Testing...
There were 5 tests to figure out whether Boris was capable of looking after Dominic's spot, 3 having time limits, and the last two depending on how good he does. After completing each of the challenges, there would be 5 voting sessions, one with the full group, one for the first-in-command advisors, another for the second-in-command advisors, a vote for the full first and second heads of the council, and one final voting with only the heads of the council.
And the one was to perform all of those test? Was deeply annoyed at the fact that he was even chosen to do the job. It was confusing. The fact that someone like him, someone outside the castle walls who hated those within the castle would be chosen to do a job that forces him to look after both those outside of the castle and those inside. He wanted to know why.
To know why amongst all of those council members that have probably already been well informed of the world around them and well trained for this exact job, and even the capable nobles in the castle, he would pick him. The outcast. The one everyone looked at with hesitant gazes, questioning his motives and condemning him without even speaking to him. The one he met on the streets, the scrap from the slave house. Why was he chosen?
He never got the chance to ask as after the council exploded into a fit of confusion and bewielderment, he was immediately asked to take the tests.
Boris was escorted to his first test by all of the council members. He was seated in the middle of a wide, blank room with a long table before him and a few sheets of paper laying on them. In front of him sat the council members in two long rows, Dominic sitting directly in front of Boris.
It was a written test with a time limit of an hour.
Slowly he picked up the pen on the table and looked up at Kalmin. He looked away.
"This test will take place in two parts. There will be the elementary quiz, the find out if he has the basic knowledge of the kingdom that a child raised in the palace should and another to see if he has enough knowledge to match one of the higher elites. Both parts are on the papers and can be taken in any order and there is one blank sheet," Anatinez announced as she looked at Boris with piercing deep-brown eyes. "In this test contains subjects of History, Math, English, and a combination of knowledge we see fit for a sub of the Prince to know. The time limit is an hour."
She looked around her colleagues with her cold gaze, examining each and every one. "Any questions or last words?"
A brief silence hung in the air as eyes averted her gaze, some remaining pointed on Boris... no, most remaining pointed on Boris.
"I have one," said a voice, all heads turning immediately to the figure seated before them all.
Boris flinched when his emerald eyes locked on his, his breath stopping for a moment. A grin passed on his prince's face and a familiar flash ran through his eyes. "Do your best," Dominic muttered with a tone only Boris understood. It was a mix of authority and confidence but also a command. A statement of trust and reassurance with a threatening gaze.
Boris nodded.
Silence hung in the air for a moment before Anatinez nodded, a slight smile slipping onto her face. 'Interesting.' She turned to Boris, her gaze softened. "You may begin."
Boris looked down at the sheets on the table and set down his pen, reading through all the questions and writing things down on the spare piece of paper. Then when he was done, he rearranged the papers, starting from the advanced second part to the first. He reread the questions, once again writing things down on the spare piece of paper, and after sucking in a deep breath, he picked up his pen and began to write.
The council members watched as he slowly moved down the sheets of papers, occasionally stopping to look at the spare papers before turning back to the actual test. For the whole of his time, Boris continued to write, his hands steadily answering all of the questions, his eyes not wavering once from confusion.
In the corner of the room from a grandfather clock came the slow and heavy ticks and tocks of its pendulum, filling up the silent room with a constant reminder of the time slipping by.
* * *
It was nerve-racking. As he sat in the room, watching council members stand up from their seats and after leaving for a while, come back to be switched it another council member, he could feel his patience thinning. Dominic was curious and anxious. He had been like this for the written test too but it was a bit more different since now he wasn't in the same room as Boris while the second test was being conducted.
Discussion with the council members, that was the second test. Boris was to get time alone with each of the council members in which he is tested by them in ways of their choosing. Whether that might be another test, a practical test, or a conversation test, each council member could examine him in their own way, all except the war advisors. Their test was the fourth test, Sparring.
Dominic watched as Ethan stood up from his seat and his eyes followed Frank as he walked in while Ethan left. He wanted to know what was going on in that room, how they were treating Boris, what they were asking him, and how he was responding to them. He held back his feet from tapping on the floor and his fingers from even moving. He was worried and didn't even know why he was. He wanted to see him, to watch him, to assure he was safe.
He was worried.
Eventually, to his relief, it was Hendrickson's turn, the last advisor to test Boris. Unfortunately, it only boosted his worry as he knew Hendrickson's tendencies. He was spontaneous, always finding ways in nothing, always finding clever ways to do something, and was exceptionally good at troubling people. At first, he had tried to distract himself, to avert his mind from whatever Hendrickson would pull, but as soon as he heard the clattering from outside that slowly faded away into the click and slam of the door of the room Boris was in, his worry was ignited again.
To entertain himself, he examined the faces of the advisors, especially those he knew well and could read easily. Those like, Falls Hane, Helen Ivy, Wattson Ivy, and Limar Fort. Falls, an advisor he had known from his childhood and was only 7 years older than him, was someone he had usually found hard to see through, but now he could see the tiniest smile on his face. On Helen, there was nothing really notable, like she was forcing herself not to show a thing, her husband on the other hand looked confused, his eyes a little bit unsettled. Limar was simply relaxed. That was a good sign.
