Ancient Kings (The Young Ancients) (53 page)

Lyn? That made sense, didn't it?

"Tor?" There was a soft touch on his arm and Ali, looking and feeling concerned for him, tried to get his attention. He'd seemed lost in thought and had been, but he reacted instantly, since his current trance state was only a little lower than what was normal for him now. "Are we going back too?"

"Not directly. I need to talk to Rich about this and have a conversation with Connie. Some other things too, of course. Like what Doris told us. They need to know as well. You two don't have to go for that part though, it might be a little brutal. I plan on some yelling and crying. If that doesn't sway them, there may be begging. You know how it goes." His words were dry, but clearly comedic and Sara chuckled, sobering after a few seconds.

"This is unbelievable. I know that some people are a bit biased, some ridiculously so, but how bad is it, that people would mock a Wizard to his face?" She blushed a bit, but didn't explain why.

It was because she knew the answer. Half of the people around them couldn't force themselves to see him as anything except a slave. It wasn't just him either, it was
everyone
short with dark hair. Worse, without even thinking about it, most of that type believed the same thing. If they were the peasant, they simply weren't as good, and had to defer to the bigger people.

In Two Bends they called anyone over about six foot a "Royal" and if you were taller than that and had nice clothing, you'd be called Lord, even if you were just a merchant. The whole region was like that. Possibly the whole kingdom.

That wasn't anything he could fix at all, was it? Doris seemed to be trying though. He was still ticked at her, but at least she was doing something about the problem. It was a thing most of the people affected couldn't even see. Sara could... But her genetics were different than either of those groups, weren't they? Tor focused on her for a while and could feel it. She was... Real. More so than the rest of them. Not perfectly free of genetic tampering, but a lot closer to say, the people of Austra or Vagus than the average noble or peasant of Noram.

Shaking himself he collected his communications device and set up the needed visit with the King. He was a busy man, so Tor expected a bit of a wait, but the plan was, it seemed, to see them as soon as possible. Probably to un-ruffle feathers and soothe egos. Tor was fine though. Relaxed again and controlled, thanks to meditation.

"Tiera!" He waved her over, and she came, looking like a puppy that expected a swat for misbehaving.

Instead he hugged her.

"Well, you showed him! I doubt it will change his mind at all, but maybe he can learn from the sheer percussion of the thing? Hammer some sense into him?" Which, as he had just been thinking wouldn't work. They could chat about that later though. In the moment he needed to let his little sister know that she was appreciated. Yes, she'd been violent when it probably wasn't needed, but Tor wasn't certain he hadn't been about to do it before Kolb stopped him. If the soldier had said the same about her, wouldn't he have been fighting the man himself?

"Of course now everyone will think I need my sister to fight my battles for me. Ah, well... Maybe it will help my image? It almost certainly can't hurt." He grinned at her and winked, then let her go, she didn't release him for a bit though, actually tightening her grip to a level that was nearly uncomfortable.

"You aren't mad at me? I let my temper get out of control..."

"And then you stopped, leaving him alive. Was it perfect? Probably not. You've been doing really good holding your feelings in check, I know that's probably to hide them from me, but keep it up all the time. It's pretty much what's getting me through all of this too, so
I
recommend it. Thank you for defending me." Tor wanted to leave it at that, and other than some hugging that started to get stares in a few seconds, the matter was dropped.

When she let go Kolb called out to her, telling her to get her Fast Craft ready. It was just weird, calling them that. They were Fast Carriages. He'd named them, so you'd think it would have stuck. At least they weren't calling them Tor Craft. That would have been horrible. A smile crept onto his face though. Part of why people hated him was over that kind of thing, he figured. All his early things being called the Tor-whatever. It made it seemed like he was so big headed that he'd named them all that. It was just the naming convention though. The only reason that people had stopped doing it was that they'd lost track of what it was that he'd made personally, Tor thought. All to the good though. Being famous certainly hadn't helped him much so far. It mainly just made more work for him.

It wasn't fair, but he loaded the girls onto Tiera's carriage and then used his Not-flyer to enter the city normally. There was activity in the streets, but it was mainly local people going from place to place carrying rubble, or sweeping. The bombs had done damage, but it was kind of localized and everyone seemed to be out helping fix it all. It was what should have been happening though, so he hardly thought it strange. There were a few people in white robes with gold trim on them, bringing people water and food. It was mainly dried fruit and brown bread, but people took it with thanks and seemed happy enough with the tall people that moved among them.

Of course the city people were taller on average, so it wasn't as glaring as it might have been. Floating along about five feet from the ground marked him as someone different, and most of the people didn't comment on him moving past at all, not even to each other. People flew now after all, and though he wasn't using hand controls, most ignored that, thinking it was a child taking a tour of the streets. A rich and attractive noble. That part was nice enough, but they really couldn't get that he wasn't a child. He was clearly rich and small, so that meant some well connected brat.

