Past and Future

Dear Shathor, when you read this letter, I'm dead for four months. I'm writing this letter today, on your 21

st

birthday because I feel my strength dwindling. My mind plays tricks to me and soon others will rule the kingdom and the empire in my name. Some of them will give themselves beautiful titles, some will stay in the shadows, most of them will make your life as a king difficult, especially at the beginning.

But this was not what I wanted to write about. I trust that you can rule this kingdom. You are well educated -- you always were my best pupil in the king's lessons. You know how to talk to people; you know how to present yourself in a council and you tell the best stories at the right time. Don't rush your decisions, especially concerning the personnel in the Palace or at the high-ranking temples.

Life in the Inner Palace depends on...

"Your Majesty. Lunch is ready." Mandrak's voice pulled me out of my reading.

"Thank you Mandrak. Did you find a good room for yourself in the palace?"

"Yes, your Majesty, thank you. But after today I will not be able to set foot into the Inner Palace."

"Of course. I did not yet think of that. Is there some way to change this?"

"Maybe, Your Majesty, but I would not want it. Those in charge of the Inner Palace will take good care of Your Majesty there."

"Well, but I still would like to have you near me. I don't have an overview of who is in which office yet, but temporarily you can use the antecamera of the meeting room. You will keep your duties as personal valet -- just outside the Inner Palace. For the time being I will be in the office rooms most of the time." I stood up and followed Mandrak to my drawing room.

Larna was sitting there and reading a book. She was clothed in a queen's robes. I stared at her for some time. She looked like a newly found diamond sparkling in the sun.

"Thank you Mandrak, we will help ourselves. The king and I have to talk about some personal matters."

He nodded, ready to depart, "Your Majesty." Suddenly he paused and added in a slow but clear voice, "But you should close the inner doors to the corridor first, because at this time of year it can get very chilly during a prolonged discussion of personal matters."

And he left the room. Possibly to eat himself and set up his office in the said antecamera.

"What would I do without him?" I said as I closed the doors and then kissed my wife.

We began eating soup and I looked at her. She seemed lost in thoughts.

"How are you, my dear?"

"When you woke me up this morning, I was so disoriented, I did not have a clue what was going on. When the servants finally got me out of bed around ten, I could not believe that I slept this long. Then they helped me with these robes -- they do not yet fit perfectly, but we will get there."

"You look radiant. But that is probably the desired effect."

"Queen Darnela invited me for breakfast in the queen's rooms and we discussed how and when she would move out and make room for me. I asked her not to hurry too much, I still enjoy sharing the bed with you every night. She would very much like to move into the green house in the wider palace gardens as a retirement residence -- she feels too old to go back to her homelands. Rallagoah is her home now. She lived in the capital for fifty years."

"I will ask Chrusor to arrange it as soon as possible."

Silently we ate soup for some minutes. I never found a good connection to queen Darnela. She had ruled in the Inner Palace with a strong hand. My father never seemed to interfere in it and gave her all freedom in this area.

She never had any children herself -- sometimes I liked to think she looked at my father's wives and concubines as her children. Children she had to educate and keep in line. Larna and Darnela were good friends from the first day. Even long before I became Crown Prince.

"Darnela wants to invite us for dinner today. I think she wants to talk to you about marrying before the first selection period starts."

I had avoided this topic over the last four years whenever I could. My father, queen Darnela and even Larna tried to bring it up a few times, but I didn't say anything and stayed silent. When I married Larna I assumed that she would be my one and only wife. In the kingdom, the king is the only one who has more than one wife. Even in the empire, only in the outskirts are there rarely men who have more than one wife or women who marry more than one man.

During the selection period, once a year, the king is obliged to marry three women out of those who are presented to him by the Council for Royal Marriages. Most of these marriages happen for diplomatic reasons.

Women from all areas of the empire are to be represented in the Inner Palace. The king could also make proposals to the council himself but should not do so too often so as not to deprive the leaders in the realm of the opportunity to present their sisters, daughters, and nieces at court.

These women became the king's wives, but there is still just one Queen. Often enough, the king's wives, and his concubines too are ambassadors in both directions and have helped to balance tensions. Sometimes, however, they have schemed at court and incurred the wrath of the king.

