View Flat HTML
View Metadata
Search Post
After Adarin and Isabella depart, Edarial gets back to juggling projects. Unsurprisingly, Iobel is a large help in this. Once she gets a handle on all of the things involved with being a monarch, he can not constantly be doing that alone. He still helps, he's still there doing monarch things and fixing the country, but now he's got a bit more free time to devote to other things.
Accordingly, there's a project he picks back up that he was only tinkering with before his marriage. He'd like to reinvent the fountain that heals familiars, have there be others in strategic locations, so that spellbinders don't need to rush to the capitol to avoid being unmade. Progress on the project's always been slow, there's a reason that it hasn't just been reinvented immediately after the spell charts were lost, but he's got some very good reasons to work on it with a near-obsessive zeal.
One day, to his utter surprise, when he goes to find another portion of the spell-chart to complete, he can't find it. He stares at the chart, stunned. Then he starts checking his work. It takes him a few days to finish the corrections.
Then he's done. He's remade a revolutionary spell chart.
He picks up the huge spell chart, does his best to fold it down to a reasonable travel size, and then heads off to show the nearest spell binder - Iobel.
+ Show First Post
royal_obligation
royal_obligation
"Oooo," says Edarial. "That would be useful - I can try that if the portal pairs are impossible, certainly. It would be easier to chart."
royal_obligation
He smiles at her, and because he doesn't have another topic of conversation - back to silence. And thinking.
come_midnight
Charge charge - Fountain! It erupts suddenly and beautifully from the center of the target location, spilling over itself.
royal_obligation
Edarial grins.
"I think that was just shy of half an hour, that's not too bad!"
"I think that was just shy of half an hour, that's not too bad!"
royal_obligation
"On we go!" he agrees, brightly.
Back to the canals they go, and onto a boat. To the next city!
Edarial will be rather quiet for the trip, it's up to Iobel if she wants conversation.
Back to the canals they go, and onto a boat. To the next city!
Edarial will be rather quiet for the trip, it's up to Iobel if she wants conversation.
come_midnight
Iobel's not particularly talkative. She trails her fingers in the water and notebooks and pets her cat.
royal_obligation
Soon enough, they arrive in Forgrat. Built into a hill, the town has narrow streets and tall buildings - everywhere, there are stairs. They look outside for a place to put a fountain, but find nothing suitable. There's no room to put it, not with buildings everywhere that's flat and stairs everywhere else. A fountain anywhere outside would take up the entire street.
Edarial does some searching and some asking around. Soon enough, they find a building once used for Forgrat's government, before it became a part of Marlatia. It's large, centrally located, and reasonably unused - pretty perfect for fountain placement. Edarial checks with the city's managers, they say it won't be interfering with anything, and then he gets to charging.
Edarial does some searching and some asking around. Soon enough, they find a building once used for Forgrat's government, before it became a part of Marlatia. It's large, centrally located, and reasonably unused - pretty perfect for fountain placement. Edarial checks with the city's managers, they say it won't be interfering with anything, and then he gets to charging.
come_midnight
Iobel hangs around in the fountainplace-to-be in companionable quiet.
There is loud knocking on the door to the building. "King tyrant, king tyrant, come out, come out!" hollers someone.
"You idiot, we agreed we were going to be civil," says someone else in a lower voice.
"Shhh too late solidarity," says a third.
"Come out!" repeats the first voice. "Come out and hear us!"
"You idiot, we agreed we were going to be civil," says someone else in a lower voice.
"Shhh too late solidarity," says a third.
"Come out!" repeats the first voice. "Come out and hear us!"
royal_obligation
King tyrant? Edarial is confused.
He gets up, brushes himself off, give his and Iobel's escort a confused shrug, and then - goes outside.
"Yes?" he asks, looking concerned. "Is something wrong?"
The guards around him are enough to keep people from rushing to attack him, and he's obviously charging. He's not concerned about an assassination attempt, this is why he has guards.
"We want democracy!" exclaims an overexcited member of the group of some thirty people. "Forgrat was once a great democratic city-state in which everyone had a voice!"
"Oh, none of your historical rose-colored glasses," mutters someone next to her, "there were all sorts of disenfranchised populations, the history doesn't matter, it's the future -"
"We want the vote!" says someone else. "Who your mother was doesn't give you the right to order anyone or make laws! We want the people's rule!"
"A senate!" agrees someone.
"A president!" contradicts someone else, or at least the two of them seem to find it contradictory, for they begin squabbling.
"There are two ways for us to get it!" someone says. "You might like one of them more than the other but for our Cause anything may be ventured if that's what it takes!"
"Oh, none of your historical rose-colored glasses," mutters someone next to her, "there were all sorts of disenfranchised populations, the history doesn't matter, it's the future -"
"We want the vote!" says someone else. "Who your mother was doesn't give you the right to order anyone or make laws! We want the people's rule!"
"A senate!" agrees someone.
"A president!" contradicts someone else, or at least the two of them seem to find it contradictory, for they begin squabbling.
"There are two ways for us to get it!" someone says. "You might like one of them more than the other but for our Cause anything may be ventured if that's what it takes!"
royal_obligation
Ooooh boy. This'll be fun.