The sad part was that people thinking that kind of found him annoying. It was clear in their fields. On occasion a few people realized who he was though, and about half of them moved out of the way, often taking others along with a bit of covert tugging or pushing. Tendrils of fear came from those people, mainly women. It made him feel bad really.

For some ridiculous reason he'd really thought that people should like him. What with making magical rivers to prevent drought, and saving a couple of cities. Very few of these people were thinking about that at all. Not now. They did think about the celebrations that he'd paid for, but most thought of that as him just trying to buy his way into their hearts.

Which wasn't fair. That was only about half the story after all.

There was a lot of work to be done, but instead of stopping to help, he changed his clothing as he floated along, his black case coming right behind him, moving about twenty miles per hour, even though he could have gone a lot faster. The truth was, he hated confrontation. If it came to it, Tor would do it, but that didn't mean he wanted to. Some things couldn't be ignored however.

At the gate he got ready for the Royal Guards to try and turn him away, or just leave him floating there, but the man inside the shield waved at him and counted down using the fingers of one hand. folding them down, at one second intervals. When he got to one Tor rushed the shield, which wasn't down yet, but managed to get out of the way a half second after his own shield connected with it and even though he spun a bit, he made it through before it was back in place.

There was no speaking, but he landed and fixed the shield, then held his right hand out for the Truth amulet.

"Tor Baker, here to see the King and Queen. Not a traitor or anything. There might be some yelling involved, but if so I doubt it will be earned. King doesn't mean the poor guy has control over how everyone feels all the time after all." Then he waited for an actual question. A woman walked up, smirking at him a bit, her black hair pulled back and her hawk like nose the same as always. She was in a real uniform this time, the purple and black of a Royal Guard.

"Kara, how are you today?" It wouldn't hurt to start out being polite after all. They were... friends probably wasn't the right term, but her field said something different. To her he was
family
. Her little brother of the spirit. It was a bit closer than he thought they were, but what she felt.

"Fine. Considering all the mess. Come to scream about the injustice of the world? I heard a bit about what went on with the City Guards. I couldn't believe it at first.
Everyone
knows what the Lairdgren Group is. Those imbeciles didn't even stop to think that anyone using stolen magic to help clean up the mess might still be worth leaving alone? At least you gave them something to think about, eh?" She didn't try to hug him, but there was no bowing either, since, clearly, they were family. You didn't bow to your brother, unless it was something official, or a joke. At least he didn't with
his
family.

"I doubt it. At least three of those five are men that I'd personally broken the nose of before. Their leader didn't even recognize me Kara. He couldn't see me at all past the being short with black hair. Not even when I stomped his nose in for him again. I know that some people can't really help that kind of thing without a lot of personal work, but the City Guard should make the effort. These ones haven't though, and I really don't think they will this time either." It was a miserable situation, but she just laughed, a single convulsion that didn't come out as a noise.

"True. Anyway, the King and Queen are waiting for you. Both afraid that you'll throw in with the traitors over this. George told them it wouldn't happen, but Wensa thinks that you should at least take the coin you're putting forward back. We have a bet. My take is that you'll prevent them from apologizing and stand there smiling at them while they scramble to understand what you mean by it. If, you know, you're looking for a plan. I could take five silvers for it." She was serious, but didn't expect him to change his plans for her really.

"Ah. Well, I don't know if I can do a lot of smiling, but I'll try it out."

It would have to do, since he had too much to cover to be a regular petty noble this time.

"Tor..." The King just sat at the table next to his Queen and put his giant head in his hands. "I can't..."

"Of course you can't. The Lairdgren students didn't leave because of you at all, but because of society. Yes, we need some kind of mechanism to get those of noble birth to treat those of other classes as people, but..." He shrugged and remembered to smile. Just in case it was close enough to get Kara those silvers. "It wasn't you that caused the problem. I suspect it was Cordes. The original. The copy in my head can't confirm that, but he does agree it seems like the kind of high handed lame headed thing he'd do, without understanding the consequences."

'
Hey!
' The single thought only got Tor's smile to widen, and the man didn't go on.

"We have someone trying to fix it, but that will take time. Centuries at least. Doris? She's been doing it for a long time now. She's also the same one that messed with our genes, Connie and Varley's. Mine too, and the rest of my family. Even my mother. It's why I have combat rage and all that. Not Taman though, apparently, or Varley's daughter. Wait... I did mention they're both immortal, didn't I? With the Ancient pattern?" He waited, not remembering what he'd said to whom about that.

The Queen nodded.

"We've been informed. That wasn't on purpose then? Well, that's something. How did you find out? For that matter, who's Doris? An Ancient we haven't heard of? I thought we knew of them all..." There was a glance at the King, who seemed just as puzzled inside, even if he didn't admit to it.

