Silver was astonished with how easily the gate was opened for the messenger.
The last time he had come into the palace willingly, he had had to climb the massive walls and avoid the guards. At that time he had silently cursed the soldiers' diligence which had made his job much harder. Now he was glad to see at least a few armed men scanning the area for anything amiss.
Dismounting between the outer and inner curtain, Silver reluctantly turned over the care of Daisy to one of the palace stableboys.
"Take care of her," the cloaked figure warned.
"I will, sir! I promise." The young man bowed respectfully.
Silver was going to give him further instructions on how to take care of his precious mare when he was interrupted.
"Ho, Guardian, there you are!" A familiar voice called from the lawn of the keep.
Flipping a coin to the stablehand, Silver turned away and walked toward the two men waiting for him on the other side of the raised portcullis.
Aiden held out his hand and shook the Guardian's forearm. "We were beginning to think you wouldn't come back at all."
The sun barely lingered in the sky, casting heavy shadows across the castle grounds.
"I wasn't planning to," Silver admitted. "But who can say no when the king himself requests you?"
"Wise, uh, words if ever I heard them," Conall slapped his friend on the back.
"How long have you been out here?" Silver furrowed his brow.
"Not long. Things have been quite busy around here. But we decided it would be better to be available in case the gatekeeper wanted confirmation of your identity. Seems like we weren't needed." Aiden shrugged.
In truth, he was glad for the fresh air. He was not made to be indoors for so long.
While waiting, the two men had assisted in clearing the rest of the keep and washing away as much of the blood as they could using well water. The whole area was wet and muddy but no longer crimson. Silver was glad there seemed to be no more trouble after he left.
"The king wants to see me," Silver spoke halfway between a statement and a question.
"His Majesty told us, though he, uh, did not say what the matter is about. I doubt it has anything to do with Borit. The former Commander dug his own gave without your, uh, help." Conall puffed out his chest as he presented the news.
If he had expected a huge reaction from Silver, he was disappointed. "Hanna told me it was all sorted. I am glad. He has ruined too many lives as it is." The Guardian straightened his cloak as the messenger came from the stable to join them.
"Forgive me, my lord, I was making sure everything was settled as the king commanded. I can escort you to him now if you please." The man in purple and gold bowed slightly.
"My lord?" Conall looked skeptically at the cloaked figure.
Silver shrugged. "I've no idea either...Will you both wait for me to return?"
"We have been invited to stay the night at the palace. We will head back in the morning as long as everything is settled enough for us to do so." Aiden shook with the Guardian again in agreement.
"I will see you in a short while then, I hope." Turning away from his friends, Silver followed after the messenger into the castle.
Cleanup had begun there as well, albeit slower. Although the bodies had all been cleared to a singular location, the devastation would take much longer to mend. Some of the items which were destroyed lay shattered on the ground. More than one of them was irreplaceable.
'Not as sad as the loss of human life,' Silver mused, 'but still a tragedy of its own.'
The Guardian had given up his thieving ways, but that did not mean he had stopped appreciating nice things.
And a few of the artifacts in the castle dated back to before the War of Fates and Man. It was history that would be lost if they were destroyed.
Following the herald, Silver resisted the urge to ask the man what this was all about.
If it was just to give him a thank you, then a royal summons was unnecessary and wasteful. Rhodri could have just sent an edict with Aiden or Conall for the Guardian to receive when they got home.
Did he still want to punish Silver for past crimes? That also seemed unlikely. Hanna would not have encouraged him to return with the messenger if it were going to land him back in prison.
And Aiden did not think it was to investigate more about Borit.
Which left....what? What could the king possibly want to discuss with him that could not be conveyed by a courier?
Even if he had asked the question out loud, the messenger would not be able to answer. So the two walked in silence.
"Enter!" the king boomed when at last they reached his office door.
The messenger bowed low before the king. "Your Majesty, I bring you the Guardian of Rynnlee, Silver."
'I think he knows that. I'm standing right here.' Silver bowed his head and kept his sarcasm silent.
Rhodri nodded. "Thank you, I can see that. I need to speak to the Guardian alone. Please see that we are not disturbed."
The messenger nodded and exited with a flourish.
"You also," he told the two men in the corners behind his back. The soldiers hesitated. "I know my daughter asked you to watch me, but I am commanding you to leave, Philip. Go and make a report on this to her if you must, but I will have my privacy now."
The dark-haired soldier looked toward his companion and jerked his head. They exited without another word. As the door shut, Silver chuckled.
"What?" The king raised one eyebrow.
"I suppose if you are willing to be alone with me it is either very good or very bad news. But no matter what it is, you at least aren't worried that I might try and kill you." The Guardian wanted to slap himself. 'What are you blabbering on about? Hush!'
Rhodri's second eyebrow met the first on his forehead. "Do you mean to kill me?" The words were not spoken with any fear, merely curiosity. "It would be quite a waste after you spent so much effort rescuing me from the clutches of Lakyle."
"Fair point," Silver resolved not to make any more off-handed comments.
Pointing to the chair across the desk, Rhodri indicated that his guest should be seated. The Guardian obeyed like a child about to be reprimanded by his teacher.
"You are probably wracking your mind trying to figure out why I would call you back when you very clearly did not want to speak with me." Rhodri diplomatically tried to bridge the gap between them.
"The thought had crossed my mind, Your Majesty," Silver admitted.
The two men looked at one another for a moment, Silver staring at the king's contemplative face and Rhodri looking into the hood's black void.
The older man cleared his throat.
"I have brought you here for one reason only...
...The Truth."