Novel Full Chapter 1953 Audience with a ‘King’
Chapter 1953: Chapter 1953 Audience with a ‘King’
— Kat —
A man they hadn’t noticed stepped out from behind a curtain at the back of the room and yelled. “All kneel before the Great King, Gravel Second of his name.” Kat had a moment of hesitation at that request but Hedera moved instantly to her knees and Kat wasn’t going to be the only one left standing. The guards went down to a knee for a few seconds before returning to a standing position. Some of the guard mob exited back out of the door, while a good chunk of the rest pushed themselves up against the walls.
Five remained in the centre. Two on either side watching Kat and Hedera, while the guard with the feathered cap stood ahead of them and slightly off to the side so that he wasn’t blocking the line of sight they had with the King. Gravel was still small, or at least, small for his outfit and being regally announced hadn’t changed anything… and when he stood up it probably got worse.
“You know. You’ve made a lot of trouble for me you two,” stated Gravel. There was a pause after this, almost as if he was inviting them to make some sort of comment but considering this was all very formal and he was a king? Kat had no desire to interject. “You see, a number of laws are coming into conflict and creating quite the problem for me.
“This lovely city of mine was closed off from the world. Large, impossible to kill monsters were roaming around. The weather was deadly, and there were more than a few towns being wiped out by a plague. We sealed ourselves off and have had no plagues, a stable population for the most part and certainly no horrifically powerful immortal monsters trying to kill us.
“When this first happened, a number of people tried to sneak inside the city. An understandable desire for the most part… and then they turned out to be the angry, terroristic death rattle of other failed cities in the area. Idiots trying to destroy this little haven we built for ourselves. Many had bombs and made no move to escape… while other simply tried to destroy the gates. It was such an issue that we officially banned outsiders from entering. Nobody who wasn’t a citizen would be allowed inside, and soon afterwards nobody would be allowed out either.
“The punishment for this, has often been death with exile as the only other option.” That’s really not what you want to here. And this is meant to be a ’reward’ for finishing the fucking traps? “Really, it’s what I should do here… but that’s where we run into a problem. You see, before the city closed itself off, the second King of the nation married someone notable. The Trapmaster’s daughter. She was our second Queen and alongside that came an old rule. Any who make it through the Trapmaster’s test will be granted citizenship.
“I am told this was an easier thing in the past. Perhaps the entrances were easier to find and now they are buried in snow. Perhaps there was a greater need for citizenship, or it may just have been a rule that more families were aware of. It’s an old rule. Older than any on my ruling council. After my Grandfather closed off the city, there was talk of changing the rule, but even in my Grandfather’s time nobody had attempted the Trapmaster’s gauntlet and lived. Few ever even attempted it. So the law remained.
“Over the years, discussions on if to change or remove the law have come up… but it is ancient now. A respected tradition that we, theoretically, never really needed to worry about. It would be spitting on the 2nd Queen’s name to remove such a law… and was it really hurting anybody to leave it there?” I’m guessing, with our arrival. The answer is in fact. Yes now.
“Which brings us to right now…”Gravel started to visibly pace, letting the statement hang for a while. “We updated the definition of ’outsider’ while sorting out their punishments. Officially, an outsider is ’Anyone not within the city at this time, nor anyone born within the city walls’. Which should, very clearly, make you an outsider as it has been many DECADES since that law was pend, and you certainly weren’t born here…
“And yet, officially, we are to give you the status of citizen for making your way through the Trapmaster’s challenge. This means you are both, legally, an outsider AND a citizen. Which is where we run into even more problems. Being caught and identified as an outsider is, as stated, grounds for execution or exile… but there are rules against exiling citizens and the same for killing them.
“After we closed things up some laws change. The specifics are not ones we need to go into, but to prevent any abuses of power my father and his advisors made it so that no citizens could be killed for anything less then premeditated murder or rape, something you couldn’t have possible done. In addition, we are not to force ANY citizen to live the city without them having broken the law at least three times, along with at least one major law that didn’t merit execution as mentioned before.
“Which makes things quite awkward, as while it is against the law to enter as an outsider, you also, technically, entered as a citizen making the case that you didn’t break the law at all. In addition to that, you, for the moment at least, count as a citizen and kicking you out or killing you for the moment is quite against the law.
“Yet, I don’t particularly want to keep you around. The city is facing regular unrest. Too many fools wanting to open the doors. It has been generations, and while the city is doing wonderfully. Everyone has food and shelter. We have blossomed… so many have forgotten the terror of the outside and wish to leave. Hearing that we allowed you to stay? That’s likely to be the spark that sets of a major problem for me.”
Gravel sighed and sat back down in his chair. “Now, is there anything you want to add to the conversation? Before a deliberation begins, do you wish to make your own case or provide information to tilt the scales?”
Kat glanced at Hedera who shrugged, Kat on the other hand. Was thinking. Do you think we should mention Weaver’s node?
[Why? Surely that wouldn’t help. Like… at all. This guy seems pretty isolationist.]
*Right but he said he was having issues with people wanting to leave? What if… we couched it in that language. That Weaver can connect places at a distance and he can use it to send the people who want to leave away without dooming them to the cold. It’s likely one of the reasons you’re not ’allowed’ to kick people out without them being a major criminal is that the cold is probably a death sentence to people under Rank 1, and it’d still be risky at that Rank.
If we have a way that’s definitely safe and can take them to entirely different biomes on the island? As well as perhaps allowing for a few limited luxuries to be traded. Perhaps only allowing citizen merchants if it’s really such a big deal. Maybe he’d like that?*
[I… I don’t know if he’d really ’like’ hearing it but at the very least I think if we were ever going to mention it now might be the best time, and that you’ve come up with, what I think at least, is the best way to sell it? I guess go for it?]
*Um… hmm… so do I like stand? Or…* “I have something to add,” offered Kat.
“You may stand and explain,” stated the King.
Kat stood, as instructed and slowly pulled out the node. “Have you heard of the ancient Weaver? One who connected the various lands?”
“Yes… such tales are recorded in my histories. Though it was also said that Weaver was slain,” stated Gravel.
“That’s not quite what happened. An attempt was made but she survived and she has some desire to connect things once again… though not quite with the same zeal as the past. This here is a node that, when charged, can connect back to her abode and from there, a number of other places…” Kat was explaining.
“And why would we allow a connection to the outside?” asked the old man to the side of the King.
“It was not your place to interrupt,” scolded Gravel lightly. “Yet… he asks a good question. Why would we wish for such a thing?”
“There are a few reasons I could explain… but to keep things short for you? The node can be set up anywhere, and guarded as you like. Weaver doesn’t NEED people to travel through and you don’t need to accept them either… but perhaps this is a safe way to deal with some people’s desire to leave. This would be a safe way to vacate them from the city without them risky death in the snow. It would mean not condemning them… and removing them at the same time,” explained Kat.