Contents
Chapter 20. Before: Maris
Overview
In a flashback, Maris and Luca’s clandestine relationship intensifies before a counterfeit Forum Record ignites public panic by alleging the celebrated harvest was a sham. Nej orders an emergency tribunal and mobilizes factions, while Seren recognizes the Consul’s vulnerability and the danger of losing control of Isara.
Summary
Maris meets Luca in a hidden colonnade, their attraction now a consuming, secret routine amid training and tribunals. She reflects on Luca’s hopeful intellect and agrees to see him the next day before hurrying to the Citadel for an errand from her mother, Magistrate Seren Casperia.
Inside the Hall of Scribes, Maris finds her uncle Nej at work and delivers Seren’s message. A swelling noise outside draws their attention to an unusual crowd in the plazas and bridges. Maris notices leaflets circulating that resemble the Forum Record, but the copies lack Isara’s seal and bear crude type.
When Nej reads the leaflet, his composure frays. Seren bursts in, furious, waving the same sheet. The counterfeit “Record” claims the paraded First Feast harvest was staged, hiding the truth that there was no real harvest. Maris asks if it could be true; neither answers, deepening her fear.
Recognizing the threat to public order and the Consul’s standing, Nej orders novice Drakon to summon Magistrate Matius and gather factions, insisting the Consul will call a tribunal within the hour. Seren protests that only the Consul can convene one, but Nej presses her to minimize damage and preserve control as unrest mounts.
As Seren fumes that this could end the Consul, Nej counters that he cannot be allowed to fall while the city’s grip loosens. The chapter closes with the factions being mobilized for an emergency tribunal, exposing the regime’s fragility and foreshadowing political upheaval.
Who Appears
- Maris CasperiaNarrator; secretly involved with Luca, witnesses counterfeit Record, and carries messages between Seren and Nej.
- NejMaris’s uncle and senior scribe; panics at the leaflet’s claims and organizes an emergency tribunal.
- Seren CasperiaMagistrate and Maris’s mother; outraged by the leaflet, sees the Consul endangered, prepares faction response.
- Luca MatiusMagistrate Matius’s heir; Maris’s secret lover, seen before the crisis erupts.
- DrakonNovice scribe; relays Nej’s orders to gather Magistrate Matius and the factions.