"Oh, no, there are more. Not a lot of them really, and most of them don't want to be bothered with anything. I thought Orange was a bit recalcitrant that way, but she's practically a paragon of social duty compared to most of them. Doris too, I guess. Even if she is being inconvenient about things right now for me personally. She's the Meditation Instructor at Lairdgren?"

"
What
?" Richard actually stood all the way up, shocked to his feet, almost looking like someone had stuck him with a pin. Which would be hilarious, but not what Tor would ever do himself. He liked having a head after all.

Nodding, Tor explained.

"Yes, she's been using it as a base to make her changes. It's where she met you, Connie. She was very forthcoming to me about what she's been up to and why, and apologized for... You know, the things that happened. She just didn't think we'd meet. Or that if we did you wouldn't like me. I think she meant that there was something put in your pattern to prevent you from liking Burks and she figured it would include me, only it didn't. That's mainly a guess on my part though. You took classes from her, didn't you Rich?" No one had mentioned it, but the man's mental control was so tight it had to be something like that.

"For years! She's even visited us here at the Palace. One of my favorite Instructors. Who else? What other Ancients have infiltrated my home unknown to me?" The man was suddenly dark and anger cast off of him, but Tor shook his head.

After all, it had already happened.

"Seriously? All of them that wanted to, I'd imagine. I know that Burks hid out here, playing servant for months at least a few times and no one noticed him overly. He wasn't even hiding, just walking around doing the job. I just didn't get how that had to work, until earlier today. All of you are blind to the lower classes. Unless you know them really well at least." He smiled at the King and Queen and then shook his head. "Maybe not you Connie. I think you're missing that change to your pattern. You have it though, Rich. At least you fight against it pretty hard and know it isn't right from time to time. Most of you giants can't see it at all."

There was a shocked look and the start of a denial from the King, but he went silent and his eyes glazed over, concentrating on his memories. Tor could sort of follow along, since the man wasn't bothering to hide if from him. Dozens of times when he'd confused one servant for another, even though he should have known them well, or thought a claim was less important when it came from someone that looked poor, or small, even though later, on paper the situation was clearly different than that.

"I... wasn't really aware I did that." The words slurred a bit but only for a moment, until he regained his normal focus.

"Yes, well, it's something to work on. Anyway, I take your meaning. I don't know who would have bothered. Kolb has been here though, and you made him a Knight. I can't think of any others off the top of my head, but like I said, it wouldn't surprise me if it's happened before. Most of the Ancients seem to pretty much do whatever they think is needed at the moment."

The King sat with a very undignified thump, which was unusual for him. In fact Tor had never seen the like of it before. The chair was sturdy though, made of heavy wood, so it held with only a few protesting creeks.

"Sir Kolbrin? That... Would explain why no one had ever heard of him before. He was just there one day and Count Lairdgren vouched for him. I... think I understand. It wasn't his idea to make him a Knight however and there
is
a Baron Kolbrin, an old recluse that doesn't visit with anyone..."

It didn't take a genius to work that one out. It was probably a scam that the two of them had been pulling for centuries, one that wasn't a true lie at all. Kolb just didn't care to play Ancient all the time, so would make himself into his own son, or even grandchild, whenever it came time for him to move out into the world for a while. It was easier to do it Tor's way and just tell everyone, but the past had been different, most likely.

He shrugged and waved it away, which the King allowed without question. That, Tor thought he was starting to understand. Rich wasn't just being nice to him, he was making political decisions all the time when Tor was around. It was in his thoughts even as they regarded each other. How often he had to side with Tor, because he didn't know how far the boy could be pushed, and how many times he'd been taken by surprise when Tor just swallowed things that others would have been
killing
people over.

That got Tor to agree with him, not taking his eyes away from the man.

"It was a miscalculation, siding with Count Morris over my sister. We all understand it, of course. Even Tiera, I think. If you'd picked her side, the Count would have turned against you then. Instead of a few weeks later. No one could have known how that would have turned out though. Sandra shouldn't have acted like that. Not over a few days on a work crew. I was there and I still don't understand it." Only... he did. Now.

He couldn't tell for certain, but it made sense, if she just couldn't stand the idea of a bunch of little peasants pushing her around. The Count would have responded that way too, probably not even realizing it. Tor just sighed and waited. He wasn't in charge here after all.

The King waited then, actually becoming more tense, rather than less and Connie fluttered her eyes at him, then gasped, realizing that she was flirting with what was, essentially, her own father. It made Tor glad he was paying attention, or he wouldn't have understood these people at all.

Richard looked at the wall and let his face go into an uncharacteristic frown.

"So, not to push in any way, but the Lairdgren Group is leaving us? Even the students? I can understand it. I don't
like
it, for my people, but I don't see how it can be avoided. We can't afford to have the entire City Guard out of commission right now either, not with people potentially seeking to infiltrate and plant more explosives. I will put out orders to be polite however. Will that serve, do you think?" The man reached over and took a large metal cup, one that seemed to be made of real gold and drank from it deeply, then put it back.

