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Every story needed a hero.
Every story also needed a villain.
Such was the way of the fairytale, requiring a force of darkness and evil to let the light of good and justice shine.
…
But where does the border between light and dark lie?
Who are mortals to decide such territories?
…
What is the definition of evil?
Should a ruler not keep his kingdom safe?
Who were his subjects to deem their King a tyrant?
…
Nevertheless, a King without his crown was insignificant once more, like a mighty hawk whose wings had been clipped.
The former King of Spades sat alone in his cell, scratching idly at the wall, digging fresh grooves. The stone was cold and mossy, filtered moonlight shining weakly through the small barred window.
A fitting punishment for a failure of a ruler.
…
He may have been a bad ruler, but the King of Spades was certainly not an idiot. He had been a terrible father, to none other than his only successor and the effective last hope for the Spade bloodline.
If his son were not to produce an heir when it grew time, his kind would go extinct.
He didn’t hate the boy, he was just… never destined for parenthood. Lancer had potential, of course; a little energetic, maybe a bit egregious in his methods, but he would make a fine ruler when he grew eligible for the position.
His son… never had many friends. That was one of the few things they shared besides the obvious genetic features.
He’d never paid much attention to the boy. Maybe that was why he’d been so quick to befriend those Lightners.
To his knowledge, the only other relationship Lancer had was with that snake of a duke. The man would deny it if asked, but years of forced parental responsibilities had made Kaard grow a fondness for the boy.
…Then there was also her.
A pitiful mockery of his own late Queen, she was nothing but a soulless bunch of circuits beneath her metal husk. Her voice was too high, too forced to be a real show of dignification.
She was of course made in the long dead Spade Queen’s image, but “adapted to be more efficient.” In short, she was created to be a replacement.
Hardly a fitting memorial for a Queen.
Especially one like her.
Unlike that heartless wench of that woman who called herself a monarch, his Queen had been an angel of a lady. Kind, selfless, benevolent; everything one could ask for in a ruler.
What a pity that her life had been cut short.
As much as he tried to forget it, he would always remember the day that she passed.
“‘Tis a boy!”
“Wouldst thou liketh to hold him, mine Queene?”
“Mine Queene?”
…
“Art thou alright, mine Queene?”
“...Mine Queene?”
…
…!
“MINE QUEENE!”
“SHE IST NOTETH BREATHING! GETETH THE MEDIC!”
…
“Please… please stayeth with us…”
…
“Please…”
…
…
“What’s happening?! WHERE’S MY WIFE?!”
“M-mine Kinge! She-”
“WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!”
“I- nothing, she- I… I’m sorry.”
“WHERE’S THE FUCKING MEDIC?! WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING, WE-”
“Mine Kinge, she-”
“GET THE FUCK OUT!”
“But- I-”
“NOW, KAARD! OUT!”
…
“Please… please don’t go… stay with me, please… we have to- you have to-”
…
“I can’t do this by myself.”
What followed that tragic day was over a century of solitude, or, as some called it, the ‘Spade Decline.’ Without his Queen, he became closed off, a recluse in a way. The other Kings were hardly a help; incompetent as always. Kaard had been the one to make funeral arrangements; he probably would have never left his quarters if not for a proper mourning for his wife.
He did not cry.
A King was too strong to cry.
The Duke had checked in on him for the first months; bringing him food to make sure he was eating, asking him if he was okay as if it wasn’t obvious. All shallow acts. Kaard had always been a suck-up, never doing anything that wouldn’t get him on the good side of someone important.
So why would it mean anything? Who would really want to help a pitiful ruler rendered useless by grief?
He knew that the Duke had taken care of the boy; still dubbed his “Lesser Dad” despite being the main, if not only, parental figure in Lancer’s life.
He did not know if he had ever had a real, heartfelt interaction with the boy.
Threatening the life of his own flesh and blood for the sake of control was hardly up to such standards.