Anateniz however, despite her knowing him from the moment he was born and him knowing her for all his life, he couldn't see anything at all. As the oldest female in the council and second overall oldest, she was also the hardest to read as she never displayed anything she didn't want to be noticed. Her eyes were always calm, her voice alike and her body, despite her old age, never shook. She came from a family of soldiers so it was understandable how strong she was, but it was still frightening all the same.
While Dominic was still trying to read the rest of the faces in the room, Boris returned with Hendrickson and Kalmin. Unharmed and calm while Hendrickson had a deep frown on his face. Dominic grinned when he locked eyes with Boris. Whatever Hendrickson had tried, didn't work out the way he wanted.
"The second part of testing is over, so we shall move to the next, geography," Kalmin announced.
While the council members stood up and began to file out of the room, Dominic stood up from his seat and walked over to Boris, tapping his arm for attention.
His touch was shrugged off.
Dominic flinched for a moment, then brushed it off and smiled. "Good job! All you have now is th-"
"We should start going now your highness," Boris interrupted, his eyes looked down to lock with Dominic, anger flashing through them.
Dominic shuddered at his cold gaze, his eyes immediately looking away. "Y-yes." He walked out of the room, Kalmin and Boris following behind him.
He avoided the urge to look back at Boris as he walked in front of the group, Boris' figure behind him to the left. Something was wrong.
That was the only thing he was able to think about throughout the 3rd test and though he was able to focus more on Boris during the 4th as he beat each of the soldiers he fought, he couldn't shake the feeling. The feeling that something bad was about to happen, the feeling that some conflict was forming between him and Boris, and when he sat down at the last meetings of the day, it was still weighing down on his shoulders.
More than the result of the meeting, he was worried about what was to come after.
"We shall begin the voting process, the 5 voting processes of which 4 would be done without the Prince's presence," Kalmin announced as he looked around the table, examining each of the advisors, "first will be first-in-command advisors meeting. All second-in-commands, and the Prince, please exit the room. The voting shall be finished in 10 minutes, all sessions in the subject's presence."
Slowly Dominic stood up from his chair, the second-in-commands following him as he walked towards the exit of the room. For a moment, he paused, his eyes turning to Boris, calling his golden eyes to him. His gaze was left unreceived. Another shiver passed down Dominic's spine as he continued his walk out of the room, his hands wrapped in a fist.
There was a slight pang in his chest, a repeating one then persisted as he watched the council members walk in and out of the room, his anxiety rising.
'What's going on?' he thought to himself as he remembered the cold shoulder Boris gave him. 'Is he mad?' Cold shoulders used to be something he regularly received, but these days there hadn't been a time in which Boris had ignored him completely, shunning him out. 'Ah...' Dominic thought to himself as he leaned back in his chair. 'I remember this feeling.'
In between all the time they spent basically attached to each other for the majority of the day and the times where somehow the mood between them softened and the times where he would feel something more intense when their eyes locked, he seemed to have forgotten. It was at times like this when he was reminded of how little he knew of Boris, when he was reminded of how distant it once was between them and how quickly it took for their peace to come crumbling down in mere seconds.
It was at times like this where the fear and desperateness sunk back into him and he could feel the gap between them more vividly. His lips quivered and fists tightened.
He hated it.
*
Then came the moment of victory...
"After the voting sessions, 5 in total, we have the results and the decision of whether the person chosen to take Dominic's right-hand while he's in war," Kalmin began, picking up a piece of paper. "With a count of two against him and three in his favor, Boris will be permitted the honor of being the Prince's substitute in his time of war, assisted with a team of 5 consisting of the members, Kalmin R. Pervot, Anatinez Tonol, Helen Ivy, Limar Fort, and Grayson Hane."
...it was short-lived.
Silence lingered in the air as no one in the room gave a reaction.
It was weird. There was not a single reaction, not from those around the table, not from the Prince, and even the person who was expected to have shown even the littlest twinge of emotion, barely flinched when he heard the news. The silence was like a heavy blanket in the air, pressing down on the people in the room, stifling them with the tension from the two at the head of the table slowing being multiplied by the silence from those around the table. The room had never felt so heavy.
Kalmin turned to Boris, his hazel eyes examining his face. There was barely any hint of emotion on them and of those that were shown on his face, it was anger. Anger, confusion, and fear.
Kalmin turned back to those around the table and cleared his throat, the sound slicing through the thick tension in the air. "Boris, do you have anything to say?" Kalmin asked.
Boris' eyes simply scanned over those in the room, his golden eyes showing a little bit of recognition when he locked eyes with them. His eyes glanced down at the golden-haired mand seated below and a light sigh left his lips. He bowed before the table and looked up at them. This time a shuffle could be heard as people shifted in discomfort. His eyes glowed apathetically. "I am honored by this opportunity to stand beside his highness and beyond grateful to be graced with the power to look after the kingdom in his place. I hope we have a nice corporation and help build a better future for our kingdom."
