Put it down like that.”“Just the documents you brought are enough to have you drawn and quartered – all those ‘overtures of peace’!”“They were written at the direct order of the Royal Council.”“We’ve heard this fairy tale already. Can you show us this order?”“Dammit, I must have calluses on my tongue already from telling you: it was -marked, and such documents are to be destroyed after reading!”“Gentlemen, I do believe it’s beneath us to plumb the customs of thieves and spies …”This charade has been dragging on for two weeks already. Not that the spies’ guilt or their impending sentence were in any doubt on either side; it was just that Gondor had the rule of law. This meant that a person out of favor could not be simply sent to the gallows with only a flick of the royal wrist; proper formalities had to be observed. Most importantly, Tangorn never had a feeling that what was happening was unfair. That traitorous feeling had sometimes undone many brave and straight-thinking individuals, causing them to write useless and demeaning pleas to the authorities.