Outside the selection period the king was allowed to take as many women as he liked as his wives. But most kings often did not make much use of this privilege, otherwise the family would grow a bit too much. Usually, most kings used this right only at the beginning of their reign, so that they made a good start for their family.

The Inner palace rules itself. The queen organized the proceedings and ceremonies during the selection period with a handful of trusted women, mostly wives and concubines of the king. They also made up the majority in the Council for Royal Marriages.

But to be able to do so, there had to be at least three more wives aside the queen, to represent the inner palace. Otherwise, people whom the king did not marry would decide over his marriages. Of course, the king decided whom he married. But he could not decide who was being presented to him.

I sat at the table quietly and finished my soup. I wanted to get up and fill my plate with the next course, but Larna grabbed my hand and pulled me back on my chair, "You knew you could not avoid this any longer. Talk to me Shathor!"

"I know, and I want to talk to you about this. But I am still not sure how I can do this. I tried to prepare myself for these the last four years. I love, what we have, and I don't want to change it. And I know that I must, but I will need some time to come to terms with it."

"Good, that's more about this, than I have heard from you in the last four years. Please think about it this afternoon. I don't think queen Darnela will let you as easily off the hook as I did."

"I began to read father's letter to me, and I am sure that he has something to say about this topic too. I will think about it, and we can discuss over dinner."

Now she let me take my second course and while eating we spoke about her plans to redecorate some rooms in the Inner Palace, especially the bathing rooms on the ground floor.

With a kiss I said farewell for the afternoon and continued reading my father's letter.

Life in the Inner Palace depends on how you choose your wives and concubines. Especially in the beginning. Here too don't rush any decisions, think about them carefully. But think fast and act fast. Don't let anyone make this decision for you.

I know that the life of a king was not what you and Larna had planned. You wanted to live with the love of your life in a small palace in the wider Royal Gardens end enjoy each other's company until you both were too frail to get out of bed. I saw it in both your eyes the moment you met.

Of course, your marriage was arranged, as are all marriages in our family, but seldom is a match that perfect. I was so proud of myself when I found Larna in the entourage of count Malkir. She was still a young girl back then, but she watched me closely with eyes as wide as the palace gates.

I took her in as a ward in the Children's Palace and hoped that you two would meet and, when time comes, maybe nature would take its course. It was some years later, that I found out, that her mother was once a concubine of mine who even was in the king's interest. I had shared my bed with her three or four times. She was very popular in the Inner Palace. But she married after some time and became pregnant with Larna a few years later.

Her daughter, your wife was one of the best pupils in the king's lessons beside you and often enough she outwitted even you.

When your brother Ralig was killed, I took you and Larna a bit closer to my side. I knew back then that one day you would play a bigger role in our kingdom and empire as planned. After your brother Naaldir's mind was destroyed by his illness, there was a distinct possibility that one day you would become king, especially because Koolor, your third brother, was already in a bad state.

I always had hoped that you and Larna would never have to carry this burden. But on the other hand, I was happy, that it came to you. Especially because I knew that you would never have to carry it alone, that Larna would always be at your side.

Larna is a bright young woman. She seems to be a good judge of character to me. Sometimes she is a bit harsh in her judgements, but as far as I know, never wrong. Your brothers would have loved to marry her, and believe me, they tried. But she had only eyes for you -- even if she is some years older than you. But I am digressing.

Choose your first three or four wives, choose them wisely and choose them soon. You will need them, and your queen will need them long before the first selection period. Your queen will still be your first and the love of your life. Some of your wives you will marry for political reasons, with some of them you will fall in love, with some of them you won't. It will still be your duty to keep them happy. But it is not only yours, it is also the duty of your queen and your wives themselves. They don't just marry you, the king, they also marry the queen, the other wives and in some way the whole kingdom and empire.

Think of it like the empire: Rallagoah is the place where you live. It is the city you love, but as king and emperor you also must love all the dukedoms, royal cities, counties, and other territories in Klauvelas, even if there are tensions or war. And all of them must get along with each other too. As for the concubines: They are like visitors, some get to see more, others less. Some might stay for a while and leave again, some may stay and become a permanent part of your family.

