The amber light from the setting sun dyed the royal purple of the IvorySun throne room with a russet hue. The large double doors at the end of the hall opened and the guards standing by the doors snapped to attention as the tall man walked passed with a slightly shorter man in a robe.
With a wave of his hand the king put his guards to ease before the pair walked solemnly across the long hallway. Victor stopping beside one of the magically enchanted floor to ceiling windows and looking out at the view of his town, the barrier surrounding the capital city causing a slight wavering in the fading light ever so often.
Turning away from the view with a sigh he looked to see his friend reach the dias and set unceremoniously into the larger of two chairs set on the raised platform. Victor lets out a chuckle as he walks up and stands with arms crossed, “Hey, Get out of my chair meathead.”
“Quoting old television now?”
“They’re classics for a reason,” Victor quirks his eyebrow before stepping up the dias, “Not to mention it’s the truth. My chair was in fact invaded by a meathead.”
Albert snorted as he lifted himself from the throne and with naught more than a glance at the smaller throne that sat beside the king’s and waved his hand in an empty spot. The Air shimmered and a hardwood finely crafted, and obviously well used, chair appeared along with a small table that seemed to be perfectly raised to be at arm level for either man in their respective seats, “I disagree on being a meathead. I would say I fit the description of an egghead if anything, you old coot.”
“That’s exactly what a meathead would say.” Victor said with a grin before he lowered himself into his throne and propped his chin on his fist and gazed at the empty table.
“Of course you’d know what one would say. Afterall it takes one to know one,” Albert said, snickering as he sat down, “So which game are you up for Vic?”
The king ran his free hand through his hair, his spikes already deflated from obviously having done the same countless times during the day’s, no the whole week’s events. He waves has hand idly through the air towards the window, “Nothing actually. All this chaos, all this bloodshed. For what? I know William always wanted to revive the art of necromancy but why bring our kids into this, why bring my People into it?”
“It’s his bloodline legacy,” Albert said, waving his hand and causing a pair of long neck Amazonian brandy bottles to appear on each side of the table. Picking up his he continued, “I can understand his bitterness. The entirety of his family and his innate draw, deemed heresy and forbidden by the central council over a hundred years ago.”
“And that’s an excuse?” Came the sardonic reply, capped by a loud gulping.
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With a long sigh, Albert continued, “No, and I know we’ve gone over it before but for such a strong and determined attack, he has to be planning more than a simple hit and run annoyance scheme. Sure he’s xenophobic and hates any non-magia, but his plans always go into overly too much detail.
“This travelling fair idea was actually quite ingenious in reconnaissance for his long game. Everyone always thinks they’re a bit weird anyway and so overlook a lot of weird foibles.”
“True,” Victor scratches his slightly stubbled cheeks as shoves himself onto his feet and goes back to the window, footsteps behind telling him his friend followed. He looked out into the city and located the central fairgrounds where the carnival was still set up with the Royal Guard surrounding the location, “We’d have never known if that psychopathic jester girl hadn’t cracked at seeing the boys. That said how does that help us figure why now for his plan to go into phase throw-caution-to-the-wind?”
“The boys meeting again? We separated the three because the feedback loop from the memory burn interacting with the curse. It seems all the curses awakening and being farther from the burn keeps it from happening. So whatever he was afraid of happening that he wanted to nip in the bud then…”
“Since that failed years ago, now he’s taking steps to chop down the entire tree.” Victor finished with a long sigh, running his hands over his face while speaking, “Goddess above I miss Sera. All this magical mumbo jumbo is not my cup of tea.”
Putting his hand on his shoulder Albert smiles a sad smile, “She was good at looking at the ‘code’ of longer lasting spells. Better than me I’d wager.”
The pair stood in silence watching the sun sank down over the distant hills. The castle grounds spreading out, mostly in forested darkness and the beyond the royal walls, the city starting to light up. Finally Victor smiled and pointed out towards a very well lit portion of the city, “You recall the Peacecraft royalty coming of age, right Al?”
“You mean basically cutting them off with a nigh failing business to keep afloat for half a decade?”
“That’s the one,” Victor’s smile quirks higher on the left, “With 5 kids I honestly am surprised that they all succeeded. Rinna chose a boarded up ice cream parlor. It has franchises across the kingdom, I think even into Ebonsun at this point.”
Albert opened his hand and the brandy bottle reappeared in it, taking another pull before replying, “I remember you said your middle brother failed, didn’t you?”
“He did. It was a hotel that he tried to cater too much to the nobility, but out in the gate area of the city. None wanted to go that far out when visiting. He’s actually supposed to be back from his scouting on the eastern borders soon.”
“You should catch up. I know you were never close but it has been a few years since he was back. Just because he’s not considered a royal doesn’t mean he’s not family.”
Slapping his friend on his shoulder Victor turned away from the window and started towards his throne, “That’s not a bad idea.”
He drops into his regal chair and takes long chugs from his bottle of alcohol before narrowing his eyes, “I’m in the mood for a card game. Got anything new on your travels to give us a good time?”
Reaching into his kimono, Albert responds, “When don’t I?”
With a flair he pulls a long black box from the smooth, obviously not large enough space, neck of his kimono. He slides into his chair and sets the box on the table that Victor dragged from the side of the throne and with a mischievous grin opens it, “You’re going to love this one.”