A Timely Knight

A Shared Dream

"How did you know it was me?"

"Come on Emmu, we trained and fought together for four gears. I can still recognize your techniques."

"But how did you know where to find me?"

"I asked around and learned you work in the Museum. I was on my way when I heard the scream and lo and behold, there you were in all your ass-kicking glory."

Eldon and Timothy sat on a bench outside the Museum. The sun hid behind a curtain of grey and Eldon was on his lunch break. He left the alley after realizing how late it was and rushed to the Museum, not before they both agreed to meet at midday.

The cloudy skies above would soon start weeping, and the sound of the train crossing the city became louder and more unbearable by the second. Still, it was as good a place as any. Sitting side by side, as they used to when they were kids, they found themselves in the middle of the hard and uncomfortable process of rediscovering a friendship that laid dormant for far too long.

Timothy Lemuel Lever, son of Don Anthony Jasper Lemuel. Eldon met him when they were both six, at Ward Institute, where they trained under the tutelage of Don Osgood Paul Pennington. Don Anthony expected Timmy to learn strength and discipline at Ward. Eldon, already an orphan by six, got sent to the Institute by his wealthy but distant patron, who adopted him to please his dying wife.

Being Don Osgood's only two apprentices, the two became friends from the moment they laid eyes on each other. They fought, learned, laughed, and practically lived together for four gears, becoming inseparable, as if attached by the hip. It worked out fabulously since all the other students hated them for the perceived special treatment they received from the Don.

When they turned ten, the Institute suffered an attack and Don Osgood met a gruesome and violent end. The perpetrators escaped and Ava, Ward's Master in Mathematics, suspected the Don died protecting something the attackers longed for.

After the event, Don Anthony took Tim out of the Institute and relocated to Vanderport. Eldon cried for an entire month after Tim left. Soon after, he too abandoned the Institute and enrolled in Oldport's prestigious Stimon Academy.

Overnight, his life changed. He stopped training and traded punches for books. He tried to stay in touch with Tim, and for two gears, they exchanged letters with updates and pleasantries. After a while, the letters became less frequent, until one day they stopped altogether. Now and then, Eldon thought of Tim. Sometimes he even considered going to Vanderport in search of him. Over the gears, through the ups and downs of his life, those thoughts never really left him.

"I heard about your father," Eldon awkwardly said, coming out of his thoughts. Not knowing how to approach the subject, he decided to just spit it out. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, he had a great life. Hell, he was a hundred and seven. Some might say he actually overstayed his welcome," Tim replied, rather nonchalantly. He never had a great relationship with his father. Don Anthony's cold and often cruel demeanor alienated his son, so Timmy's attitude was somewhat justified.

"Always a silver lining, I guess. So, you're a Don now?" Eldon asked, playfully.

"Yup. Don Timothy Lemuel Lever. Rather crazy, wouldn't you say?" Timothy spoke in an ironic tone and Eldon saw regret's shadow coursing through in his eyes.

"Indeed. You'll have to grow a beard now, Buy a nice manor, settle down. Get a wife, have some kids. Get a nanny too, so you can dump the kids when they start acting like annoying little shits, which let's face it, will be most of the time."