Transitory Recollections
Prologue
The youngster looked on as the old man coughed, a terrible, rasping cough that made your remember your mortality, especially when one such as him, a veteran of countless battles, could be brought to his knees so easily. The old man noticed the younger man's concern.
"Don't mind it. Death is a natural thing, and I've waited far too long for mine to finally arrive." The youngster looked down. The old man's face grew grave and he rested a strong hand on the young man's knee. "I'm not dead yet."
"Why did you call me here?" The young man asked after a long silence.
"I've wronged you, I know. If you hold it against me, I understand."
"I do hold it against you," the young man sad, his voice angry. The old man gave a gruff laugh and then succumbed to another coughing fit.
"Why did you call me here?" the young man asked again.
"Fate. Fortuitous circumstances. A whim. An old, dying man's final wish." The old man's mouth became a slim line. "Call it what you wish."
"A final attack against me?"
"No. Not that. I was a different person then and I've nothing against you. And what happened to your mother wasn't my doing." The young man's hands balled into fists.
"Don't talk about her."
"As you wish."
"Why did you call me here?" the young man demanded once more. For a long time the old man was quiet.
"I want to talk to someone. Tell someone about my life."
"Why me? There are hundreds who would be content to die after such an audience as this."
"I don't care. It has to be you. And maybe in the process I can… change your opinion of me." There was a long silence. The old man was still, his gaze somewhere beyond this world. The young man grew uncomfortable and for the first time looked about the room. It was made of cold, grey stone and the walls were bare save for trophies of past conquests.
"Fine. Talk. I'll listen. But that's all I'm promising."
"That's all I ask. Give me a moment to gather my thoughts." There was one, final silence. "As with most stories, it's best to start at the beginning…"
A/N: OK, welcome to my Fable 2 fic. I do realize it's another drop in a sea of... drops. Right, forget that metaphor. Anyway, this is my whack at writing a different kind of Fable story about my hero. My original idea was to write about a secondary character, but came up with no ideas. So, I'll write about this. I'm trying to make this slightly different. This will be a really free-flowing story, instead of following the game's exact chronology. I take lots of liberties. I have Chapter one in the works. As this is a long-term project updates might not be very regular. I swear I'll do my best. So, comments are welcome. Reviews motivate. And feel free to idly wonder who the young man is. But don't expect me to tell you. Anyway, I'll get back to you.