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FIC: Roger's Gift (Tortall, Roger, G)
SUMMARY: So what was Roger's 'business in Carthak' during The First Adventure?
The guard eyed the Tortallan duke suspiciously. The man had been given imperial permission to examine the heir to the throne for signs of the Gift, but even so the child's bodyguard wished to keep a close eye on him. He didn't trust foreigners, and he trusted foreign sorcerers even less. He'd never felt comfortable with magic, and was wary of some mischief being worked on the newborn prince. The nobleman looked up from the child's cradle and smiled urbanely at him.
"Well," he said in his smooth, cultured voice, fiddling with the pendant around his neck. "A healthy child, certainly, but he appears to be giftless."
The guard acknowledged him with a stiff nod. Secretly, he was relieved. He wasn't keen on the prospect of serving under an Emperor who knew magic.
"However," the man continued in a sharper tone, "that can be changed." Orange lightning arched from his fingers and struck the startled guard before he had a chance to react.
~
Roger leaned over the gilded cradle, smiling at the boy-child, who was now sleeping peacefully. He stroked its forehead with a long, perfectly manicured finger.
"Well, little prince, I have given you some of my power, and with it, a small piece of my mind. Should I be caught on this next endeavor of mine," he smiled disdainfully, "which, I admit, is very unlikely, then I shall be able to carry on through you. Use my gifts well, young mage." He straightened himself, cast a scornful glance at the unconscious guard, and swept out of the room.
~
The prince's bodyguard awoke with a start. I must have fallen asleep, he thought. Thank Mithros nobody noticed, or I'd be dead by now. He vaguely remembered a foreign duke - he had been testing the baby prince for magic. What had he said? The recollection was faint, but - yes, he had said that the prince had the Gift, and in abundance.
The guard glanced over to the imperial cradle, and shuddered. Globes of orange fire hung above Orzone's crib, and he was playing with them, gurgling happily. And, somewhere in the east, a red star rose.
The guard eyed the Tortallan duke suspiciously. The man had been given imperial permission to examine the heir to the throne for signs of the Gift, but even so the child's bodyguard wished to keep a close eye on him. He didn't trust foreigners, and he trusted foreign sorcerers even less. He'd never felt comfortable with magic, and was wary of some mischief being worked on the newborn prince. The nobleman looked up from the child's cradle and smiled urbanely at him.
"Well," he said in his smooth, cultured voice, fiddling with the pendant around his neck. "A healthy child, certainly, but he appears to be giftless."
The guard acknowledged him with a stiff nod. Secretly, he was relieved. He wasn't keen on the prospect of serving under an Emperor who knew magic.
"However," the man continued in a sharper tone, "that can be changed." Orange lightning arched from his fingers and struck the startled guard before he had a chance to react.
~
Roger leaned over the gilded cradle, smiling at the boy-child, who was now sleeping peacefully. He stroked its forehead with a long, perfectly manicured finger.
"Well, little prince, I have given you some of my power, and with it, a small piece of my mind. Should I be caught on this next endeavor of mine," he smiled disdainfully, "which, I admit, is very unlikely, then I shall be able to carry on through you. Use my gifts well, young mage." He straightened himself, cast a scornful glance at the unconscious guard, and swept out of the room.
~
The prince's bodyguard awoke with a start. I must have fallen asleep, he thought. Thank Mithros nobody noticed, or I'd be dead by now. He vaguely remembered a foreign duke - he had been testing the baby prince for magic. What had he said? The recollection was faint, but - yes, he had said that the prince had the Gift, and in abundance.
The guard glanced over to the imperial cradle, and shuddered. Globes of orange fire hung above Orzone's crib, and he was playing with them, gurgling happily. And, somewhere in the east, a red star rose.