For King, For God, For Country (scene 3)

For King, For God, For Country

“When cold from the outside lays siege to the fire on the inside…”

The king watched the fire dance across the cold stone walls. Knowing that tonight’s
battle was a loosing one, knowing tonight that the fire on the inside couldn’t hope to
win against the cold wet chill on the outside.

The stone was old; years of rain and wind had seeped through the thick walls
making them cold to the touch, almost wet. “If stone could talk” he thought “then maybe it could tell me how I can win this fight”.

Arthur looked down the table. There would be no fighting tonight. The Saxons would
need to regroup.
They were all here, his most trusted. All but one, his oldest and dearest friend, off running a kings errand, as much to keep him away from the main lines then to
garner any secrets that might be out there. He thought about all the men who died, all the men who would die, any one of them free to do as they would, being neither bound by king, nor God. But this was their country and they fought for the freedoms that any man should have.

The king thought about a rhyme that he had heard many times by his father. He looked down at his cup, closing out the brevity around him, trying to remember something he heard as a child.

How free is the laughter
How free is the man
When the forces of nature
Holds us in her hand
I do what I do
Like my fathers before
The blood of my country
To this I am swore

To this I am swore
To this I am swore
The blood of my kinsman
To this I am swore

Arthur lifted his cup, as he picked it off the table he noticed a ring where the cup had set.
As he looked down both sides of the table he noticed the same mark. The same mark no matter the man, no matter cup or chalice. An idea came to him, a circle everything equal no man holds an upper hand. You may follow your king, but you fight for your kinsman and in your country you are free.

Arthur rose, everyone quieted and looked up at their king.

“Could someone fetch me a wood smith” asked Arthur