"No. Probably not. You can't fix problems bred into a line with a few orders. If that were the case most of our current difficulties wouldn't exist. It might save a few innocent people a beating or two though, so it's worth spending a few minutes on." The actual question that the King had, and wouldn't ask, was about the gold. He was ready to let it go, that was clear. In fact the ruler was half expecting Tor to make some rather unreasonable demands. Possibly ones that he couldn't meet at all, given the coming war.

It was also very central to the man's thoughts that he'd have to do it anyway.

After all, to his mind... Tor was the real Heir to the throne and he, the King, was just a placeholder. The thoughts shocked him, but Tor didn't let it show on his face at all.

Instead he just looked at Connie.

"So, we're slated for an uncomfortable talk? One in which you say that you love me, I affirm that I feel the same about you and then spend an hour trying to convince you that doing anything about it would mean, now that I know about the whole thing, that I'd have to kill myself, or at least go away forever first?" He sounded like a creep saying it. Like an overbearing jerk. Tor tried to soften the words with a smile. "As you can tell, it's been on my mind. The traditions just don't line up. You're family though, so I'll do whatever is easiest for you. Visit or not, kill myself or what have you."

It was... He meant it, of course. No one would believe him, but the Queen just seemed ready to cry.

"It's so unfair. We'll have to do what's proper. That's a given for people of our station. I can't say it won't hurt. I don't want to lose you as a friend though. Can you bear it, seeing me often? It seems like you've been avoiding me..."

She was fishing for him to proclaim how hard it would be, Tor realized. As if it wouldn't be? It was agony just being this close to her, knowing he couldn't be with her at all. He loved her all the time, but it was worse in the moment...

With that thought his shield kicked on and started to glow with little purple sparks that came from her direction. That's what it did when nanos or viruses were coming in. Or, clearly, pheromones. The effect of them didn't fade instantly at all, but fishing out his healing amulet as the two people in front of him hit their own shields he was able to fix that, at least as easily as removing alcohol from a person's system.

Then he got to explain what was going on.

"I...
forced
you to love me?" She sounded shocked at least, which was a reward. He was a lot less interested in her suddenly, thanks to the healing amulet.

"Not really. It's a thing you can do, but it isn't conscious, is it? Would you blame a pretty face for doing the same thing? Or a clever mind? If we want to blame anyone, we have a handy Doris for that. Oh, speaking of which, she should be taken off of the guest list for now. I can't confirm it, but I think she can beat the Truth amulets. I can't read her at least and those are just a weak version of that skill, turned into a field. The only reason I believed her so far was that she was saying things that make sense, and don't make her look that great. At least not to me."

"Oh, good. I'd hate to think I was going around forcing people."

Who wouldn't? The idea would be horrific for any good person.

The interplay let him dodge the question she'd asked of him first, about whether he could handle being around her. The truth was, it still wasn't going to be easy for him. He really had been avoiding her, and there was a good reason for it. Even then, knowing what he did, some tiny part of him just didn't
care
.

A sick and depraved part that wanted his lover back, even if it was wrong. A thousand and one justifications came to mind, but they were trumped by one fact. He couldn't live with himself if he let that happen.

The King cleared his throat, uncomfortable. At first Tor figured that the conversation was doing it, since... Well, who talked about that kind of thing? It had to seem bizarre and off putting. It wasn't that though. He really didn't care who his wife slept with, as long as she was happy. To his mind Tor wasn't even a real threat, just being a pretty toy. No more than a peasant... Then he caught himself and winced, trying to block the thought from his awareness, wondering if Tor had gotten it.

Not explaining it to Connie, he made a face at the King and winced himself.

"You might want to feel a
little
bad... I've been trying to read everyone all the time lately. Searching for errant grandmothers and all that." It seemed to come from nowhere, but the ruler bowed his head and let his eyes closed.

"Forgive me." He started to rise again and Tor shrugged.

"For thinking? Old habits take time to break and that one is something put into all of you nobles. On purpose, if I have it right. I'm planning to get over to see Lyn and try to get her to talk to me about it. I'd try Burks, but the man seems to want to keep me ignorant. I'm sure he has a good reason or two, but things are getting too complex for that now. If he won't tell me, or can't, I'll find someone that will."

Sinking back down, Rich actually felt kind of miserable. At every step he felt that he'd been failing Tor, and it showed on his face. It didn't help that he had to take great care to avoid asking about the funds that Tor was providing. If he still was. That could be pushing him, and that would be theft, pure and simple, King or not.

Except that Tor was almost certain he'd never planned to take that away. There was still a war and the world was the same place it always had been. He just had a bit more insight that day than most.