Gaiagon

Chapter 18: Royal Audience

Seth and Jeffry awoke to the sound of three knocks on their door. “This is a quick warning,” the female voice said on the other side of the door. “You have an hour before breakfast, and Lord Harold would much prefer to see you all at the dining table on time.” Seth got out of bed and stretched. “Did you sleep well?” Seth asked Jeffry. “Pretty well,” Jeffry answered as he rubbed his eyes. “I didn’t have a dream if that’s what you’re asking. How about you? Did you talk to Dominic?” “I did, and he confirmed two things: that Lord Harold is important, and that Satoc is our enemy.” “Well…that’s kind of good to hear. At least we know who we are fighting against…”

Seth got up and took a bath. He enjoyed soaking in the hot water, and he almost became so relaxed that he fell asleep, if it weren’t for Jeffry yelling at him through the door. When both of them were clean and dressed, a woman that resembled a maid walked in with some fresh cloths. “Sorry, but those cloths aren’t our style,” Seth said to the maid. “I’m sorry as well,” the maid said, “because we took your cloths and this is all you have now.” Seth and Jeffry groaned as the put on the aristocratic cloths. The material wasn’t comfortable and they both didn’t like what they saw in the mirror. “I feel like a rich kid,” Seth said, “and for some reason, I really don’t like it…” “I completely agree,” Jeffry said soon after.

Seth and Jeffry walked out the door at about the same time as Fergal and Olin. “Don’t feel very comfortable in your cloths, do you?” Seth said to both Fergal and Olin. “At least my clothing is green,” Fergal replied. “Oddly enough,” Olin began, “my clothing is black. It’s almost like…” “You don’t think…?” Fergal said as he looked Olin in the eye. “It doesn’t matter for now,” Jeffry interrupted. “Right now, our primary goal is to make a good impression and obtain help from the king.” The four began to walk down the hall when Sylva shouted, “Wait! I’m almost ready!” Everyone turned around and saw Arctica calmly walk out of the room with Sylva right behind her. Sylva was wearing a beautiful purple dress and her hair was put into an elegant ponytail. “You look great,” Seth said as everyone else was speechless. “Thank you,” Sylva said. “Ever since I was forced to flee my village, I wore pants and a hood. Now, I’m wearing a long dress and nothing is covering my arms. It’s not bad, but it’s so different than what I’m used to wearing. I think that’s why it feels weird.” “Take it from us,” Fergal said as he pointed to himself and Olin, “the last few days were the first we had to wear cloths at all. We of anyone should feel the weirdest right now!”

The five, plus Arctica, began the walk to the dining room. As they approached the door, a maid came and said, “I’ll take your Snogon for you. We have prepared a typical meal for her species outside.” “Just go with it,” Jeffry whispered to Seth. The maid led Arctica outside as the five walked through the large double doors that led to the dining room. When they entered the room, everyone noticed the large, long table that filled more than half the room. It had a large bouquet in the center and about fifty plates throughout the table. On the far side of the table, everyone noticed an elegantly dressed man waving his hand in their direction.

“Over here, young adventurers!” the man said. When everyone passed the large bouquet, they noticed that it was indeed Lord Harold. “Come, come, sit down near me,” he said, pointing to two plates on his right and three plates on his left. Seth sat on Lord Harold’s left in the seat closest to him. Jeffry sat next to Seth and Sylva took the seat after. Fergal and Olin decided to sit on Lord Harold’s right side with Fergal sitting closest to Lord Harold. “Bring these young men and women something to eat,” Lord Harold said to the butler behind him. The man made a quick bow to show that he heard the order and headed for the kitchen. “How were the rooms?” Lord Harold asked to start conversation. “They were very nice,” Seth said. Everyone nodded in agreement. “The beds weren’t too hard, were they?” “No, no, they were fine,” Seth reassured him.