Once again in the air hung an awkward silence of neither toxicity nor hate but it was heavy and tightly grabbed them by their throats. It was mystifying. The stiffness and indifferentness of each side of the table.
"Well then," Dominic smiled, standing up from his seat, the council members immediately standing up with him, "Kalmin, I shall leave you with trying to figure out the next steps for Boris and leading him through his training. Anatinez, please make sure to educate him and broaden his point of view if needed, Helen, let him gain some connections in the palace with both nobles and the staff, Limar, his safety if you will, and Grayson train him physically. All of this shall begin tomorrow. Meeting adjourned."
The council members bowed and Dominic turned around, beginning his walk out of the room. Behind him were Boris and Kalmin who followed him out of the room and shut the door behind him. They were halfway down the hallway when Kalmin tapped Dominic's arm, stopping him from continuing.
Boris paused looking at the two for a moment, his face still held stoically. His eyes locked with Dominic, a little spark passing through them to which Dominic pursed his lips. It was anger.
"Continue to the office. We'll talk there," Dominic ordered.
Boris bowed and continued his way down the hallway, his steps light and barely audible as he turned around the corner, walking to Dominic's office. When he was well out of sight and his footsteps were no longer audible, Dominic turned back to Kalmin with curious but dim eyes.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Your highness... where did you find him?" Kalmin asked his head nodding in the direction Boris walked away.
"Where did... I find him?" Dominic repeated.
Kalmin nodded his head immediately.
"I found him at a place where they sold slaves," Dominic replied his head tilting to the head a bit. "Why?"
"....That's impossible," Kalmin muttered, "what type of slave does this well?"
Dominic chuckled lightly, "What? did you expect him to do horribly or something?"
Kalmin immediately shook his head. "Nonono, but I didn't expect THIS."
"So you didn't want him to be the one to lead the kingdom in my place?" Dominic asked, a slight frown forming on his face.
"No! Look at this your highness," Kalmin sighed, showing Dominic a pile of papers in which a bunch of notes was written. Dominic leaned over to see what Kalmin was showing. "This here is his results on all of the tests that he did. Look at the written test scores."
Dominic read over the piece of paper, his eyes looking over Boris' scores. He turned back to Kalmin and shrugged. "He did well."
"He got 135 right out of 150 your highness," Kalmin noted, his voice making sure to annunciate the 135.
"So he's smart, and?" Dominic asked.
"Your highness! The test was on both elementary and advanced questions. There were 62 basic questions and 88 advanced questions. He got 58 out of the 62 correct, and 77 out of the 88 correct making 135 total, a 90 percent your highness. That shouldn't be possible."
"So you're saying you wouldn't have been able to get that grade?" Dominic asked, his eyebrows rasing teasingly.
"No, of course not! I got a 100 on all aspects of the tests needed for me to become the head council member," Kalmin huffed immediately. "But then again I'm the head of the council."
Dominic stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter. "How adorable," he muttered, to which Kalmin's cheeks reddened. "Yes, yes you are. So then what's wrong with him getting a 90?"
"He's a slave," Kalmin repeated, "a SLAVE your highness."
"One that spends most of his days in the library reading the books stacked high on those shelves and even those in my office, "Dominic returned, continuing his work down the hallway.
"A slave shouldn't be able to read," Kalmin snapped.
To that, Dominic paused, his head swiveling to face Kalmin.
Kalmin lifted up the pile of sheets of papers in his hands and held them up at head length. "Either should a slave be able to write, or read your highness. A slave shouldn't know complex mathematics, English, literature, or anything about science. And even more so," Kalmin muttered, flipping through the papers.
He raised up the geography test Boris took and locked eyes with Dominic. "No slave knows the ports in which we receive most of our trades for the palace from."
Dominic peered down at the sheets in Kalmin's hands and looked back up into his eyes. "Bu-"
"I'll be taking my leave now your highness," Kalmin sighed, bowing before Dominic. He stepped forward and pressed the sheets of paper into his hand. "Please take the time to look over all aspects of his tests on your own. There's something else you might want to see."
Dominic looked down and the stacks of papers in his hands and then back up and Kalmin, his lips ready to say something when Kalmin cleared his throat.
"I'm going to be going now, my prince, I have to start some of the preparations for both the council and me and Boris to prepare him for taking the throne in your absence," Kalmin smiled, bowing once again before turning around and leaving.
Dominic watched him as he walked down the hallway, his eyes following his figure as it turned around the corner of the hallway. He stared at the empty hallway for a moment before turning back to where Boris had disappeared behind.
Tightly, he gripped the papers in his hands and continued forward in his office's direction, his mind unusually blank with a lack of comprehension. In his state of confusion, he made it to his office and nearly walked right past it.
Slowly he turned to the tall doors in front of him and sucked in a deep breath and after holding it for a second, released it and pushed open the doors to his office. His eyes looked up to the figure sitting by his desk, a broad back turned against the door as he peered out the windows.
"There you are," Boris muttered, his voice low and heavy.
A shiver runs down Dominic's spine as he slowly stepped into the room.
Nothing but silence could be heard as the door slowly slid shut, its thud echoing through the hall.