Something Lost (Original Draft)

Chapter 38: First Snow

Alexander took me on a tour of the castle. While touring, he made good on his promise to share his past with me. First, he told me the basics, the three basics, as I would call them. They were the same here as they were back in Larska, favorite foods, music, and personal hobbies. I was surprised swordplay wasn't on his list, but even more surprised, gardening was.

He told me about his childhood, or lack thereof, how his mother and father were taken away from him at an early age, and how it happened. The events of that night still haunted him. He didn't disclose many of the details that surrounded that horrible memory, but what he did offer to share, left me feeling great pity for the child he spoke of in the story, for him.

He said the throne of Berthold was almost seized by one of the northern settlements, by a spy. The lone spy had taken hold of Lahre Sari, and slain most of Alexander's father's court. He cut down Alexander's father and mother, both, with the kingdom's sword, Lahre Sari. Alexander watched helplessly, petrified from the brutality that was dealt to his parents.

The only good thing he could say about the cowardly spy was that he did not draw out their deaths, he gave it to them quickly, so quickly that they didn't have any time to suffer.

The rules of the kingdom stood, that any man could take the throne by force. Once conquered, the man must hold the sacred steel of the kingdom's sword and fight all who opposed him. If there were none to fight, then the kingdom would be handed over to the challenger once he or she sat upon the throne.

Luckily, the spy didn't make it into the heavily guarded throne room. He was cut down by the visiting king of Ati Harei, King Phillip Stronghold. The Northern King and his knights presented young Alexander with his kingdom's sword and protection. Alexander was much too young to run Berthold, so the lone surviving Council, Simon, took over dealing with most of Berthold's involving matters. And his first order of business was to repay the Northern King on his courageous act. Simon knew the Northern King could have easily taken Berthold as his own, but King Phillip was in Berthold for his own reasons. He had a daughter, and had hoped to join Berthold and Ati Harei, by arranging marriage between their children.

And so, Simon repaid the Kingdom of Ati Harei, by promising Alexander's hand to the Northern King's daughter, Charon.

From Alexander's description of her, she sounded like a very beautiful person through and through, deserving of the seat that she would take beside him. He said she was always mingling with the public, doing all she could to help, a real humanitarian. But as he spoke further of his betrothed, I could hear how he strained to speak pleasantly of her, the enthusiasm he projected on her behalf was artificial and sad.

His upcoming marriage to her would not be easy.

The days following our discussion, were filled with books, and study. I spent most of the week alone, working day and night, learning all I could about the gods, their stories, and their words. As I studied the words of the God's, it was just as Alexander said it would be, the words were easily retained, and soon I could read them fluently without help.

In my free time, I would visit with Alexander and he would converse with me in the Old God Language, and I would reply with all the new words I had learned that day. He fed me his knowledge generously, and was patient with my lack of experience. For someone so strong, and brave, his intellectual side did not suffer. He was a dreamer, a philosopher if you will. He'd go on for hours about the sciences that were taught back in Larska, claiming them to be false, that they were used as a pathetic attempt to control the enslaved in the settlements. He was so passionate about his theory, that I felt he was right. I mean, how could there be magic, and gods, if there were set laws in the universe that rendered them impossible.