You will be cleverly entangled into this well-told tale about Kings and Queens. Prepare your mind for a trip full of excitement. What was thought to be true love has turned into a battle for survival. This second installment of the Tales of a King Series will change every notion you had about what is truly paramount.
I am Thomas, Prince of Landford and as I see it, the rightful King.
As Amelia would say I am often misunderstood. But it is all in the way you think about life.
Life is to be lived, to be cherished, not to sit by and watch it pass.
My life was meant to be great and I will do anything and everything so it be.
My wife Amelia became Queen in place of me while I was at battle. I say in place because she is not the true heir. She is not even my father’s daughter. Upon my return, she had fully taken over, upon my Father’s request. Amelia had no interest in reigning but assumed the role to please Father.
Amelia has been the love of my life since the moment I set eyes on her as a young maiden.
We were automatically drawn to each other.
I was the first to kiss her, the first to bed her.
She was mine and I hers.
We have an undying unconditional love for one another. A love deeper than one would think considering all the changes between us.
I know I have shown mistrust with all my mischief but as Mother said we have a strong love, one that cannot be defeated by anything or anyone.
As a young lord, Father seemed to push me towards my studies and training, while my older brother David was allowed to do as he pleased.
Father thought David would choose the throne naturally but it was not in his nature.
Unlike David, I studied and trained for years because that was what a future king should do. Many think my ambition to be King is for power but it is not. I just want what is due to me after all the preparation.
As a young boy, I would sit and watch Father and I longed to do as he did.
Help the commoners, make Landford a beautiful place to live.
Father groomed me to be King, I believe he did so because he knew in his heart David had no interest.
I may have been Father’s second choice but the best choice overall. The older we became, Father turned his view back towards David. Father was destined to make him King of Landford.
I ceased to exist from this moment on.
Everything was for David.
David, you must study, David, you must train, because David, you WILL be King.
I was quickly thrown aside. Being ignored made me work much harder which made it look like I was sneaky and conniving. But it was not so. Mother said I had sibling jealousy but it went far past that. I could never be as good as David in Father’s eyes. No matter what I did, David did it better or even Amelia was complimented. I seemed to only exist when Father needed someone to criticize or a laugh.
Father always complained about my disobedience
but it was just my way of being in his eyes again. Mother always stood by me but I longed to be my father’s son.
When David fell madly in love with a peasant girl,
I knew this was his downfall, especially in Father’s eyes.
As a royal, we were not allowed to wed anyone under our standards. We were arranged for marriage.
He spoke about renouncing the crown to marry his love.
I never discouraged his idea.
In fact, I was elated because I knew this would be my return to Father.
The only thing was that Father was so absorbed by the idea of David being King that I was afraid Father would go against tradition & allow their union and let him still be King after all.
I was not having that!
Being unsure of what Father might do I had to make it be.
I had to find a way to have David banished, not only from Landford but from Father’s eyes & heart also.
I knew exactly what to do.
Create the ultimate betrayal in Father’s eyes, it was my only option.
It was fairly easy and convincing the Kingsmen was easier than I thought.
In no time, Father became very grim and disillusioned by David.
The belief that David had betrayed him weighed heavily on him.
Father was very harsh with us when it came to punishment especially for defying him.
Father felt responsible for David’s disloyalty and
needed to make amends for his treason with his Kingdom.
But I would have never thought that one of Father’s decisions would be to put his own son to death.
That WAS NOT my plan.
I had no say in Father’s decision and If I intervened or even tried to convince Father to spare him, I’d be defying Father also.
In my eyes, Father’s decision to send me to battle was my own punishment.
My training was great for sparing against my brother but was it enough to protect myself?
No training or studying can prepare a man for what I was about to experience.
To my parents, I showed pride and bravery but in my heart, there was sheer terror.
I dreaded not returning. I did not want to die.
I saw things a person should never see.
I saw bloodshed everywhere.
Death stared me in the face many times but I overcame it because I needed to return for Amelia. The battle was fierce.
When you hear battle stories, the details you imagine are not the details you see with your own eyes. No matter how hard I tried to fight it, my heart became dark, black as the night. I felt no love anymore, no empathy.
No sympathy for anyone.
I was an empty shell of a being.
I could not understand what we were all dying for.
After seeing so many friends slaughtered, my mind was baffled.
What were we fighting for?
Borders?