's no hard feelings regarding my loss to you," the image rang, the voice clearly Malric's.
Revian's face squelched, his hands clenching against the absurd nature of the projection's retelling of events, but he didn't feel a need to speak out or arise any open contestation--not yet, anyway.
"Get lost," the injured Revian responded, throwing his arm forward to gesture his exit, "I don't take very kindly to trash."
"Why that--" Beatrice's roar of disapproval was accompanied by her jumping out from her seat, her left index finger pointed toward Revian. It was only with Iskandar's lazed restriction of her limbs that she sat back down.
The projection was uncaring for the intrusion of her voice, the conversation continuing its pace.
"Hey, we're friends here, Revian. I understand that you were brought down to Class F, but I just want you to know that Class A and Class B still value you. Trust me." Malric's words of approval were followed by agreeing nods from Drayden and Elias behind him.
"Is this really how it started?" Varek whispered, leaning into Revian's ear away from the mic.
"No."
Varek didn't respond with any follow-up questions, only looking back up with an even more intense glare, his gaze interlocking the towering man centered in the seat of three.
Revian looked to the corner of the hospital room, inquisitive of how accurate the memory had truly been. But once he saw that there was no Garron, he understood completely how dire the circumstances were now.
'No witness to testify for my side if he wasn't present, eh?'
"I don't give two damns what you, Class A, or any class thinks, I'll kill all of you the very same!" The projected Revian roared, reaching his hand for something by his side, "although, since you're already here, I suppose I could start now."
Malric chuckled at Revian's retort, convincing himself that he wasn't serious. But once he witnessed a long, protruding lance of black reveal itself from underneath Revian's sheets, he realized that there was no sarcasm in his words.
It was the sword that Revian'd used originally, its make the exact same.
Revian jumped forward without missing a beat, somersaulting past Malric to reach for his neck. The sharp of the blade pressed against skin, red trailing from its incision.
"Wh-what are you doing...?" Malric shook, the tremble in his hands leaving him without any sense to defend, "I-I mean, killing me? For what?"
"Malric!" Drayden and Elias roared. They shot their hands forward in retaliation to Revian's sudden assault, hoping to intercept him. But as the blood along Malric's neck began to waterfall instead of trickle, they withheld.
"Don't move, or I'll end his life here," Revian stated blankly, "you see, I find sport in killing, and wouldn't it just be nice to end the life of one as esteemed as Malric here?"
Revian laughed, taking a moment to bask in the glory. It was only for a split-second, but his eyes aimed at the ceiling, his attention split.
An invisible gripping force held onto Revian's limbs, stealing him of animation and grasping his hands. His sword clattered against the floor from his loosened grip, any air in his lungs getting crushed out from the tightening of muscle.
Crash!
Slamming against the opposite side of the room where the door was, he fell into the same spot that Garron had been when entrapped in chains. Taking this opportunity, Malric raised his hand forth, his magic vying with the air to produce the very same black striations.
It pressed into Revian's chest, causing his eyes to roll back in sheer agony. Eventually, red splattered from its effects, revealing the wounds that Revian now possesses.
After Revian's deathly hallows stopped resounding, Malric crouched down in frantic anxiety. His hand pressed against his wounded neck, the fear in his eyes so gripping that neither Drayden, nor Elias had anything to say.
"Thank you, Elias, I might've died had you not saved me," he expressed half-heartedly, trying to bite back his terror.
With a simple 'fwip', the projection ended, the purple orb dissipating back into the atmosphere to leave only silence in the room.
"This is Malric's recounting of events," Beldrum spoke, "retrieved through physical memory. Does the defendant have any issues with how it was displayed?"