After leaving the dining hall, Simon walked down the corridor, the very same one he had used two hours earlier. As he walked he observed the portraits of all the past lord protectors, admiring the talent and work that had gone into making them.
He stopped in front of one of them, a man with a trimmed moustache, short brown hair and and deep brown eyes, the text under the painting reading: ''Jeremiah FIsher, twenty-eighth protector of Argus, served from 978 to 802.'' As he observed the portraits, he noticed the curious look on Gus's face.
-''Alright, out with it.'' He told Gus before moving on to examine another painting.
-''Then with your permission, I would like to inquire as to how you are related to the lord protector. You couldn't be his nephew as it is a known fact that he had no siblings, but the way he addressed you does indeed seem to point to a relatively close relationship between you two.''
-'' As observant as ever I see, though I suppose there is no harm in telling you the truth. It is true that I am not hi real nephew, even if he likes to call me that. I am the bastard of his second wife's cousin, the now deceased count Artem. Upon the counts sudden death, the lord protector took pity on me and provided me with the best possible education, including the martial arts of sword play and archery. Then two years ago he brought me here, presumably to groom me to become the next grand marshal, after witnessing first hand just how suited to the role I am.''
Gus nodded at this as he finally had a clearer understanding of the young lord's situation. But then another question surfaced in his head, and he was quick to voice it.
-'' But if that is the case, and your role as grand marshal is all but secured, than why bother trying to become lord protector ? Would it not be wider to accept what is given to you with gratitude rather than biting the very hand that feeds you ?''
Hearing this question Simon remained silent, as he went from one portrait to the next, looking at the faces and reading their names before finally, after several minutes he spoke without turning around.
-'' Tell me Gus, looking at this wall, what do you see ?''
Gus wore a confused expression on his face, before finally observing the wall.
-''I see history, the past protectors of Argus, as well as art, the talent of those who painted them. What do you see, my lord?''
Although Gus couldn't see it, Simon's face turned into a sneer.
-''I see nothing, paintings of people no one even knows existed.
-''My lord what exactly do you mean ? Surely you are not denying the existence of all past protectors.'' Gus asked with a perplexed tone.
Simon simply scoffed, before asking him another question.
-'' Tell me, do you perchance know of a man named Axel Carver ?''
-''No, I don't believe I do.''
-''What about Harglow Eckard ?''
-''No.''
-''How about Leomord Ferry ?''
-''No my lord.''
-''What of Kai Latera ?''
-''Nothing I'm afraid, tell me my lord, is there a point to these questions ?''
Simon just raised his hand, pointing out three paintings on different parts of the wall. Gus, understanding the meaning behind his words, remained silent, waiting for the young lord to enlighten him as to the meaning behind his bizarre words from earlier.
His silence eventually paid off, as shortly after Simon began speaking, disdain oozing from his every word.
-''What makes them so special ? Their title ? Their social standing ? I guarantee you are not the only one to have forgotten, or perhaps not even known who these men were, in fact I would go so far as to say almost everybody in this entire city is exactly like you. So why should they be remembered, but a common mason or barmaid forgotten ? You asked me why I wanted to become lord protector so badly, and I'll tell you: It's to be remembered. I will engrave my existence into every man, women and child in this entire damn city, I won't settle for living, then being forgotten when I pass, No , I will ensure this city remembers me till every man has perished, and every stone has turned to dust. History will never forget me, and its people will know my name.''
Gus was stunned upon hearing this, and when he collected himself all he could think to do was to mumble to himself ''Those are some lofty aspirations.'' while shaking his head.
-''Not an aspiration. A promise.'' Said Simon firmly.
-''Now come, there is a certain young lady I must pay a visit to.''
At this, the pair left the sombre corridor, making their way to the Monolith's entrance.
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Noah's POV
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Noah made his way through the bustling city streets on his way to the cathedral. He had spent most of the walk hoping that the head gardener was actually in the cathedral, as well as wondering just what questions exactly he should ask him seeing as he was, in fact, the central figure of the communion, as well as the official caretaker of the archive.
As he pondered these things, he found himself at the entrance of the city square, a massive open marketplace situated in front of the ''fence''.
Knowing that to get to the cathedral necessitated the traversal of the square, he moved forward into the throng of people moving about the massive plaza. Looking around, he saw market stalls where vendors called out to passer-by's, beckoning them to try their latest goods and street performers dancing and singing, all to the great amusement of the crowd.
After walking for a little while however, Noah caught a glimpse of a large, ornately decorated golden door. The realization of what it was made Noah stop in his tracks and stare at it, as the boy often daydreamed of all the things he would see should he ever cross the magnificent door. He imagined a road made entirely of gold, with mansions lining its perfect edges, with rich, lush grass covering the surroundings. And in the centre stood the Monolith, the great tower from witch he imagined it was possible, on the highest floor, to witness Argus in its entirety.
He was rather quickly pulled from his daydream however, when a big man with a pig carcass slung over his shoulder bumped into him. Noah immediately apologised, to witch the man just grunted and told him to be more careful next time.
