Dragon Heartstring(38)
“Yes. Of course.”
“I thought your head might be spinning from that kiss you just received.”
“What?” whispered Jessen, nudging into the conversation. “What kiss? Someone kissed you?”
“Um, yes. Your brother.” I glanced to the left to find him sitting in the front row for officials. He gave me a small smile.
“Stars above,” said Jessen. “I suppose the world is coming to an end.”
“No,” I assured her. “It’s only getting better.”
“We shall see,” said Aunt Asheera.
Members of Parliament sat at the front of the room in a semi-circle with the five members of the Proposal Council at their center.
She leaned closer and added, “After today.”
We settled into our seats at the front table, Jessen to my left, Aunt Asheera, my father, and ten other clansmen seated to my right.
The hearing council was made up of five senior Parliament members. And while other members had the power to sway the council, these five men held all the cards when it came to enacting new laws and doctrines.
The council head, Tennison, cracked his gavel on the wood three times. “Hear ye, hear ye. The hearing will begin at the close of chamber doors.”
*
Shakara looked steady until she turned toward the chamber doors, her eyes widening. Aron Grayson had slipped in right before the iron doors closed, which signaled the beginning of a parliamentary hearing. He made his late arrival and sauntered forward, staring daggers at both Shakara and my sister. With Morgon senses, Lucius seemed to hone in on him. I’m sure he caught the bastard’s scent the second he arrived. But Aron had more to fear from me than Lucius in my current state of mind. Aron was fortunate I trusted my friend Max to deal with him regarding his bodyguard. I also knew that if I dared to attack Aron personally, it could interfere with this hearing and the passing of this proposal. I refused to let that happen and give the damned man a moment of satisfaction.
Tennison cleared his throat, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose as he read aloud, “Proposal eight-one-nine-five—Unlawful Use of the Weapon Hydra G-66—proclaims the following. The Hydra G-66, also known as the Volt gun, is declared illegal due to its sole purpose of committing homicide against the Morgon people. The design of the Hydra G-66 is declared inhumane and discriminatory according to the Dixon Desegregation Act and is therefore unlawful.”
Murmurs arose in the room.
“Quiet,” commanded Tennison, eyeballing the audience. The buzzing voices settled, then he resumed reading the Proposal. “The Icewing Clan brings forth the nature of this weapon as a means to murder a race, rather than to be used for self-defense or in the sport of hunting. Because of this unlawful nature, the Icewing Clan request Parliament to enact a global ban of the weapon whereby all manufacturing and sales will cease and desist and owners will voluntarily forfeit their weapon to the state at the expense of Grayson Weaponry and Manufacturing. Close proposal.”
The buzzing had started again. Tennison whacked his gavel several times to quiet the room.
“Proposal eight-one-nine-five has been read. We will now begin with presentation of evidence from the Icewing clan. Ms. Asheera Icewing,” he read from another paper before glancing up, “will you begin, please?”
“Thank you, councilman.” Shakara’s aunt stood and walked purposefully to the podium that stood at an angle facing Parliament where the audience of officials could view her profile. She was a striking Morgon woman—white hair loose around her shoulders, stunning cat-like eyes that glowed an otherworldly blue, and a demeanor that demanded one’s attention. She paused and scanned the audience before resting her gaze on the Council.
“Morgonkind is a unique species. We are born with heightened senses, which we owe to our dragon DNA. We can smell the rain when only a whiff of cloud hovers in the far distance. We can see the hare hiding in the brush a field away. We can sense fear and excitement through the rapid heartbeat of someone standing near to us. We are not human.”
No one moved. Not a sound could be heard. Everyone seemed to hold their breath so as not to miss a word.
“And yet, we are human as well. We have human hearts with human longings, dreams, desires, fears, sorrows. Morgonkind is born this way. Half dragon, half human. And we cherish both sides of our nature.
“We are also born with an electrical current running through our frames like the blood that flows through our veins. It is an undeniable part of who we are as much as the wings that spring from our backs. The Hydra G-66 uses a high voltage of current to react to a Morgon’s DNA makeup.”
She clicked a remote control sitting atop the podium which flipped on a tall screen to the left of her. The screen remained white.
“The reaction of this high voltage when it hits its target is immediate and certain death, but not before a painful bolt of fire shoots through the Morgon’s body.”
She clicked. The audience gasped. Onto the screen popped the photo of a Morgon with gray wings sprawled on the ground, his mouth contorted in agony, blood streaming from his vacant eyes, black char along the exposed skin of his arms and neck, and his fingernails blackened.
She clicked again to a similar photo of an Icewing laid out on his back in a bar of some kind. Then another, a Huntergild. She clicked through three more, all the same depictions of horror and death.