swimming with emotions, and he could hardly believe this turn of events. Here he was, just as his reputation was rising, only to have it ruined by some malignant snake, to have his love cheated away from him. And now, tomorrow, the threat of his being imprisoned. And with the Queen aligned against him, he feared that just maybe he would be.
But Thor didn’t care about any of that now. All he cared about was protecting the King.
He pushed harder as he weaved his way through the crowd, bumping into a jester, walking right through his act, and finally, after pushing through three more attendants, making it to the King’s table.
MacGil sat there, in the center of the table, a huge sack of wine in one hand, his cheeks red, laughing at the entertainment. He was surrendered by all of his top generals, and Thor stood before them, pushing his way right up to the bench, until finally, the King noticed him.
“My liege,” Thor yelled out, hearing the desperation in his own voice. “I must speak with you! Please!”
A guard came to pull Thor away, but the King raised a palm.
“Thorgrin!” MacGil bellowed in his deep, kingly voice, drunk with wine. “My boy. Why have you approached our table? The Legion’s table is there.”
Thor bowed low.
“My king, I am sorry. But I must speak with you.”
A musician clanged a cymbal in Thor’s ear, and finally, MacGil gestured for him to stop.
The music quieted, and all the generals turned and looked at Thor. Thor could feel all the attention on him.
“Well, young Thorgrin, now you have the floor. Speak. What is it that cannot wait till tomorrow?” MacGil said.
“My liege,” Thor began, but then stopped. What could he say exactly? That he had a dream? That he saw an omen? That he felt the King would be poisoned? Would it sound absurd?
But he had no choice. He had to press on.
“My liege, I had a dream,” he began. “It was about you. In this feasting hall, in this place. The dream was… that you should not drink.”
The King leaned forward, eyes opened wide.
“That I should not drink?” he repeated, slowly and loudly.
Then, after a moment of stunned silence, MacGil leaned back and roared with laughter, bellowing, shaking the whole table.
“That I should not drink!” MacGil repeated. “What a dream is this! I should call it a nightmare!”
The King leaned back and bellowed with laughter, and all of his men joined in. Thor reddened, but he could not back down.
MacGil gestured, and a guard stepped forward and grabbed Thor and began to take him away-but Thor roughly yanked the guard off of him. He was determined. He had to give the King this message.
“My King, I demand that you listen!” Thor screamed, red-faced, pressing forward and banging the table with his fist.
It shook the table, and all the men’s turned and stared at Thor.
There was a stunned silence, as the King’s face dropped into a scowl.
“YOU demand?” MacGil yelled. “You demand nothing of me boy!” he screamed, his anger rising.
The table quieted even more, and Thor felt his cheeks redden in humiliation.
“My king, forgive me. I mean no disrespect. But I am concerned for your safety. Please. Do not drink. I dreamt you were poisoned! Please. I care very much about you. That is the only reason for my saying so.”
Slowly, MacGil’s scowl lifted. He stared deeply into Thor’s eyes and took a deep breath.
“Yes, I can see that you do care. Even if you are foolish boy. I forgive you your disrespect. Go on now. And don’t let me see your face again until the morning.”
He gestured to his guards, and they yanked Thor away, strongly this time. The table slowly resumed its merriment, as they all went back to drinking.
Thor, dragged several feet away, burned with indignation. He feared for what he had done here tonight, and had a sinking feeling that tomorrow he would pay the price. Maybe even be asked to leave this place. Forever.
As the guards gave him one last shove, Thor found himself at the Legion’s table, maybe twenty feet away from the King. He felt a hand on his shoulder and spun to see Reece standing there.
“I’ve been searching for you all day. What happened to you?” Reece asked. “You look as if you have seen a ghost!”
Thor was too overwhelmed to respond. He hardly knew what to do now.
“Come sit with me-I saved you a seat,” Reece said.
Reece pulled Thor down beside him, at a table set aside for the King’s family. He saw Reece’s brother, Godfrey, drinking with both hands, and beside him sat Gareth, watching with shifting eyes. Thor hoped beyond hope that Gwendolyn might be there, too, but she was not.
“What is it, Thor?” Reece prodded, as he sat down beside him. “You stare at this table as if it will bite you.”
Thor shook his head.
“If I told you, you would not believe me. So best I just keep my mouth shut.”
“Tell me. You can tell me anything,” Reece urged with intensity.
Thor saw the look in his eyes, and realized, that finally, someone was taking him seriously. He took a deep breath, and began. He had nothing to lose.
“The other day, in the forest, with your sister, we saw a Whiteback. She said it was an omen of death, and I believe it is. I saw Argon, and he confirmed that a death is coming. Shortly after, I had a dream that your father would be poisoned. Here. Tonight. In this hall. I know it in my bones. He will be. Someone is trying to assassinate him,” Thor said.
He said it all in a rush, and it felt good to get it off his chest. It felt good to have someone actually listen.
Reece was quiet as he stared back into his eyes for a long time. Finally, he spoke.
“You seem genuine. I have no doubt. And I appreciate your caring for my father. I believe you. I do. But dreams are tricky things. Not always what we think.”
“I told the King,” Thor said. “And they laughed at me. Of course, he will drink tonight.”
“Thor, I believe you dreamt this. And I believe you feel this. But I’ve had terrible dreams, too, my entire life. The other night, I dreamt I was pushed out the castle, and I woke feeling that I was. But I was not. Do you understand? Dreams are strange things. And Argon speaks in riddles. You must not take it all so seriously. My father is fine. I am fine. We’re all fine. Try to just sit back and drink and relax. And enjoy.”
With that, Reece leaned back in his chair, covered in furs, and drank. He flagged a waiter, who put a huge portion of venison before Thor, along with a drinking goblet.
But Thor just sat there, staring at his food He felt his whole life dissolving around him. He didn’t know what to do.
He could still think of nothing but his dream. It was like being in a waking nightmare, sitting there, watching everyone drink and feast around him. All he could do was watch the servers, all the drinks, all the goblets, heading for the King. He watched closely every server, every goblet of wine. Every time the King drank, Thor flinched.
But Thor was obsessed. He could not look away. He watched and watched, for what felt like hours.
Finally, Thor spotted one particular server. He approached the king with a goblet unlike the others. It was large, made of a very distinct gold, covered in rows of rubies and sapphires.
It was the exact goblet of Thor’s dream.
Thor, his heart pounding in his chest, watched as if in slow motion as the servant came closer to the king. When he was just feet away, Thor could stand it no longer. Every ounce of his body screamed that this was the poisoned chalice.
Thor leapt from his table, shoved his way through the thick crowd, elbowed everyone roughly who was in his way.
Just as the King took the chalice into his hands, Thor leapt up onto his table, reached out, and swiped the goblet from the king’s hands.