"Well," says Edarial, carefully, "while I think those are legitimate things to want, and I agree that birth right doesn't mean a person can manage a country, Marlatia is incredibly delicate right now. I and the queen are spending a large portion of our time trying to keep the country from splintering into a civil war or anarchy. It's not in the sort of situation for a dramatic, large scale change in government."
He pauses. "If the entire populace does honestly want the country to switch to a more democratic rule, I will listen, but please give me a few years to get the country stable before I go handing it off to a fledgling government."
There. That was probably a 'No' worded gently enough.
"Well," says Edarial, carefully, "while I think those are legitimate things to want, and I agree that birth right doesn't mean a person can manage a country, Marlatia is incredibly delicate right now. I and the queen are spending a large portion of our time trying to keep the country from splintering into a civil war or anarchy. It's not in the sort of situation for a dramatic, large scale change in government."
He pauses. "If the entire populace does honestly want the country to switch to a more democratic rule, I will listen, but please give me a few years to get the country stable before I go handing it off to a fledgling government."
There. That was probably a 'No' worded gently enough.
"DEMOCRACY NOW," roars someone.
"You will be hearing from us again!" says one of the previous speakers.
"Civil war will not be long in coming if the people's voice is denied!" howls somebody else.
"Start with Forgrat! Forgrat was once a proud and great demo-"
"Shut up."
"We'll rally more people and we will make you step down! One way or another!"
"There will be letters!"
"You will be hearing from us again!" says one of the previous speakers.
"Civil war will not be long in coming if the people's voice is denied!" howls somebody else.
"Start with Forgrat! Forgrat was once a proud and great demo-"
"Shut up."
"We'll rally more people and we will make you step down! One way or another!"
"There will be letters!"
royal_obligation
"By all means," sighs Edarial. "Send letters. I genuinely welcome them, but democracy is not the kind of thing I can instate with the snap of my fingers."
"All you have to do is abdicate in favor of a temporary consul who will adminster an election for a first President -"
"SENATOR!"
"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!"
"Write a constitution first! Bind yourself to reasonable checks and balances and limits on your power!" suggests someone helpfully. "Then hold the elections of a prime minister -"
"PRESIDENT!"
"SENATOR!"
"I TOLD YOU SHUT UP!"
"SENATOR!"
"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!"
"Write a constitution first! Bind yourself to reasonable checks and balances and limits on your power!" suggests someone helpfully. "Then hold the elections of a prime minister -"
"PRESIDENT!"
"SENATOR!"
"I TOLD YOU SHUT UP!"
royal_obligation
"A constitution is a good idea," says Edarial, gently. "A genuinely good one. I don't want a second coming of my mother - so, when I get home, I will see about making one, to give citizens rights. What sorts of things are you asking me to put on it?"
"I'll send you a list -"
"Your list is hogwash, wipe your ass with your list."
"Establish the Church as empowered to take over certain functions now handled by magistrates -"
"UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE," someone howls.
"Abolish the draft -"
"Require spellbinding licenses!"
"Regulate the quality of wheat!"
"These aren't constitutional articles, you dimwits -"
"Declare war on Lathalind, those bastards!"
"That's not even legislative!"
"Ratify the secession movements of Forgrat and the Thistle Downs and the Coalition of Fisherfolk -"
"Unionize the canal-workers!"
"Do any of you fools even know what a constitution is?!"
"Your list is hogwash, wipe your ass with your list."
"Establish the Church as empowered to take over certain functions now handled by magistrates -"
"UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE," someone howls.
"Abolish the draft -"
"Require spellbinding licenses!"
"Regulate the quality of wheat!"
"These aren't constitutional articles, you dimwits -"
"Declare war on Lathalind, those bastards!"
"That's not even legislative!"
"Ratify the secession movements of Forgrat and the Thistle Downs and the Coalition of Fisherfolk -"
"Unionize the canal-workers!"
"Do any of you fools even know what a constitution is?!"
royal_obligation
"Why don't," says Edarial, raising his voice to get people to quiet down and stop arguing, "you send me various lists, of things that you want in a constitution, or if you'd prefer to do this now - one at a time, please?"
"WE ARE UNITED! SOLIDARITY! ALL OF THE PEOPLE FOR ALL OF THE -"
"Oh, for the love of God, shut up. We'll be in touch," says one of the saner members of the little group, starting to shoo everyone away from the ex-meeting-hall.
"DEATH TO THE MONARCHY ONE WAY OR THE OTHER -"
"Strongly worded letters, lads -"
"And ladies, enfranchisement and suffrage for ALL -"
"And ladies! Write him letters, damn you, calm down, you're making fools of yourselves. Go on now."
And they shuffle away at various speeds.
"Oh, for the love of God, shut up. We'll be in touch," says one of the saner members of the little group, starting to shoo everyone away from the ex-meeting-hall.
"DEATH TO THE MONARCHY ONE WAY OR THE OTHER -"
"Strongly worded letters, lads -"
"And ladies, enfranchisement and suffrage for ALL -"
"And ladies! Write him letters, damn you, calm down, you're making fools of yourselves. Go on now."
And they shuffle away at various speeds.
royal_obligation
Edarial tries very hard not to laugh.
He turns, and heads back inside, shaking his head. "Well that was bewildering."
He turns, and heads back inside, shaking his head. "Well that was bewildering."