Behind the Smiles of the Royal Court

These were the Knights of Orange and at their head stood Sir Dayren, son of the Lady Constance.

"Your task is simple," the King spoke out, "to rid the Duchy of Anfang of the outlaws and rebels that infest it. To destroy the Fool's Court and open up the gates of the Duke's Keep." A loud cheer rose up from the knights and soldiers and the crowd of courtiers followed suit. And then from behind the King stepped out Lady Constance and from her hand a silken scarf floated down from the balcony to the courtyard below. Her son spurred his horse forward and he plucked the scarf from the air and pinned it to his hauberk.

"For family and honor!" Dayren shouted, "For King and for Country!" And the crowd roared even louder. The King smiled, gave his customary blessing, and then he receded back into his palace. Lady Constance remained upon the balcony awhile longer though, reveling in the cheers of the royal throng. This was what she had always desired and she would not give up a single minute of it. Behind her, waiting quietly, her husband stood in stiff reserve. He could not leave without his wife and he dared not step up to join her. This was her little moment of glory, and he knew all too well that Constance was not one to share such moments.

Below Lady Constance though, amidst the cheers and smiles, the esteem of her son and her family was not uppermost in the minds of all of the bustling crowd.

"To give such an honor to a family like her's, well, all I can say is that the King must be declining into senescence."
"It was all Mayhew's doing from what I know. He did it to spite Lord Ralston, everyone knows how much he wanted to be the one to charge into Anfang."

"It's a shame I tell you, the boy is no better then his mother. And his mother is no better than a..."

"It's all about who you know."
"Yes, having the Queen's ear can certainly work wonders."
"I was referring to Lord Castelleo."
"Oooh, so you think it's true what they say."
"What do you think! She certainly hasn't spent much time fulfilling her wifely duties with her husband!"

"Poor man... do you see him up there? He's like one of the stone gargoyles perched upon the roof. Lady Constance has sucked the very life from him!"
"He never had any life to begin with!"

"Look at the two of them. Sarlo and Dayren. He acts like he's his father."
"Well I heard that Sarlo helped finance this adventure. Certainly he wants to make sure it's a success."
"No, no, no, it was Lord Ralston who opened up his coffers. And pulled the strings to make sure Dayren received the King's permission."
"But why?"
"To spite Lord Mayhew! Everyone knows how much he wanted to be the one to charge into Anfang."

"The Court of Fools, bah! The King should be sending men to Croix."
"For what? To fight Dragon Men? Those fanatics are far less dangerous than the outlaws of Anfang. And the idea that they've invaded our land is ridiculous. With what army did they invade, I ask you? The Dragon Men are few and pitiable. They worship their foul beast as if it were a god. Lunatics is what they are!"
"Well, we'll find out soon enough. The King's messengers should be back in less than a fortnight and then the truth will be known."
"Quite true, but if Dragon Men have taken over Croix then I'm glad that Dayren and his toy soldiers are headed for Anfang. Hmph, who better to send to the Court of Fools than that cavalry of fools?"

"That dress must have cost a fortune! What was she thinking, the foolish woman?"
"Foolish? She didn't spend her own money. It was a gift from Duke Zular."
"And where is Zular? I didn't think he'd miss something like this. He and Constance are such 'good friends'."
"Oh don't be absurd! Lady Constance is as cold as they come, I doubt she's kissed a man in over twenty years. And if Zular has designs upon anyone I hear tell that it's Lady Rowena. In fact, a very good friend passed it on to me that the real reason Zular accepted his temporary position over Suffex was so that he could spend time with the dead soldier's daughter. And that's where he is now, in Bannock."
"Really? Traipsing after a knight's broodling, you say? Well it doesn't surprise me. Zular has never taken his station or his duties as a Duke very seriously."

Later that night, in his private rooms, King Emery sunk into his chair and sighed. Queen Sovay sat down next to him and gently took his hand between her own. He smiled at her tenderly, his burdens eased for a brief moment.

"Sir Dayren is on his way to Anfang," Sovay spoke. Emery nodded, "Yes, although I do not know if I should wish him success or not. The thought of Lady Constance as the Dame of Anfang does not sit well with me." The King chuckled at this, but the Queen was not amused. "She is a good woman and loyal, whatever her faults may be." Emery sadly shook his head, "The House D'Honaire is good and loyal and yet everyone is screaming for their removal from Bannock. It seems loyalty is not enough, my dear, or being good."

"You are good," Sovay replied, "and you are a great king."

"Thank you," Emery said, "but let us not speak as fools. Not to each other. I am an old king, and tired, and the factions of the court pull on me in every direction and I don't have the strength to resist them. They are pulling me apart and the Kingdom along with it. What we need is not a good king but a strong one, and I fear that ere soon the Lords will rise up to test their strength. All I have been able to do is postpone that terrible moment. Sending Dayren was just another delaying tactic. Anfang is such a prize that I was hardpressed by the great Lords to choose one of them to retake it from the Fool's Court. But each was so eager to block the others that I was finally able to make a move and appoint a man like Dayren. Let Lady Constance now fight those Lords' advances, I'm sure she will enjoy the attention. But as I've said, this is but a delay, and the sad truth is I cannot delay what is coming for very much longer."

"It isn't that bad," Sovay gently assured him.

"Oh yes, it is," Emery answered her. "You know, I had hoped that Lord Fred could have rallied our people together by destroying the Dragon. Heroes have a tendency of doing that sort of thing. But the beast still flies and Fred has run off to the north. I doubt his story was true, about finding a weapon to kill the beast. And I certainly don't think Lord Croix has fallen victim to Dragon worshippers. But perhaps it would be better if it were true, because then the Lords would have to unite, have to put aside all of their rivalries. And if one or two or three of them died in the fighting it would be that much easier to choose who next will wear this crown."

The King sighed again and then pulled out a letter from his pocket. The seal upon it was from Collins.

"Well, we still have Hespan," Emery remarked, his eyes sparkling coldly. "If the great Lords are so eager to raise up their troops and march off to battle then maybe I should give them a real war."

1. Queen Sovay looked deep into her husband's eyes and for the first time in many years she couldn't tell if he was serious or not.

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