The Flower of King and Knights

The Proposition

Ector looked at his armor, seeing the hole where Mordred and Gorm had pierced through the mail armor. Thank God I had that sheath on me. He paused before placing the mail on the bed. I remember Mordred saying, “Not again.”…So that’s how father died. Ector didn’t know how to take in, how close he came to dying. Mordred tried to kill him. His knights tried to kill him. What worried him was how close he came to killing his own friends.

“You loved it didn’t you?” said a voice.

He turned to find Morgan standing in the doorway. Ector turned to find his swords sitting on a chair near the head of his bed. Can I reach the sword before she can cast a spell?, he thought.

“Please, I did not come for a match with you. I came to offer a proposition.”

Ector felt his heart begin to burn with a growing rage. “Oh please, entertain me.”

“You have the makings of a great king. Young, strong, brave, full of vigor and great passion…”

“Can you get to the point, it’ll be my bedtime soon and I need my rest.”

Morgan cleared her throat, trying to keep herself from losing her temper. If she wanted to win Ector, she had to play the role well. “I think you’ll want to hear me out.”

Oh lucky me, Ector thought to himself, No wonder my father wanted her dead. Morgan walked toward Ector, swaying her hips with each step. Oh tell me she isn’t doing what I think she’s doing!

“We are not so different, you and I. We’re both high born, gifted by God to rule over these people. As if we were gods ourselves.”

Humble aren’t you?

“These people need rulers like us to show them the true path, to a higher form of living.”

“And how is that?”

“People need to learn that life shouldn’t be about suffering, suffering is for fools and idiots. Life is about enjoyment.”

“And how exactly should they enjoy themselves?”

“By making the world a place where man can rule and own their skills and property without persecution from their leaders and peers.”

Did she just say, what I think she just said?

“And we should simply allow for man to thrive without being forced to partake in collective activities that would give him complete liberty. Something even you’re father would not give his subjects.”

Oh this has to be bull. “So our only concern is to allow our subjects to reap the benefits of their own actions, right?”

“Exactly.”

“And that a ruler should not force their subjects to do something that they do not want to?”

“Precisely.”

“And that to do so, would make them a hypocrite and a threat to their kingdom’s welfare?”

“That’s precisely my point.”

“Then you’re a liar, a fool and a hypocrite of the highest level.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“The rule of law is establish order and stability for all subjects, in all matters. For it we limited law to simply ‘who get’s what’ and how property is transferred, then the law is made into a stump of what was a human body.”

“I see you do not see the whole scope of the world.”

“Funny, I was about to say the same thing about you.”

Morgan scoffed, Ector cut her off before she could respond. “I’ve seen and heard what you’ve done to your people, and I’ve seen what people like you did to the world I used to live in. You claim that you’re for free enterprise, free thought, freedom in its purest of sense. I know what you are, you’re leeches. You don’t even follow your own philosophies.”

“All you care about is money, money, some sex, money, money, and more money. Then you go about buying stuff to make yourself feel better, and then you forget at all the people you’ve stepped on, burnt, raped, pillaged, and stole from so you alone can enjoy such ‘liberties’. Your idea of living would be good if it was based on reality, but it isn’t. It exists in a realm that is more imaginary than this place, and that’s saying something.”

“And what’s sad is that you get people to believe that your ideas and belief are genuine. But they’re not. You just use them to excuse doing whatever you want, since you’re no longer bound by any social more that would’ve stopped you before. You’re more of a whore than a queen.”

Morgan forced herself to take the tirade in stride, but both she and Ector knew she was near the end of her rope. She decided to use her last resort. Slowly she let the garment around her shoulders slip.

A classy, trying to seduce her nephew. Great.

“Are you sure you don’t want to consider my propostition? You and I could make a new nation. Our bloodline will be pure, untainted, and capable of rebuilding this kingdom, this world in our image.”

Ector could feel the sensation from Morgan that Merlin used to calm him down when he was becoming hysterical. Only this time Ector’s anger grew more, before he knew better, he grasped her neck and lifted her off the ground.

“I should kill you right here, right now. And end it all in an instant.”

He heard a voice coming from a darkened corner. “Do that and it will start a chain of events that will doom this entire world into darkness.” Ector could tell it was Merlin’s voice.

Ector turned back to Morgan, her face turning purple as Ector squeezed tighter. “You should be lucky Merlin is here, or this would be ended differently.” He released his grip and Morgan fell on the floor with a thud. She quickly rose to her feet.

Before she could speak, Ector ordered, “Go, now!” Morgan left the room, startled at what had happened. Ector looked to Merlin, “Tell me that was a good idea.”

“Aye my lord, to kill her now would result in many lords siding with Mordred and when you and the knights and Mordred, and a few thousand people are killed. Well, you can see where this tale goes.”

“Damn, I was kinda hoping to take her out.”

“Do not fret, my liege. She will meet her end shortly. But tonight is not the right time.”

Ector growled at accepting the situation, but he thanked Merlin nonetheless. “Is this going to give her a pretext for going to war with me?”

The mange spoke calmly, “No my liege, she already has an army ready to attack you for a month now.”

Ector nodded before Merlin’s words sunk in. “…What!”

“Do not fear, you killed most of her able generals when you went into the blood wrath. Her army is now as well led as a hundred thousand army commanded by a newborn babe.”

“…Uh, how many men did you say?”

“A hundred thousand.”

“Could you excuse me, I think I’m going to throw up now.”

“I probably shouldn’t tell you about the giants, woverns and other beast then should I?”

“Other beasts, what other beasts? How the hell did they get giants, or woverns? Wait, are those the same woverns that killed Cecilia?”

“No my lord, not the exact ones, but they’re in the same category.”

“I can assume we’ll need to get an army ready within the soon timeframe?”

“I already sent out messengers to get your army together. We’ll be a little outnumbered, but we’ll have a few advantages in our favor.”