Chapter 85: The Biggest Issue
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Not a word of his warning was being retained by the children of the governor. Though his voice was audible to the two siblings, they weren't listening at all. In fact, they were miles away from their bodies, busy day dreaming and replaying Xzavier's miraculous performance in their heads.
So, like a bunch of automatons, or a bunch of ventriloquist dolls, they both nodded absentmindedly in response to his warnings. It was the best way to get him off their backs and stop him from clobbering them with his ominous admonitions and apocalyptic warnings.
Laddie was no fool, he saw and recognized the faraway looks in their eyes and knew that his words were actively falling on deaf ears. It wasn't their fault really. Even he himself already found himself getting endeared to the strange man. It had happened so suddenly. Like the proverbial dragon that had fought against gravity and stealthily made its way to the moon, Xzavier had gradually made a place for himself in the old man's heart.
Though, even if a knife were to be put at his throat, even at the point of death, the senior mage would never acknowledge this openly. But deep down, between him and heaven, the old man worshipped Xzavier from the bottom of his heart. Unfortunately, he couldn't afford to allow his admiration for Xzavier to stand in the way of him performing his duties. The kids had to be warned.
So, Laddie tightened his already serious face and stepped forward menacingly towards the boy and the girl.
"I don't think you're listening to me…!" the white bearded man didn't realize just how right he was about that statement.
"This is not a joke! What happened here today is now a state secret! So if any of you breathe a word of this to anyone, you will be prosecuted as traitors!"
Of course that last part was a bit over the top, but he had to exaggerate to get them both to comply. There was no way the children of the governor would be allowed to be prosecuted for something as insignificant as blabbering.
But the two minors didn't know that. The old man's last threat woke them out of their slumber. Slowly, the light returned to their eyes. And as they gradually returned back to the present from the mental journey they had undertaken, a sullen look of worry clouded their face as they ruminated on the senior mage's last warning. Of course neither of them wanted to go to jail.
At first, Earlene, the sibling who naturally tended towards rebellion, flirted with the idea of being prosecuted and thought of how cool it would make her seem. But very quickly, she realized it wouldn't be as glamorous as she thought it would be. Cadence didn't need to be told twice.
The old man recognized the familiar effect of a threat that had been well received, and relaxed. He had driven his point home.
"Now off to your quarters both of you!"
They hurriedly shuffled on their feet as they made their way towards their rooms. And as they disappeared down the curve at the end of the hallway, the old man called out to them with his last instruction;
"And remember to study and practice today's lessons!"
Even as he yelled, Laddie knew that wasn't going to happen. There wasn't going to be any studying that night, not when their hearts had been hijacked by something so salacious and juicy. Of course none of them were going to study, they weren't going to catch much sleep either. And even if they did manage to fall asleep, their dreams would be replete with the reverberations and echoes of what they had witnessed here today.
The old man sighed. It wasn't just the kids who wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. Even he wouldn't be spared the temptation of replaying Xzavier's wonderful display of power. There was so much Laddie didn't understand, so much he was yet to comprehend. His mind was going to have a field day with this when he would lie in bed later that night. The only downside about this was; he was going to be robbed of a good night's rest. At his age, this was not something he could afford to joke with.
"Well, this is going to be a long night…" he thought to himself.
True to the old man's word, that night proved to be a real battle for just about everyone, but in particular, Cadence. After dinner with the family, Cadence ascended the stairs that led to his room.
A few moments later, tucked in bed and ready to retire for the night, Cadence closed his eyes and fought to call forth the sweet comfort of a good night's sleep. But unfortunately for him, it was proving to be a battle that he couldn't win. The minutes turned into hours, and the hours dragged out the relatively short period that was night. With each passing minute, it seemed like sleep was getting farther and farther away from him.
Like a sick joke, midnight came and Cadence still couldn't sleep. When he closed his eyes, his own haunting thoughts overwhelmed him. The memories of what he had watched the mysterious man accomplish played out again and again, each time, more vivid than before.
