Noty

Noty
Outpost Dark Ritualist
he / him


The tension was tangible. Noty could hear the guard shifting nervously to his right, the plates of her armor cluttering slightly. He kept his gaze straight forward, focused on the wall. There was nothing to see there, nothing but wood and stone, but that was not what mattered. What mattered was that they had tried to intimidate him with muscles and weapons… and now he intimidated them with silence and a calm stare.

At least it was calm he was projecting. Inside, he was in turmoil. They had arrested him at his home, held him captive in the sad excuse of a cell they had set up in a hurry, and now dragged him in front of a council… Enough to make one’s blood boil, but even worse that they did not bring him his research. All of his notes, his books, his experiments… A shudder ran down his spine when he imagined the fools going through his notes and books, once neatly stacked and organized, now tossed around by heathen hands. They did not understand the power this knowledge held, and they were too dumb or too scared to try.

Steps became audible and ever so slowly, Noty turned his head to face the newcomer. He barely managed to suppress a wince when his eyes met the bright cyan eyes of Fausto. The expression of his old friend was one of sadness, but also of steely determination. Unlike the guards, Fausto held Noty’s gaze.

“It is time”, Fausto said, his deep voice cold in tone. Never before had three of his words weighed so heavily on Noty’s shoulders. Noty nodded slightly and rose to his feet, immediately alerting the two guards that suddenly received a boost in confidence with their leader in the room. They pointed their spears at Noty in a desperate attempt to wield authority, but he ignored them. Instead, he simply followed Fausto. He could feel the guards stepping up behind him, confused on how they should deal with their prisoner. It was not often the clan had prisoners… if ever. It could very well be that Noty was their first… but it did barely matter. His shackles clanked on the ground, the chains rustled. He was a prisoner now and his fate was about to be decided by those that awaited him ahead.

Noty knew the room well that Fausto led him into, he had been here countless times. But today, it felt different. Oppressing, crushing. Where usually, the clan leaders would decide about the daily matters within the clan, today they held the assizes. The clan leaders’ gazes were turned towards them, Anju in the middle with the black wolf as always by her side. Her bright eyes pierced into his from across the room. Noty had thought he had managed to calm his nerves, but now, his heart was in his throat again.

Fausto signed him to wait in the middle of the room before taking his place to Anju’s right. For a short moment, silence fell in the room, a silence in which Noty could feel the gazes of those present digging into his skin. He barely managed to remain still, to keep his nervosity from showing. After what felt like an eternity, Anju raised her voice. She did not take her eyes of him as she spoke.

“Noty, you stand here before this council to receive judgment for your deeds. You are accused of making use of dark and forbidden magic, of studying demonic workings and evil powers, and thus posing a severe danger to the clan and all of its members. The evidence presented before this council are notes and books taken from your study, with no doubt that they were in your possession. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”

Lifting his chin slightly, Noty returned Anju’s piercing gaze with as much dignity as he could muster while standing in front of her in chains.

“I am a scholar”, he replied, calmly. “an arcanist. You knew this when I joined your ranks. All this time you benefited from my knowledge and my skills without questioning them… and suddenly, you turn on me because this knowledge is dangerous and forbidden?”

“Had we known what powers you make use of”, he was interrupted by Esche, “rest assured that we would not have called upon you.”

Noty opened his mouth for a rebuttal, but Anju raised her claw in a call for silence.

“Esche’s words, as blunt as they might be, hold truth. You do not deny your interest in dark magic, or your research into demonic matters. We cannot accept such dangerous doings in our midst.”

Anju turned towards the other council members, who gave her a short nod. Then she rose to her full size, towering above Noty and casting a shadow onto him.

“Hereby the council declares you an exile. You are no longer a member of the clan and are not entitled to shelter, protection, or companionship. You will leave the Wildgrass Valley at the break of dawn tomorrow. Your belongings you might take, however we will destroy all those that hold any connection to the evil forces you tampered with…”

“You can’t…”, Noty exclaimed, but the black wolf on Anju’s side jumped to his feet and growled threateningly. Noty fell silent again, but wrath burned in his chest.

“And that is the verdict of the council”, Anju ended. Suddenly, a bit of softness mixed into her gaze and her voice grew softer. “I am sorry it ends like that, friend.”

Noty blinked at her, the corners of his mouth twitching into a snarl. But he did not say anything. Instead, he took a short breath, gave the council a nod, and turned around. He ignored the guards by the door, ignored the clanking of the chains on the ground. In his heart, the anger was boiling.

Friend… ridiculous. They did not understand. No one did. What kind of friend would exile him for his curiosity, his desire to comprehend? If this is what friendship meant to them, Noty had no need for any of them. He was destined for greater things, he knew it… and all he needed was a group of dragons that shared his desires.


Written by Shariza

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Old dragons are Flight Rising's legacy! Please don't exalt old dragons!