Finally after what seemed like an eternity, he arrived in a small allyway where he slumped down against the wall, catching his breath after the surprisingly complicated task of crossing an active marketplace.
After a few minutes he got up and, looking around, decided to see where the ally led, seeing as he wasn't too fond of the idea of re-entering the urban nightmare that was the city square, in fact he was pretty sure he had seen the city watch cutting off a persons hand, though he didn't know why.
As he walked, he scrunched up his nose at the dirty, stagnant smell that lingered in the confined little path. It wasn't bad enough to warrant gagging but just bothersome enough to make the walk truly unpleasant.
After a little while however, he noticed something leaning against one of the walls. From where he stood it looked like a pile of rags, but what he found interesting was the slight rise and fall that occurred every few seconds.
Noah decided to approach it, but when he got close it shifted, and suddenly sat upright, the rags falling away revealing a distinctly human appearance, albeit an unusually small and dirty one.
Dirty brown hair that went down to his shoulders, a slightly hunched back and a small frame with narrow shoulders all served to make him look quite weak, fragile even. But his most distinctive feature were his eyes, being a shade of grey similar to Noah's hair, examining him with a wary gaze.
-''Hi there.' 'Noah said, approaching the boy as casually as possible so as not to startle him.
The boy just looked at him, as he slowly lifted himself before starting to back away.
-''No no, It's ok to stay, I'm just passing through, be gone before you know it.'' He hurriedly told the boy as he quickly started to walk in the opposite direction, after all the boy had been there first and he didn't want to disturb him.
But as soon as he turned his back, he heard a ''swoosh'' sound, and before he knew it he was on the ground with a knife pressed to his throat.
-''Money. Now.'' The boy said with a high, raspy voice.
-''I DON'T HAVE ANY I SWEAR, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU EVEN DOING ?''
-''Robbing you, now I'll say it again. Money.''
-''I TOLD YOU I DON'T HAVE ANY, NOW GET OFF ME BEFORE I CALL THE WATCH.''
-''Go ahead and call them, they won't hear you, not here at least.''
Noah froze upon hearing this. What the boy said made sense, after all they were squeezed between two buildings and he didn't know how far it was to the main street. Far, he guessed, judging by the confidence in the boys voice.
-''Okay, okay. I don't have money with me now, but how about I finish my errand and bring you back to my grandpa's place with me. I'm sure he wouldn't mind giving you money, especially if it's to protect me.''
At these words the boy stopped, and asked him whether this was actually true with cautious optimism.
Noah nodded as best he could from his position on the pavement.
-''I promise you it's the truth, so please just let me go and I'll take you to him.''
The boy considered his words, since if what he was saying was true, he might be able to get a lot more than he had originally anticipated. As these thought ran through the boys head, he unconsciously loosened his hold on the knife, slightly lowering it.
Noah, not willing to let such an opportunity pass him by, immediately launched his elbow backwards, catching the boy square in the nose. As he fell backwards, blood gushing from his nose and his grip on the knife loosening. Noah rolled over and jumped to his feet, grabbing the knife that the boy had let drop and pinning him face down by sitting on his back, knees on his elbows.
Their roles had reversed just as quickly as they had been established, this time with Noah holding the knife in front of the boys neck and the latter, despite his feeble resistance, utterly and completely at Noah's mercy.
-''You should really think more carefully before attacking someone you know, in fact I'd say you got lucky with me, had it been someone else you would likely be in a much worse situation than you are now.'' Noah told the boy with a confident smirk on his face.
-''If you're going to kill me than do it. It's not like I have anything to live for anyway. whether I managed to rob you or you ended up killing me, I would be happy either way.''
Noah furrowed his brow hearing this, sure his living conditions were hard to say the least, but he thought the boy was a bit too young to ^give up on life that soon, in fact he looked even younger than Noah.
-''No parents ? No friends ? No goals or hopes ?''
-''No, no, no and no. Tell me do I look like a hopeful person to you ?''
.''Well I guess not but still, you should try. My grandpa once told me that as long as you have a sharp mind, a good weapon and the willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve your goal, than you have no excuse for being a failure.''
-''Fuck off. If you're going to kill me then get on with it. I'm not interested in whatever your grandpa thinks. He hasn't lived my life or gone through the things I have so he wouldn't know jack shit about my situation.'' After saying this the boy spat on the ground and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the killing blow.
But then he felt the weight on his body disappear, and upon opening his eyes he saw Noah standing a above next to him, offering hm a hand.
-''Get up, I'm no murderer. I have a delivery to make but after that I'd like you to go back with me, It's not much but I'm sure my grandpa would like to have an extra helper in his shop.''
The boy just looked at him blankly, before whispering.
-''But I just tried to rob you, why would you help me ?''
-''Why not ? You don't seem like a bad person, plus If the old man has someone else to help him he'll get off my back a bit, at least I hope.''
The boy stared at him for a few more seconds before taking his hand and pulling himself up.
-''I'm Noah by the way.''
-''Sam.''
-''Nice to meet you Sam. Now, I just have make a quick trip to the cathedral and we can be on our way.''
Sam nodded, and the two set off in the direction of the main street.