***
Two platinum rings, in a simple braid design, resting on red velvet. Simple, innocuous, yet they filled her soul with dread.
"Justicar Krausia, you have been found guilty of abuse of power."
One might even say they were beautiful rings. Something a couple would exchange at their handfasting.
"The severity of your crimes carries the death sentence."
Her fingers ached; they'd taken all her power rings at her arrest. Silver bands had worn grooves in her skin; she was empty without them.
"In light of years of dutiful service, we're commuting your sentence."
The bailiff approached, carrying the pillow. She contemplated escape, whisking herself away. The tribunal would hunt her, but she would have her powers.
"You shall be bound. Magic shall be yours no longer."
She held her hands out to the bailiff, allowing him to slip the platinum onto each middle finger. The metal weighed more than it should, dense. The spell sank into her soul. Cut off from the power of the universe, she'd rather be dead.
