22. Cinder King
Eryndor sat before the fireplace and grumbled curses at his uncle who from his point of view had tried to murder him earlier.
"Who does he think he is anyway, trying to murder me! If he doesn't want to teach me he should just say it." He grumbled even louder.
Thalor who was still recovering had his interest piqued in the matter, he walked into the room with a blanket wrapped around him. He walked over to where the young prince sat and stood next to him.
Annoyed by his presence Eryndor sparked. "Are you going to stand there and piss me off or are you going to say something?"
Thalor chose to keep mute for a full minute giving Eryndor the space to calm down and recollect himself. After a moment he spoke words that the captain of the guards had never heard from him before.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you, I'm just stressed. I know you've been by my side all the way from the castle, you never really complained with me being a jerk and I'm extremely grateful for that." Eryndor meant everything he said to some extent. "I know I have been full of many selfish demands lately, I just have one more I am hoping you will follow."
The brief pause gave Thalor enough time to catch up and ask. "And that is—?"
Eryndor stated at the fireplace, the crackling of fire growing with time. His voice was low as he spoke. "Please get me out of here. I don't care if you take me far away, just send me off to somewhere remote. I'll train and become someone my family can be proud of."
He gave a brief pause to breath before saying. "I know this was my father's decision coming here but, I don't think I can ever hope to reach my full potential here."
Thalor could not help but grin at his young lord, he had never seen him so dedicated to anything besides his foolery. He tried to be understanding as he spoke. "Full potential? My lord it is much too soon to be considering that at your level."
Eryndor grumbled again. "If you are going to make me feel worse than I already do then you are doing a surprisingly good job at it. No surprise there."
Thalor sighed and turned to face the fireplace as he spoke. "Believe me young lord, I don't mean to drench your hopes. I will not encourage you to follow your father's wishes but I will tell you a story."
Eryndor cried. "Hell no."
Thalor pulled a stool nearby and sat before the fireplace next to his young lord. "Well before you judge your uncle why don't I tell you his story? It's only fair since you're both strangers to each other."
Eryndor was not one for stories but he needed an excuse to pass time and learning even a little about his uncle might be a good excuse. Besides he was a very curious person and he wanted so badly to know if any of the rumors about his uncle were actually true. Or better yet to know what really was true.
Thalor continued shortly after. "You uncle used to be a troublemaker in his early years too, there were stories of him causing chaos within the palace. Though he was not as daring as you were."
Eryndor raised and eyebrow and pondered on those words. His uncle did have the personality of a troublemaker so that seemed believable. But why did it feel like he was holding a record that was yet to be broken, Eryndor did not know whether to feel insulted or proud.
Thalor continued. "Thalvarin was a prodigy at a young age. His elemental affinity was flame magic, I heard his love of fire was so great that he could easily surpass the scholars themselves. Despite being next in line for the throne he never shared the believes of his father or his family. He always hated the trails of the kingdom, the burdens of leadership. Eventually he chose to leave the kingdom and become an adventurer, years passed till he became known as the Cinder King.
"Your uncle became the strongest flame mage of our generation and he did that without the support of his family. Everything you see him as was built by his own hands and sweat, he truly is an elf I look up to with all respect."
Eryndor felt a deep sense of self after hearing his uncle's story. He could see a lot of similarities between him and his estranged uncle. Was that why his father had sent him there?
He pondered deeply on the matter and started to feel a deep sense of respect for Thalvarin. His uncle had taken the same path he wanted to, the solitary path. He became the Cinder King and proved that legends could be created from hardwork and skill and not by family backing or standards. This was the future Eryndor so desperately wanted to reach.
If this was what fate had in store for him then he would not want to stray from it. What better could he ask for but someone as experienced as Thalvarin.
Thalor marveled at the look of complexity he found on his young lord's face and smiled. "When he's hard on you it's just the way he sees the world, it's how he's dealt with the world. If possible try to see it from his viewpoint."
In the entrance between the living room and the small passageway stood Thalvarin, his hulking figure resting his back at a quiet corner as he listened in on their conversation in silence. His face was hard to discern. He had been standing there for a long time, hearing a majority of their discussion and simply doing nothing.
The truth was that he did not know a thing about his young nephew, he could see a sense of similarity. A fire burning in his eyes, he had expected them to be similar in a way but he was wrong. His nephew was a spoiled brat like the other royals. Or was he?
His attention was drawn to their discussion, this time the one speaking was his nephew. Instinctively he listened attentively.
"So he's the Cinder King, no wonder the cold here doesn't affect him." Eryndor smiled proudly. "My uncle is so cool, no I mean hot. He a million times better than my dad who just sits in his throne all day with that pasty frown."
Thalvarin grinned and thought to himself. "I always knew Altharion would look stupid under a crown. Kids got guts mouthing his old man like that, I'll give him that."
Eryndor was not done just yet, he persisted. "I never fit in back there, the power and wealth went straight to my head. I'm glad I lost everything, I know what I'm about to say might sound crazy but... I happy I'm in this place. I'm in a place where no one would even think about me, isn't it great that I can grow as much as possible. Climb my way to the top on my own."
Thalor who for the first time was seeing this side of Eryndor gasped and froze for seconds before relaxing himself and seeing him in a new light. He knew his dear young prince had a mad side to him but he could never tell it was to this extent. Eventually he asked. "Isn't it scary having to start from scratch my prince?"
Eryndor's smile faltered and his gaze on the flames weakened. He reached into his hair and brushed it back from his long pointy ear and chuckled nervously, failing to conceal his fear and uncertainty. "It is scary, I would be lying if I said it wasn't. But I've been living in comfort for so long that it's blinding me from seeing my true potential. If a little pain is what it takes for me to see a future then I guess I have no choice."
Thalor opened his mouth to speak only to close it after and looked away saying nothing. There was nothing he had to say, in the time he had spent with Eryndor in the past few weeks he had come to realise just how much he had changed.
"Young lord, you have earned my respect. I will await your promised rerun at the castle." He thought to himself.
Thalvarin who was still lurking nearby turned and started to walk into the exit, he boomed behind him. "I'll be going out to hunt."
Thalor acknowledged him with a nod and glance over at Eryndor who turned and started at him with something he could not discern. It was not admiration neither was it interest, it was cryptic. Eryndor turned back to the flame not saying a word more.
And that was how their encounter ended. Though it was short it gave both parties something to ponder about. Thalvarin had to decide if he would truly take his nephew under his wing and Eryndor had to think on what type of elf he wanted to be in future.