Two Stories

Interlude

Two bitter old men sat across from each other and glared. It is so often that old men have absent eyes filled with joy, circled in by smile lines and filled with memories of the past. These men did not. Their eyes gazed at each other as if nothing other than the person sitting at the opposite end of the table mattered. As if had they stared at the other intently enough he would keel over and die. Unfortunately for both, their feud would not end at this table lying in the center of a garishly opulent waiting room.

An intake of breath softened the silence that had haunted the room previously.

It did nothing to ease the smothering tension, but it was unlikely anything would.

The one with piercing blue eyes and wisps of hair still stubbornly clinging to his scalp finally shattered the veil of quiet.

"So what brings you here Aldred?"

The one named Aldred cocked his head to the side, plastering a mockery of a smile onto his narrow, sharp featured figure.

"I think you know why I'm here Galen. I think you know very well why I am here." Aldred's dark eyes narrowed. "I think you are here for the exact same reason I am."

Galen threw his head back and let loose a good natured laugh.

"Yes, I would imagine a rat like you would scurry to the seat of power." Galen smiled a smile that seemed more at home on a wolf baring its teeth than the face of an old man in a palace. "So what are you looking for this time? The seat next to the throne? To poison the mind of our new king? A minor evil when set aside poisoning the cup of another."

The silence settled down again as the smiles vanished from of both of them.

Then Aldred took a deep breath and responded.

"Poisoning a man is nothing compared to what you have done. Tell me. Do the flames still haunt your dream? Are your nightmares filled with the screams of your own people Lord General?"

It was Galen's turn to grind his teeth together, wrinkles being replaced by the veins of a barely restrained anger.

"I. Did. What. I. Had. To. Do." Galen spat through clenched teeth. 
"Ha! I'm certain that's exactly what you'd tell the king... if given the chance." Aldred glanced at the sundial and smirked. "You know how the saying goes. The early bird gets the worms and such. Goodbye Galen. Hopefully the next I see you it will be with you in chains."

Aldred stood up from his chair and rapped the massive door that sat at the end of the hall of the waiting room. The cavernous beast opened its jaws and Aldred stepped through.

Two guards appeared at his sides and patted him down, and allowed him to pass through into the next room as the door slammed behind him. He would have shuddered had he not done this many times before.

The throne room was exactly as he remembered. Too much gold and glamour. Too many gems for a kingdom with too many mouths to feed. The throne itself was a stark contrast to everything else in its simplicity, an ordinary black chair surrounded by walls that gleamed. Maybe there was a message in that.

If there was, the boy king wasn't paying it any heed, as he was bedecked in more jewels than should've been possible to fit on a slender young man. He had pale skin that looked as if it had never felt the kiss of the sun, and arms that looked like they had never never lifted anything other than his impressive assortment of rings. His green eyes matched the color of the countless emeralds tucked away everywhere.

"I have heard many stories about you. Very many stories about you. More stories than I thought was possible for a politician to partake in."

Aldred smiled wryly.

"My liege, what do these stories point towards?"

The king took a second to ponder the question as if Aldred had asked him something he hadn't expected. As if he hadn't expected to be forced to think of his own volition in this conversation. Aldred suppressed a sigh as the king responded.

"I'm not certain. No one can dispute your capacity. Many of the things you negotiated seem unreal. You were a loyal advisor to my father." He hesitated again. "But your fued with Lord Commander Galen... That is a rift I'm not certain I want in my kingdom." The king took a deep breath. "So unless you two can conciliate, one of you must leave."

Aldred stifled a laugh at a mention of forgiveness, but schooled his figures into stone.

"My liege, how will you decide which one to keep?"

The king looked up from his twiddling thumbs with green eyes that seemed far older than the body they belonged to.

"Tell me your story."