Bit by Bit.
Swift, and sure in one direction. Arrows pierce the winds with unbridled strength. They whispered and cruised until they bore holes in the hearts of Phasanzians. Their azure, berry blood spluttered from their wounds, and as the poison activated, they screamed in paralyzed death.
In one small effort, the battalion was gone. Nothing more than useless corpses strewn across the Crimson meadows.
My first taste of war was incredibly bitter. Impossible to fully swallow as the blood built and never quenched the thirst of an unsatisfied kingdom. The dry lands fed my being and everlasting fear erupted to the front.
This was going to be my life. A long life given by my lord. Fate diverted so his world had a ruler. One who didn’t want to…
I was young and brought up by Mercy. Even when he himself was young, he was a righteous ruler, and only became something more when the many battles conquered more of the world. There were enemies, and he was the unification process, at least as he told me.
“My young boy,” he’d say. He commanded with a strong voice. “Tell me: why do you follow?”
I was haunted. As he sat on his thrown, a false god looking down on its rulers, the people shook with eyes full of admiration and absolute terror. Pride from the kingdom, death to anyone who wasn’t on his side.
Was it because of power? No, not quite. Simply to protect? Malicious in the method. Was it love? A little, but never fully. A small piece always stayed back and held to other promises. Greed? Any of the sins taught from the old world. No, that would be an insult.
Then what? I wondered for ages as I held the frigid chair. Rage? Peace? Will? Control? Nothing fit and nothing quelled the idea now at the top of my thoughts.
Why did I follow?
It was in my blood. It was cultivated in my cells.
I moved on. I nodded, raised my glass and sword, gave a hearty rough, and ordered a feast to the occasion.
There must always be a king, for without one, the entire world falls apart at the seams. And what better than a ruler who provided for the people. Whether under boot, fear, or obligation.
I would rule.
Just Buckle Down 