Despite everything, Lancer… still visited him.
This was further cemented by the sudden, familiar sound of little feet padding softly on the cold dungeon floor. The King grumbled at the accompanying noise of polished metal boots sounding sharply against the pavement.
“Hi Dad!”
“Hello Kingy Wingy”
He adjusted his position on the ground, not turning around. “Why have you returned here? Come back to taunt me?”
The predictable “Haha Yeah Lmao” from Queen was intercepted by Lancer tugging on her leg. “Girldad, can I… talk to Dad alone?”
“Processing Statement”
“Sure Pumpkin Boy I Am Going To Go Bother Rouxls (Pronounced Rules) Now Lol Bye”
And with that, she was gone. As quickly as they had come, her metallic shoes tapped hollowly on the stone.
After a beat, the boy shifted on his feet. “Dad, I… I came here because… I want to talk.”
The King scoffed. “What could you possibly want to do with me?”
“I just- I just want to talk to you about-”
“About what? About my failure as a ruler?” He scoffed. “Have you come back to rub it in? Pathetic. I am not worth your time, boy. I’ll eventually rot away in this cell, and nobody will bat an eye. If you have returned only to pretend to care, then-”
“I DO CARE!”
For the first time that day, the former King of Spades turned around to face his son. His fists were clenched, his round face streaked with tears. “I’ve always cared about you! Even when you treated me like dirt, when you never bothered to show me any love, I still cared, because I thought that despite everything, you still loved me! But I was wrong! You’re- You’re nothing but a bully! ”
Lancer took a deep breath. “I spent my whole life believing that somewhere in there, deep down, there was a good person inside you. Now I realize that I was searching for nothing. The Lightners that you hated, that you convinced me were bad people? They’re my friends, and they showed me more love and compassion in a single day than you ever showed me my entire life! ”
He let out a remorseful sigh. “I’m done trying. I’m done trying to believe in you.”
Lancer met his father’s eye. “Goodbye, Dad. I… I have to go.”
The King of Spades saw the tears streaming down his son’s face as he ran away, barely hearing the faint sob that followed. He sat there dumbly for a while, mind turning to comprehend the weight of his son’s confession.
He chuckled sadly to himself. “Ha… So you have left me too, my son. It was about time.”
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The King blinked sleep out of his eyes, mildly disappointed to find the same stone floor and hay bed beneath him. At least it was pretty comfortable, for a pile of dried straw, that is. That little prince may be a traitor, but he wasn’t cruel. By some strange form of magic the unassuming hay beneath him had taken on a texture akin to a fluffy feather bed. He sniffed haughtily. “Kaard, I know you’re there. Spying is rather rude, you know.”
A small “ eep! ” was heard from the far end of the hall, followed by the quick, light taps of egregiously polished shoes. “I-I apologize, Mine Kinge, I did notst meane to-”
“Drop the formalities, Kaard.” said the former King with a huff. “I am no longer fit for such things, after all. And quit with the accent. It makes you sound stupid.”
“Umm, okayeth?” Rouxls said, not dropping the accent.
A few moments passed before Spade decided to break the silence. “Why are you here, Kaard? What more do you have to gain from me?”
“I wouldst liketh to ask-”
“If you’re looking for validation, you can go grovel at the feet of that robotic wench. Angel knows she loves the attention.”
“I justeth want to knowe why, Spade. Whyst wouldst thou taketh over thine Kingdome?”
He scoffed. “Why do you think, Kaard? The other Kings were obviously unfit to rule, yet they had an entire kingdom under their thumbs following them blindly like lemmings. None of them ever took the Prophecy seriously. I was the only one who could stop the Lightner invasion. And look where that got me.” He laughed sadly. “Alone in a cell, overthrown by a couple of children, no less.” The former King of Spades turned to face the Duke. “I want to know, Kaard. Why did you stick around? Even through my rule of tyranny, you never took the opportunity to simply walk away. Do you really believe in me that much, or are you just too dense to realize that your bribery was all in vain?”