The threat of the unknown was very real to him. He couldn't get it out of his head. When he opened his eyes to escape his own morbid imaginations, out from the darkness, at the bottom of his bed, the echoes of his own dour thoughts took on the form of shadows, and called out to him tauntingly. Unable to shut them out, Cadence rolled over to the other side of bed that faced the open window.
He listened to the steady croaking the frogs playing in the open ponds, and he couldn't help but envy them in that moment. He pictured the amphibians basking under the pale moonlight, croaking without a care or worry in the world. Very faintly, in the direction of the open window, Cadence heard the spooky hooting of an owl. He turned to the other side of his feathered bed, hoping to find some kind of solace, but was met with an equally darker scene.
When Cadence finally decided to confront the elephant in the room, what he feared the most about that night finally materialized. Cadence was well aware of the consequences of not having a good night sleep. But at this point, his young mind didn't give him much of a choice.
So, reluctantly, Cadence turned to face the nagging voice in his head, and all through the night, the young lad spent the entire period deep in thought, analyzing the Xzavier situation with great vigor. Just as he feared, he ended up not sleeping that night. But by the end of the night, his sacrifice had proven to be worth it. He had been able to reach a conclusion. Cadence only needed the day to break, so he would be able to put it into action.
By the first cockcrow, Cadence bolted up right in his bed. His eyes were bloodshot, like that of a mad man's due to the fact that he hadn't slept a wink. But at that point, that really wasn't his major concern. He got up and washed his face in the wash bowl located at the east wing of his room. He hurriedly went through the motions of changing out of his traditional night garments into something a more appropriate day wear.
And with a spring in his step, the young Cadence opened his door and headed straight to his father's quarters that was located at the extreme end of the mansion.
For a young impressionable lad, Cadence was pretty knowledgeable to his age. He knew that his father was usually the first person to rise up in the entire household. He rose up way earlier than the servants and way earlier than even the cock whose job was to announce the advent of the morning. As Cadence trudged through the hallways, he noted to himself how odd it was that his father was always the first to rise, and at the same time, always the last to go to bed.
Cadence calculated that his father got roughly only two or three hours of sleep each night. This was amusing considering the fact that, as a governor and as a father, his workload was tremendous. In Cadence's mind, it was almost impossible to imagine how exactly this all worked out for his old man.
But at that moment, this wasn't Cadence's biggest issue.
Using the ever lit fire torches to find his way, Cadence slowly made his way towards his father's home office where he knew he would be. Each step of the way, he rehearsed and rehearsed the way and manner with which he would present his request to his old man. This was a request that had been borne from several hours of pondering. He had spent an entire night thinking on this, so he hoped with all his heart that he wouldn't be easily dismissed.
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Not a word of his warning was being retained by the children of the governor. Though his voice was audible to the two siblings, they weren't listening at all. In fact, they were miles away from their bodies, busy day dreaming and replaying Xzavier's miraculous performance in their heads.
So, like a bunch of automatons, or a bunch of ventriloquist dolls, they both nodded absentmindedly in response to his warnings. It was the best way to get him off their backs and stop him from clobbering them with his ominous admonitions and apocalyptic warnings.
Laddie was no fool, he saw and recognized the faraway looks in their eyes and knew that his words were actively falling on deaf ears. It wasn't their fault really. Even he himself already found himself getting endeared to the strange man. It had happened so suddenly. Like the proverbial dragon that had fought against gravity and stealthily made its way to the moon, Xzavier had gradually made a place for himself in the old man's heart.
Though, even if a knife were to be put at his throat, even at the point of death, the senior mage would never acknowledge this openly. But deep down, between him and heaven, the old man worshipped Xzavier from the bottom of his heart. Unfortunately, he couldn't afford to allow his admiration for Xzavier to stand in the way of him performing his duties. The kids had to be warned.
So, Laddie tightened his already serious face and stepped forward menacingly towards the boy and the girl.
"I don't think you're listening to me…!" the white bearded man didn't realize just how right he was about that statement.
