Noble Am I, He Risen From The Dirt

The capital always had such swelteringly hot days, where the fish market was rank and the square was flooded with life, where hundreds of sweaty bodies jostled to reach the stalls and return home as quickly as possible with the day’s necessities. The scene was so familiar. Even now, I can remember those times vividly; the smell of the people, the raucous crowd, the oppressing heat, those rancid fish. I was a simple man; just another fruit vendor in a row of identical stalls. I had a wife then, but our child was yet to be born.

On one such blistering market morning, a great fanfare rang out through the streets. A tumultuous clattering of hooves followed, and soon the magnificent red banners of King Harold V’s chariot were visible. The bright sun made the opulent, intricate armour of the King’s Guard gleam brightly, as the crowd hurriedly made way for them to pass. Their imposing armour was forged of the strongest steel and adorned with deep red cloth garments. They wore the colours of the crown proudly, and were deservedly revered throughout the whole kingdom. They were the veterans of all the Kingdoms’ great wars, and had been carefully selected for the role by the ruling monarch themselves. It was not uncommon for the King to pass through the square, but on this day his chariot stopped in the centre.

Immediately, the crowd murmured confusedly and many of the common folk made themselves scarce. I had never seen or heard of the King stopping in a part of the city like this, and my better judgement was telling me to go home to my wife, but as it so often does, my curiosity bested my good sense. I stood and watched in disbelief as the King’s Guard allowed King Harold to disembark from his immaculate, grand chariot onto the filthy, hot streets of the town square. He took a few dozen paces around the square, without the King’s Guard directly around him, and the crowd frightenedly making plenty of room for him. Eventually, as fate would have it, King Harold made his way to my stall. The crowd fell silent as he took one of my fresh peaches and held it aloft in his hand.

“Is it to your liking, my King?” I asked.

He looked at me with the kindest eyes I had seen of any man and softly replied, “Yes, thank you.”

Shaking, my voice certainly faltering, I replied “It is my honour, Your Highness. I offer any of my produce to the Crown.”

King Harold V looked at me and inquired about my wife.

“She’s an elf, yes?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“Bring her out here.”

My mind raced as I wondered the reasoning behind the King’s request but I did as I asked, and frighteningly brought her out into the hot streets, her pregnant belly protruding clearly from underneath her thin, filthy robes. As we returned, the King had begun to eat my peach, and the crowd had now grown to twice the size. The King looked incredibly at ease, and called my wife over.

“Come stand next to me, dear. Let the people see your beauty.”

“It would be an honour, Your Grace.” She bowed awkwardly and moved next to the King, anxious to know what he was planning.

He turned to face the crowd, and moved her slightly so that she would be facing them too.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” he addressed the common folk, and there were baffled murmurs through the crowd, for no monarch had ever greeted them with such politeness. He continued, “For too long, our Kingdom has fought senselessly with its Elven neighbours. I am aware this is not a war in the interest of my people. This war was started long ago by my family, in the selfish interest of the Crown. I know that for many of you, these elves we have murdered are your brothers, your sisters, your beloved neighbours, and even your wives.” He motioned back towards my wife, to show her to the crowd. “On this day I make a pledge to you, my people, that I shall end this senseless war we are fighting against the Elves, and return peace to our once bountiful lands. Forget not whose blood I spilled in the name of justice for my people.” He looked up to the walls of the castle where his father’s head hung from the battlements, and he now looked invigorated. “I fought alongside my people to overthrow King Raleigh III. I will negotiate peace for my people so that their families will stop dying for a war they did not want. I will give my people a voice in the King’s Court, so that they may reap the rewards of the Great Age to come by my side. I shall bring peace to our land. I will pave your streets with gold and erect palaces in your names. My father made us bleed; I shall rebirth us.” 

The crowd erupted into an explosive cheer, and the applause echoed throughout the whole city. The King had cemented the approval of his subjects. As the noise eventually died down, King Harold collected the Sword of the Crown from the King’s Guard, and told me to kneel before him, placing the royal artefact on my shoulder.

“By the Sword of the Crown,
May you never fight alone;

 By the Grace of Uries,

May your greatness shine bright;

 By the Decree of my Word,

 May your title be Sir;

 In the Name of our People,

 May you serve in my court.”

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