“No… it's, I'm not allowed to say, but I can assure you that nothing you or Ali did caused this. You just have to pay for it. But no, this isn't the time to fight, not physically. Get your words and mind ready though. I'll try to help, but may not be allowed to.” The tone was as serious as he'd ever heard from the giant red-head. Not dark, but there was nothing light left in it at all either.
Tor let his mind calm and focused as they moved, his attention moving inward as much as possible while still walking, concentration becoming sharper with each step, until he was truly in an altered state when they got into the dining room. One of those “eat dinner first, then fight” meetings that they liked so much.
He moved to take Alissa's arm and smiled at her sadly. He was so stupid and bad at life he couldn't even keep a gentle and sweet wife for a week? If they took her from him… Tor decided not to marry again. Not while Ali still lived at least. They could make him be alone, but they couldn't make him marry against his will. Not now that he was an adult. Even the King couldn't do that.
The “appropriate” people for this turned out to be Smythe, Burks, the royal family and the Dowager Countess Derring. Ali ran to her, forgetting decorum all together. Tor smiled though, they hadn't seen each other in years, so it made sense she'd want to see her immediately. Connie looked at him briefly, shook her head and looked away, as if he was supposed to understand that? Her eyes were red from crying, so whatever had been going on it wasn't a good thing.
Tor didn't bow to anyone, but when Ali, Gretchen he supposed it was now that she didn't have to hide any more, came running back. She bowed, as was normal and appropriate, Tor couldn't see the point at the moment. The only thing stopping him from yelling at people was that he wasn't sure who to fight with yet. He barely heard the pleasantries, keeping his mind deep and sharp as he could.
There was food, but it was just food. All his attention was on the people. Richard looked at him, but he didn't let his gaze linger, as if guilty, but trying not to be. Connie misted up looking at him several times and Karina looked pissed. She didn't glare at anyone in particular though, not even him, so she was mad at a situation that couldn't be helped or someone out of the room? Rolph looked at him and sighed a lot, making grim faces. Varley looked down at her plate the whole time, not even lifting her eyes while standing.
Burks focused on him with nearly the same attention Tor was putting on everyone else though. That made sense. As had been pointed out, they were basically the same person and that person was different on a basic level compared from everyone else. The only ones even close were the other ancients. Tor didn't fool himself into thinking that an eighteen year old him was the equal of a three thousand year old one though.
That would have just been stupid. Worse than he normally was. Both he and Burks tilted their heads to the right when they looked at each other, but neither smiled over it. Next to him Countess Derring seemed… happy. Content.
The first, and only, time they'd met before she'd seemed strained and a little worn. Now Tor had an inkling why. Her hair was a short and sandy blond, frame huge for a woman, nearly six-ten or so at least and well muscled, her face a little plain, but the whole package looked nice, like she was a kind person that wanted to be that way, one fresh out of a bad circumstance.
After the strawberries, liberally sugared and served with heavy sweetened cream were finished and the table cleared, The King stood and gestured to Burks, a small movement of the hand that looked slightly reluctant. The Count moved to a small table off to one side, messed with five small black boxes on it and got three of the green garbed male servers to help him move it to the far end of the table, about fifteen feet away from Tor. When it was all done, hand hovering over a small central box, the only one without a glass lens poking from the front, shining slightly. He looked at the King.
“Ready?”
Richard looked around and sighed.
“Go.”
The instant the button was depressed two men appeared in the room. If it wasn't for the fact that all of them were now used to things suddenly appearing, thanks to the new houses, boats and carriages, people probably would have panicked. As it was everyone just assumed, correctly Tor noted after feeling the pattern of the men, that no one was really there. He could feel the effect, how the devices in the back put out intense light that bounced around to draw the pictures of men in the air. The room started to cool and Dowager Derring suddenly seemed cold. Everyone else had a temperature equalizer, but the device stole heat from the room to power it. Poorly designed in all, Tor thought. Burning energy like that. It wasn't even a solid field, just a seeming. Sloppy.
The man on the right was tall, not royal tall, but a good six-two or three. He had on a funny three cornered hat in blue, trimmed with red and a highly over decorated jacket with similar colors and dozens of points of shine. There were also ribbons on his chest as well as gold colored shoulder patches that looked a bit too much like someone had dumped scrambled eggs on the man to take seriously. The pants were a lighter blue with a brighter red stripe down the outside of each leg.
His face was pretty average, lighter than most people in Noram, but darker than Tor by several shades. It was a bit long and a little horsey, but didn't seem bad over all, except for the eyes. The eyes weren't sane. They glared violently and darted around the room, looking at the King and Queen, the royal children and finally stared first at Burks and then Tor, where they stayed the longest.
The other person smiled gently and was perhaps the loveliest man Tor had ever seen.
The brightly clad fellow looked to be about ten years older than him, but Tor got that the short one had to be Denno Brown. His clothing was a simple tunic and loose trousers in pale blue. If Count Ward had been made twenty again, shrunk and somehow improved by about thirty percent, he'd be this man.
It was the smaller man who spoke first, his voice smooth and fluid, washing over them like a silk cover being pulled up on a bed. The warmth and friendliness was so apparent that Tor had to wonder why they were having a war with these people at all. They could have talked out any problems and if they let this man speak for them it would probably go to Austra's advantage easily.
“Your majesties, respected worthies, Green and…” The man locked eye's with Tor and then suddenly smiled happily.
“A new brother? Burks… you did it? It worked? Amazing!”
Burks nodded.
“Denno. Yes, Tor is as you see, as we are. He and I are, with but minor changes, less than one would expect from a clone even, the same being. The differences are all in the Cordes line. This is Torrance Baker. Born of my daughter Laurali. You'd recognize her too. Lara.”
The gorgeous man… winced. Hard.
“Ah. Couldn't have worked with one of the other girls? White perhaps? Even Red? I suppose the genetic knowledge was important for the procedure and your own… techniques… magic?” He nodded, figuring it out for himself, without needing to be told, even though Tor struggled to follow a bit.
“Both are needed to form such perfect beings then?” He winked at Tor and smiled grandly.
“Don't let that perfect part go to your head little brother, I just mean that you're a very good replication. Well, the world could do worse than to have another green man in it. Perhaps we could meet to discuss your future someday? That would be very nice indeed. I think the rest of us have forgotten what we originally were over time. It happens. Time that is.”
Burks laughed, but Tor didn't get the joke yet. Maybe after he'd lived as long as they had?
The other man growled softly, pushing the idea that he wasn't all that well balanced as far as Tor could tell.