"This is not a joke! What happened here today is now a state secret! So if any of you breathe a word of this to anyone, you will be prosecuted as traitors!"
Of course that last part was a bit over the top, but he had to exaggerate to get them both to comply. There was no way the children of the governor would be allowed to be prosecuted for something as insignificant as blabbering.
But the two minors didn't know that. The old man's last threat woke them out of their slumber. Slowly, the light returned to their eyes. And as they gradually returned back to the present from the mental journey they had undertaken, a sullen look of worry clouded their face as they ruminated on the senior mage's last warning. Of course neither of them wanted to go to jail.
At first, Earlene, the sibling who naturally tended towards rebellion, flirted with the idea of being prosecuted and thought of how cool it would make her seem. But very quickly, she realized it wouldn't be as glamorous as she thought it would be. Cadence didn't need to be told twice.
The old man recognized the familiar effect of a threat that had been well received, and relaxed. He had driven his point home.
"Now off to your quarters both of you!"
They hurriedly shuffled on their feet as they made their way towards their rooms. And as they disappeared down the curve at the end of the hallway, the old man called out to them with his last instruction;
"And remember to study and practice today's lessons!"
Even as he yelled, Laddie knew that wasn't going to happen. There wasn't going to be any studying that night, not when their hearts had been hijacked by something so salacious and juicy. Of course none of them were going to study, they weren't going to catch much sleep either. And even if they did manage to fall asleep, their dreams would be replete with the reverberations and echoes of what they had witnessed here today.
The old man sighed. It wasn't just the kids who wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. Even he wouldn't be spared the temptation of replaying Xzavier's wonderful display of power. There was so much Laddie didn't understand, so much he was yet to comprehend. His mind was going to have a field day with this when he would lie in bed later that night. The only downside about this was; he was going to be robbed of a good night's rest. At his age, this was not something he could afford to joke with.
"Well, this is going to be a long night…" he thought to himself.
True to the old man's word, that night proved to be a real battle for just about everyone, but in particular, Cadence. After dinner with the family, Cadence ascended the stairs that led to his room.
A few moments later, tucked in bed and ready to retire for the night, Cadence closed his eyes and fought to call forth the sweet comfort of a good night's sleep. But unfortunately for him, it was proving to be a battle that he couldn't win. The minutes turned into hours, and the hours dragged out the relatively short period that was night. With each passing minute, it seemed like sleep was getting farther and farther away from him.
Like a sick joke, midnight came and Cadence still couldn't sleep. When he closed his eyes, his own haunting thoughts overwhelmed him. The memories of what he had watched the mysterious man accomplish played out again and again, each time, more vivid than before.
The threat of the unknown was very real to him. He couldn't get it out of his head. When he opened his eyes to escape his own morbid imaginations, out from the darkness, at the bottom of his bed, the echoes of his own dour thoughts took on the form of shadows, and called out to him tauntingly. Unable to shut them out, Cadence rolled over to the other side of bed that faced the open window.
He listened to the steady croaking the frogs playing in the open ponds, and he couldn't help but envy them in that moment. He pictured the amphibians basking under the pale moonlight, croaking without a care or worry in the world. Very faintly, in the direction of the open window, Cadence heard the spooky hooting of an owl. He turned to the other side of his feathered bed, hoping to find some kind of solace, but was met with an equally darker scene.
When Cadence finally decided to confront the elephant in the room, what he feared the most about that night finally materialized. Cadence was well aware of the consequences of not having a good night sleep. But at this point, his young mind didn't give him much of a choice.
So, reluctantly, Cadence turned to face the nagging voice in his head, and all through the night, the young lad spent the entire period deep in thought, analyzing the Xzavier situation with great vigor. Just as he feared, he ended up not sleeping that night. But by the end of the night, his sacrifice had proven to be worth it. He had been able to reach a conclusion. Cadence only needed the day to break, so he would be able to put it into action.
