Light Bringer (The Young Ancients: Second Cycle Book 2) (13 page)

"Welcome! All of you. We
have some time before we'll be sitting, some small entertainments have been
arranged? I believe that Prince Alphonse and Princess Veronica have set up in
the greeting room for that? This way, if you please?"

That they had a room set up for
people that came early was a good idea.

The halls of the place were well
decorated, and bright, magical lights being set up all over the place. More
than the last time he'd been there, by far. Dare heard a din before he got to
the room where the waiting was to be done. The voices nearly drowned out the
dulcet sounds of a string quartet. Not quite however.

It meant however that what he'd
figured to be a tiny party with a few friends was rather more than that. In
fact, when he got into the waiting chamber, it was both huge, and filled with
bodies already.

At the door, the butler, or
whoever he was, bowed again.

"If you'll please help
yourselves to refreshments?"

Then the man scurried back the
way he'd come.

The room was large, with
impressive crystal inlays along the walls and ceiling. It looked like quartz to
Dareg, but he couldn't have sworn to that, not having a lot of knowledge on
types of rocks. The furnishings were a lot more standard, holding to wood, with
a lot of soft seeming cushions all over the place. There were islands of seats,
so that small groups could form to talk to one another.

That of course meant that of the
six or seven groups that were possible, given the numbers there, two of them
were huge, and the rest were far less advanced, holding only one or two people
each. The largest one held Alphonse and Karina, who were clearly being singled
out as the important people to gain attention from for the moment. Due, no
doubt, to the fact that he was the heir, and the King wasn't in the room.

Everyone that had come in with
him instantly moved off in that direction, Holly giving him a solid, almost
manly, clap on the back as she passed. No one suggested Dare go with them, so
he didn't, not wanting to add to the din and press of bodies. There was a table
of refreshments, with some small bits of things to eat, along with a man who
was pouring wine and other beverages, standing not far away.

It looked nice, but other than
the idea that he was allowed to have some of these things, he didn't know what
to do. Stuffing small crackers with paste into his mouth had to be poor form,
but there didn't seem to be another way to consume them that wouldn't make a
mess. A very tall man, who had a mix of gray and red to his full head of hair,
as well as a full, very well groomed, beard walked up to the table next to
where Dare had settled himself.

He gestured to the man in servant
green behind it.

"A smooth port, if you have
any?" As the man looked at the wooden rolling cart behind him to see if
such a thing existed, the giant, who was over nine feet tall, looked down at
Dare.

"I normally don't come to
these kinds of things, but I haven't seen my grandson or granddaughter in over
a decade. More than that, I'm ashamed to say. Baldur, by the way." A
quarter bow came from the man, which was basically him being incredibly polite.

After all, he was claiming that
some pale, common looking, boy was his equal in the movement. Then, they were
in the palace, so it kind of made sense that anyone there would be fairly well
placed.

So he did it back, going just a
bit lower. That way he'd be covered whoever this man turned out to be. From
what he'd said, he was
probably
the old King of Noram. The looks and
words all fit. The name too, though it could have thrown people off, without
the full thing, or a title being thrown in. If the man didn't want to rest on
that, then it was his job not to force it on him.

"Dareg. Dareg Canton. Um...
Lowest Prince of Harmony, along with some other titles of which I'm also the
farthest down the line." He smiled at that, since it was just the truth,
and honestly he didn't care. "Also engaged to Princess Karina? So that
would, at least eventually, make us family. I mean, as long as it goes through,
and all that kind of thing. She hasn't told me to get lost yet, so at least
there's that." He smothered a yawn and then forced a chuckle.

Baldur looked at him carefully,
and sighed.

"You've done your research
then, if you know who
I
am on sight. People tend to forget, over the
decades. Well, that could be worse, I suppose. Better a smart betrothed than a
dull one. For some things at least."

The waiter had found something
red and fruity looking, which was handed over in a crystal chalice of some
kind. The old man took it and took a healthy swallow.

