Interrogations!
The trick of pretending you already know what is about to be confessed is old, and does not always work. But it did here. “Forgive my master, Guardians! He is proud, and has always loudly scorned weakness. So he cannot abide the thought of others thinking him weak.”
“Indeed,” rumbled my partner. “But it is still the duty of all to confess their weakness to the Guardians. How else may we cut it out before it festers?”
The apprentice lowered his head. “It was not weakness; not truly. The Kee that came to him were too many to fight, and they left peacefully, leaving nothing behind but dire warnings.”
“The Kee? Peaceful?” Jak snorted. “I’ve not heard that one before.”
I raised one hand. “Stop. Return to the start. And tell me what you saw.” I did not bother to tell him to tell the truth. It is hard to lie to a Guardian, and the common folk know it.