By the first cockcrow, Cadence bolted up right in his bed. His eyes were bloodshot, like that of a mad man's due to the fact that he hadn't slept a wink. But at that point, that really wasn't his major concern. He got up and washed his face in the wash bowl located at the east wing of his room. He hurriedly went through the motions of changing out of his traditional night garments into something a more appropriate day wear.
And with a spring in his step, the young Cadence opened his door and headed straight to his father's quarters that was located at the extreme end of the mansion.
For a young impressionable lad, Cadence was pretty knowledgeable to his age. He knew that his father was usually the first person to rise up in the entire household. He rose up way earlier than the servants and way earlier than even the cock whose job was to announce the advent of the morning. As Cadence trudged through the hallways, he noted to himself how odd it was that his father was always the first to rise, and at the same time, always the last to go to bed.
Cadence calculated that his father got roughly only two or three hours of sleep each night. This was amusing considering the fact that, as a governor and as a father, his workload was tremendous. In Cadence's mind, it was almost impossible to imagine how exactly this all worked out for his old man.
But at that moment, this wasn't Cadence's biggest issue.
Using the ever lit fire torches to find his way, Cadence slowly made his way towards his father's home office where he knew he would be. Each step of the way, he rehearsed and rehearsed the way and manner with which he would present his request to his old man. This was a request that had been borne from several hours of pondering. He had spent an entire night thinking on this, so he hoped with all his heart that he wouldn't be easily dismissed.
Not a word of his warning was being retained by the children of the governor. Though his voice was audible to the two siblings, they weren't listening at all. In fact, they were miles away from their bodies, busy day dreaming and replaying Xzavier's miraculous performance in their heads.So, like a bunch of automatons, or a bunch of ventriloquist dolls, they both nodded absentmindedly in response to his warnings. It was the best way to get him off their backs and stop him from clobbering them with his ominous admonitions and apocalyptic warnings.Laddie was no fool, he saw and recognized the faraway looks in their eyes and knew that his words were actively falling on deaf ears. It wasn't their fault really. Even he himself already found himself getting endeared to the strange man. It had happened so suddenly. Like the proverbial dragon that had fought against gravity and stealthily made its way to the moon, Xzavier had gradually made a place for himself in the old man's heart.Though, even if a knife were to be put at his throat, even at the point of death, the senior mage would never acknowledge this openly. But deep down, between him and heaven, the old man worshipped Xzavier from the bottom of his heart. Unfortunately, he couldn't afford to allow his admiration for Xzavier to stand in the way of him performing his duties. The kids had to be warned.So, Laddie tightened his already serious face and stepped forward menacingly towards the boy and the girl."I don't think you're listening to me!" the white bearded man didn't realize just how right he was about that statement."This is not a joke! What happened here today is now a state secret! So if any of you breathe a word of this to anyone, you will be prosecuted as traitors!"Of course that last part was a bit over the top, but he had to exaggerate to get them both to comply. There was no way the children of the governor would be allowed to be prosecuted for something as insignificant as blabbering.But the two minors didn't know that. The old man's last threat woke them out of their slumber. Slowly, the light returned to their eyes. And as they gradually returned back to the present from the mental journey they had undertaken, a sullen look of worry clouded their face as they ruminated on the senior mage's last warning. Of course neither of them wanted to go to jail.At first, Earlene, the sibling who naturally tended towards rebellion, flirted with the idea of being prosecuted and thought of how cool it would make her seem. But very quickly, she realized it wouldn't be as glamorous as she thought it would be. Cadence didn't need to be told twice.The old man recognized the familiar effect of a threat that had been well received, and relaxed. He had driven his point home."Now off to your quarters both of you!"They hurriedly shuffled on their feet as they made their way towards their rooms. And as they disappeared down the curve at the end of the hallway, the old man called out to them with his last instruction;"And remember to study and practice today's lessons!"Even as he yelled, Laddie knew that wasn't going to happen. There wasn't going to be any studying that night, not when their hearts had been hijacked by something so salacious and juicy. Of course