"Not bad. Thank you."
That was said to the server, who bowed back and said nothing.

Instead of walking back toward
the others, the man stood there, took another sip and then took a half step
back from Dareg, so they could speak without looming being involved. Not too
much.

"So, Prince Dareg..."
He punctuated the words with a sip from the shining crystal in his fingers. It
kind of matched the cold looking room around them. "What kind of hobbies
do you have? Wenching and drinking vast quantities of the best liquors? Hunting
the days away? Or perhaps you favor men for bed chamber sport? You have that
pretty look about you that some get. A bit too much so."

The words were plainly spoken,
and clearly meant to get a rise out of him, but the man didn't seem to care
about what it was that Dare was honestly getting up to. There was, in truth, a
hint of a glimmer behind his eyes. Like it was all a grand joke.

"As if I'd admit to any of
that here? Not that it's true, which is probably a failing on my part. I'm new
to the whole noble thing however, so, you understand, I need some time to get
up to speed. So far I've..." He nearly froze, but he did have things that
he was doing, and they weren't all being paid, so could count as hobbies, even
if they were boring ones. "I'm working to put together the world's port
system, building it up. Also I'm taking a group of Austran's to see the planet
Saturn in a few days. That's past Mars. It has some great rings around it, so
it's interesting to look at."

Rather than mock how little he
had going on, the man smiled suddenly.

"Oh-ho! Well, that's better
than I would have figured on, given your age. You didn't even fall into my
clever trap there. Admitting to doing those things, or claiming that you didn't
with too much energy would have been the wrong answer. Yours was most correct.
Very well, I won't have to spend the rest of the night needling you for
secrets. Just send in the spies? Cute female ones?" He was teasing again,
but hid it very well.

So Dare nodded.

"That seems fair. Or we can
just get a Truth amulet and you can ask what you want." He nearly
suggested that they could do it both ways, but he didn't really care much about
the man. He was interesting enough, having once been a King, but the
conversation was kind of boring him at the same time.

That, he suspected, was due to
the fact that he was losing energy, having been up for too long. Whole hours
and everything. There was a rustle of cloth, and a second large form moved in
alongside the old King. The new one, his son, Richard. Side by side it was easy
to see how similar the two men were. Richard actually was about an inch or so
taller, and a bit leaner looking. Both seemed incredibly powerful however, if
you were paying attention.

"Ah! Dare. You've met my
father? And haven't even started fighting him yet? Amazing." There was a
smile on his face, and the older man snorted at him, taking another drink.

"I noticed that one as well.
Prince Dareg here is most polite however. I asked about his wenching and boy
love hobbies... And he deflected like a master, turning the topic to his good
works. Ports and trips to see Saturn? Is there any truth to that?" This
was said to King Richard, who looked slightly put upon by the question. Almost
angry.

His voice was smooth however.
Flowing out of him in a way that made his next words seem like a prepared
speech.

 "They're both fact. There's
more, too. Late last night I had to call on him to move soldiers to save a city
from flood. He not only did that, but stayed to feed the personnel and return
them to their base. I hear you're also putting together daily trips from all
ports in the system? The Ancient, Alice Orange, got in touch to work out some
of the particulars on that. I'm surprised you didn't mention it." The King
didn't seem that way at all, but the idea was clear enough. He wanted to
impress upon his father how useful Dare was.

Which did sound pretty good when
it was all said together.

"Well, I'm planning to set
up goods shipping if I can, using those craft and routes, so that isn't a
hobby
really. I should split the funds that come in, if anything, with space
fleet." That sounded fair to him, though it was clear he'd need to hire
his own people to do the booking and moving of goods.

Instead of call him a bore for
talking about work, Baldur reached down with his free hand and slapped Dare on
the shoulder. It was friendly, however.

"Ha! Industrious. What are
today's youth coming to, eh, Richard? I remember a time when a boy his age
would just sit in taverns pulling comely lasses onto his lap. Times have
changed, haven't they?"

The big redheaded man, looked at
his own father and simply nodded.

