Worlds Apart

Reckoning

I swear one could hear a damn pin drop as I Eadric and I enter, but we do not react to the sudden silence, maintaining a relaxed but alert air as we cross the central path laid out before us as those we pass bow to accordingly.

The Ambassador of Lignum Cantavit ventures towards us, eyeing Eadric with the tiniest edge of uncertainty at having approached us first. The inevitable tension prevalent in the hall seems to finally release, then, low chatter resuming as soon as Eadric as raised his hand to take the man's wrist, unspokenly cueing the end of our entrance.

"Ambassador." He greets with a firm nod. "I trust you've found a new second upon your previous having committing so many dishonorable actions against your clan?"

The Ambassador of Lignum Cantavit releases a heavy sigh to accompany his quick nod. "I assure you, Sire, I did so both quickly and efficiently."

"Good."

The Ambassador turns to me. "My Queen," he bows, his brunette beard streaked with grey slightly muffling his low tone. "I trust you have been preparing immensely for this upcoming battle?"

"Of course." I answer, apparently to the Ambassadors satisfaction as he smirks approvingly. "There are of course no guarantees of my fate tomorrow, however, as one can never be too sure when faced with a new opponent."  I follow without much thought, causing the Ambassadors eyes to widen in what I can only describe as offense.

Eadric raises a hand to the small of my back. "Aurora, here, actually managed to hold a fight against myself for a small amount of time this morning. She is doing exceedingly better than she lets on." He offers to the clan leader goodnaturedly.

"Let us hope so." He responds a little stiffly before walking off.

Eadric turns on me, his expression strained, if not furious. "What the hell was that?"

"I'm not good at small talk." I offer nonchalantly as I scan the room.

"Nullum cacas." Eadric mutters exasperatedly, more to himself than I before raising his low tone to a volume where I can better hear him. "I understand you are still in the midst of learning our ways, but even regardless of the disgrace to our spirituality that statement of yours just had, a Queen can never appear uncertain before her subjects. Never."

"And yet you didn't even know what chivalry was when we had first met." I retort effortlessly, the blunt remark followed by a sly raise of my eyebrows the second Eadric's exasperated expression meets mine.

"Yes, well I'm afraid that ideal didn't make it into my teachings by the time I was crowned King. You know, since I took the throne through a mutiny, and all."

"A one man mutiny." I remind him for reasons unknown to me.

I detect a sudden heaviness in his tone by the time he looks away and begins speaking again. "Well, I was older then-"

"Older if compared to being raised for it, yes," I interrupt, drawing his intent gaze previously trained on Vlasta and her gold gown at the head of her throne back to my own, "but you were only sixteen, Eadric." I remind him.

"And yet I had already taken part in a war and slaughtered countless others of my own tribe." He retorts sharply, his eyes narrowed cruely and jaw working.

My lips part with not a sound coming forth, and I realize almost immediately that this is because I am completely unable to counter his point for once as it is braced by nothing but the truth beneath it. But his motivations for having taken the throne in such a crude, ruthless manner, behind having killed those of his own clan, his own people, those pieces of reasoning behind his actions are where the line gets fuzzy.