none of them were going to study, they weren't going to catch much sleep either. And even if they did manage to fall asleep, their dreams would be replete with the reverberations and echoes of what they had witnessed here today.The old man sighed. It wasn't just the kids who wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. Even he wouldn't be spared the temptation of replaying Xzavier's wonderful display of power. There was so much Laddie didn't understand, so much he was yet to comprehend. His mind was going to have a field day with this when he would lie in bed later that night. The only downside about this was; he was going to be robbed of a good night's rest. At his age, this was not something he could afford to joke with."Well, this is going to be a long night" he thought to himself.True to the old man's word, that night proved to be a real battle for just about everyone, but in particular, Cadence. After dinner with the family, Cadence ascended the stairs that led to his room.A few moments later, tucked in bed and ready to retire for the night, Cadence closed his eyes and fought to call forth the sweet comfort of a good night's sleep. But unfortunately for him, it was proving to be a battle that he couldn't win. The minutes turned into hours, and the hours dragged out the relatively short period that was night. With each passing minute, it seemed like sleep was getting farther and farther away from him.Like a sick joke, midnight came and Cadence still couldn't sleep. When he closed his eyes, his own haunting thoughts overwhelmed him. The memories of what he had watched the mysterious man accomplish played out again and again, each time, more vivid than before.The threat of the unknown was very real to him. He couldn't get it out of his head. When he opened his eyes to escape his own morbid imaginations, out from the darkness, at the bottom of his bed, the echoes of his own dour thoughts took on the form of shadows, and called out to him tauntingly. Unable to shut them out, Cadence rolled over to the other side of bed that faced the open window.He listened to the steady croaking the frogs playing in the open ponds, and he couldn't help but envy them in that moment. He pictured the amphibians basking under the pale moonlight, croaking without a care or worry in the world. Very faintly, in the direction of the open window, Cadence heard the spooky hooting of an owl. He turned to the other side of his feathered bed, hoping to find some kind of solace, but was met with an equally darker scene.When Cadence finally decided to confront the elephant in the room, what he feared the most about that night finally materialized. Cadence was well aware of the consequences of not having a good night sleep. But at this point, his young mind didn't give him much of a choice.So, reluctantly, Cadence turned to face the nagging voice in his head, and all through the night, the young lad spent the entire period deep in thought, analyzing the Xzavier situation with great vigor. Just as he feared, he ended up not sleeping that night. But by the end of the night, his sacrifice had proven to be worth it. He had been able to reach a conclusion. Cadence only needed the day to break, so he would be able to put it into action.By the first cockcrow, Cadence bolted up right in his bed. His eyes were bloodshot, like that of a mad man's due to the fact that he hadn't slept a wink. But at that point, that really wasn't his major concern. He got up and washed his face in the wash bowl located at the east wing of his room. He hurriedly went through the motions of changing out of his traditional night garments into something a more appropriate day wear.And with a spring in his step, the young Cadence opened his door and headed straight to his father's quarters that was located at the extreme end of the mansion.For a young impressionable lad, Cadence was pretty knowledgeable to his age. He knew that his father was usually the first person to rise up in the entire household. He rose up way earlier than the servants and way earlier than even the cock whose job was to announce the advent of the morning. As Cadence trudged through the hallways, he noted to himself how odd it was that his father was always the first to rise, and at the same time, always the last to go to bed.Cadence calculated that his father got roughly only two or three hours of sleep each night. This was amusing considering the fact that, as a governor and as a father, his workload was tremendous. In Cadence's mind, it was almost impossible to imagine how exactly this all worked out for his old man.But at that moment, this wasn't Cadence's biggest issue.Using the ever lit fire torches to find his way, Cadence slowly made his way towards his father's home office where he knew he would be. Each step of the way, he rehearsed and rehearsed the way and manner with which he would present his request to his old man. This was a request that had been borne from several hours of pondering. He had spent an entire night thinking on this, so he hoped with all his heart that he wouldn't be easily dismissed.