"War, cataclysm and hardship
have changed us all, I think. A boy
should
have the luxury to play and
make a fool of himself, but we can't afford that now. There are things afoot.
Worse than the last attacks, in potential. We should speak of that later. I
need what wisdom I can on the topic." He cast a look at the older man, but
not Dareg, which probably meant that he wasn't going to be invited to
that
particular special meeting. Which made sense. He'd need to get to bed again
soon anyway. Just saying that sounded insane, but it was still correct.

The music in the background
changed tunes, to a light thing that was probably impossible to dance to, but
that was intriguing enough to catch the attention of the whole group for a
moment. Then the old man rumbled in a low tone to his son.

"I had wondered, given the
invitation. Not that coming merely to see my grandchildren or to meet the new
betrothed isn't enough. It's well past time for our Karina to marry. I've
worried about her for some time now. Living off in space, all alone, on the
edge of nothingness like she must be doing. I'd cry scandal, but don't know
enough to even lay false claims there. I can't see it being a good thing
however."

Dareg didn't know either, having
never been there before. It occurred to him that he should go and check that.
The next day would work well enough for that. When he got all the scientists.
More to the point, the morning of the day after. If they could manage it. That
way the science team could spend a whole day working on things.

To that end, he bowed to the men
with him.

"I need to find someplace
where talking on the handheld won't distract others? I need to get on with
Timon Baker. It just occurred to me that I don't know who to contact about
things in Austra as to when I need to be there. It was very nice meeting you,
Baldur. King Richard." He bowed to the king, going low and holding it,
getting one only slightly less deep in return.

"Prince Dareg. I think the
small conference room, down the hallway on the left, will do? Three doors down
on that side?"

Those words got him out of the
room, and it wasn't too hard to find the right space. It was big enough for
twenty people, but the whole thing was a matter of scale really. In this place
it was tiny, being only the same amount of space that a family of six might
live their entire lives in. That was being rich however. They had the best of
things, and kept them mainly for themselves and their friends.

At least he didn't see any common
city people standing there, along side of him.

It didn't take long to get with
Timon, and even though it was late in the Capital, the man seemed alert and
chipper still.

"Dareg! Getting in touch to
learn who you need to talk to about the upcoming trip? If of course, it isn't
me, which it
isn't
. Mike Coltress. My personal aide. Good man, Mike.
Used to be a woman, so when you find that out, don't be too shocked. He should
be awake by now, being on Austran time. I was actually just going to get him to
contact you, but this will work." It was all insightful information,
missing only the rest of what he wanted. Instead of asking he nodded at the
man, and smile.

"
And
? You're missing
half of it."

That got Timon to freeze, looking
very young for a few moments, as bafflement hit his face. Then there was a
searching picking up things from the background.

"Well... You're at the
King's palace... Am I supposed to go to dinner? I wasn't invited that I know
of. Some kind of secret meeting?"

Dare shrugged and then shook his
head.

"Yes. Soon, but not today.
We all need to get together. All the world's leaders, and Ancients. Which means
I
won't be needed for it. For now though I need to set up those lessons
with you, and Tenet suggested that I get building lessons at the same time, if
the things match up? Also, as many powers as I can be changed to hold. As a
test. I probably can't handle that right now, but as soon as I can? I just
wanted to see if you'd be willing to help with that." He let his voice
become dark, and low energy as he spoke to show that it was all serious.

Timon laughed anyway.

"All right. Strength, speed,
greater intelligence. That's going to be hard. It's not easy to make a person a
lot more intelligent than I am. I'll figure something out that way. Training in
building and time manipulation. You're planning on fighting, too? With..."
Then he stopped and shook his head. "I'm not even going to guess on that
one. You have too many options, and
all
of them will work. There is a
limit to the fighting skill a person can reach, since all of the movements are
pretty much set by form, if you practice and pay attention. Really..."
Then he stopped, and didn't go on in the slightest. Not even letting his face
twitch to give away an idea.