“ Dost thou reallye think I amst that shallow?! ”
Rouxls had raised his voice. Rouxls never raised his voice in front of him. “Everythinge I hast done for thou, all the nights I broughteth thee food, dost thou reallye thinke that t’was all bribery ?!”
Spade laughed cruelly. “Bullshit, Kaard. All you ever wanted was to fuel your little lust for power. Where were you when she died?”
“ I WAS FUCKINGE THERE, SPADE! I t’was there the entire time! Thou werest just too overcometh with griefe to see that! I t’was the one who arrangede her funeraleth! Dost thou ever wondere why nobodye ever bothered thou in thine room? Because I tolde them to giveth thee space! ”
The former King was at a loss for words. He chose not to meet the Duke’s eye, turning his remorseful gaze to the dusty iron bars filtering the darkness of the window. “Why do you care, Rouxls? Why do you keep coming back here? Do you still think that a subdued tyrant like me can be redeemed? Just give up, Duke. Everyone else already has.”
Rouxls opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, then closed it sadly, leaving the room without another word.
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
He’d like to say that a few days had passed before anything else happened, but the days had quickly begun to blur together. Solitary confinement will do that to you. Of course, the other yet to be freed Kings still created their usual bothersome noise, but a century of tuning them out had not proved fruitless.
It was actually a rather nice day outside. From what little he could see from his small window, it seemed like the prince had taken time to lay a neat flowerbed. Ink lotuses… those had been her favorite.
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“It’s a beautiful day outside! Birds are singing, flowers are blooming… Why don’t we have a walk in the garden?”
“...It’s too early for this, honey…”
“Oh, bother! Come now, it’ll be fun!”
“Thought you couldn’t walk with the baby.”
“I’m not that fat! I’m only four months in!”
“Oh, fine. Anything for you, sweetie.”
“That’s the spirit! Come on, let’s go!”
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“KingyKingyKingyKingyKingy”
“Are You Like Out Of Batteries Or What”
“Setting Tornado Alarm For: 00:05”
“ Okay, I get it! Stop poking me, you idiotic piece of-”
“Oh Hey You’re Awake LMAO”
He turned around with the expression of a man absolutely done. So much for dreams. “Go away, Queen. I’m not in the mood for your shit today.”
“I Wanted To Apologize”
Now that was absolutely the last thing he expected to hear. Spades’s face bore what was probably the most shocked expression possible for someone with limited facial features. “What.”
“I Know That I Was Not The Best To You”
He snorted. “That much is true, yes. You always acted like you were better than everyone, especially -”
“That Is Not Why I Was Created”
The King stared at her incredulously. “What do you mean? You were created in the late Spade Queen’s image, no? What other purpose could you serve?”
“You Know Why, Kingy”
“No, actually, I don’t. Enlighten me.”
She looked idly off to the side, seeming to stare at nothing. “Did You Ever Wonder Why It Started Calling To You”
He froze. “...How… do you know about that? What-”
“I Know A Lot Of Things, Kingy Wingy” she said, turning back to meet his stare. “I Was… Created To Be A Vessel” For once, Queen seemed to be at a loss for words. “It Needed Someone To Help It Control The Tremors / A Ruler” She swirled that abhorrent liquid around in her chalice. “We Are Not All That Different You Know / Maybe We Could Even Be Friends / Besties Maybe”
“I find that very unlikely. We may be similar, but that does not mean that I have to associate with the likes of you.”
She stood up. “Well I Tried / Oh Wait Before I Forget” A thin green window made out of pure energy materialized out of thin air. Queen tapped a few things on it, and a small bag of nuts appeared in her hand. “Here Are Those Cashews You Wanted”
She tossed the bag through the bars, moving to leave. She stopped, seeming to remember something. Queen turned back to him. “By The Way Happy Birthday”
He’d almost forgotten.