Your family will grow, whether you like it or not, and you will need good wives from the beginning to keep order in the Inner Palace. As of today, I'm married to 169 women. I married three women in each selection period since the beginning of my reign 47 years ago. All the others I married like Darnela before I became king, right after my father's funeral or on diplomatic missions, like your mother. I can't remember how many concubines I have shared the bed with. But Darnela will, or at least she will know where to look -- like any good queen she kept book about all of this meticulously.

Some people in the city think that all the king's wives and concubines are for his enjoyment, that they are some kind of sex slaves. Even some men in the palace do believe that this is the best thing in being king of Rall'enagil and emperor of Klauvelas. But it is not. Those women are here, because they represent, what we try to hold together -- our kingdom and empire.

They are an image of what you do as a ruler. Every king in our lineage, who was not able to keep an orderly house, nearly ruined the kingdom and empire too. But this does not mean, that you should not enjoy what you have. Remember that your enjoyment, if done in the right way, means their satisfaction. And sharing a bed is not the only way to enjoy the company and satisfy a woman. But as I can see how you and Larna live together, you know that already. And by the way, if Larna takes after her mother, she may enjoy the company of women just as much as you do.

My son, my king, I am with the goddess of the dead now and I will be happy to meet all those whom I have loved so much and lost over the years. Offer a sacrifice for me at the great temple of the ancestors every year on the anniversary of my death. Tell Darnela that I loved her every single moment of my life. In the next years my mind will slip away, I can feel it -- I hope it won't be too bad for her. She will want to live for her last years in the green house. And she will want to be invited to feasts and solemnities of every kind as long as possible. She has the right to a bit of rest and careless celebration after all these years of responsibility.

Those are all my words for you in this letter. Don't forget to read V.56.a.7.

With love, your father,

King Rakkar V.

What was the code at the end of his letter? It looked a bit like a shelf number from the great royal library. But in section V there were books on nature and natural history. V.56 was the department for landscape design.

I hid the letter in a pocket of my clothes and decided to investigate the matter later. First, I wanted to go through the rest of my late father's things. But there was not much to find. Since his mind began to vanish already years ago, he didn't use his study very often anymore. And you could tell that nothing was used in months.

The ink was dried up, dust was on every surface, and between the windows hundreds of flies had found their death. The study really needed a bit of tidying up. The servants would do this eventually, but only when I was not there.

I decided to leave this room for now and ask the Chrusor to have the study cleaned up right away. I got up and left the antecamera where a secretary was so surprised to see me, that he nearly fell over his chair.

"Does the Commander of the Royal Household still reside in the first office on the left after the great library?"

"Ahh, yes, Your Majesty, ah, of course. Should I send for him?"

"No, no. I want to visit him, and maybe the other offices too, so don't warn them. What's your name?"

"Rallgar Nabuk, Your Majesty." He seemed to calm down a little.

"And you are here as a secretary in my antecamera permanently?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. Usually, I do the shift from noon till the evening."

"Very well. I want you to remember one thing: You are my last resort against those on the other side of the ambassadors' hall, not their first scout of the approaching king. So don't be surprised to see me leaving the study through this door unannounced."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

I left the room and went through the Ambassadors' Hall and the great library to the Office of the Commander of the Royal Household. I opened the outer door as silently as I could and opened and closed the inner door as loud as possible. Chrusor sat at his table with his back in my direction. While he turned around, he started to say, "Can't you knock, before you come in?"

When he saw me, he gave me the same reaction as young Rallgar some minutes earlier. I was quite surprised myself, when I saw who was on the other side of the Commanders table: Naliir, ex High Priest of the goddess of the dead and Hillga, High Priestess of the Red Temple. They looked at me with utter panic in their eyes.

"What a surprise to see you here, Naliir. I see your frailty doesn't include trips to the capital. And Hillga, what an honour to see you too."

The Commander was the first to compose himself enough to speak, "Your Majesty. What an unusual visit. I did not expect you to finish with your father's things today."

"Chrusor, since there were not so many things to go through, as you know, you should not be that surprised. You will find out, that me leaving my study in this direction is not that unusual. And what a fine young man I have in my antecamera for the afternoon shift. I really like him." I suspected that his only task was to warn the others when I left my study.

"What can I do for you, Your Majesty?" he said after gasping for breath for a few moments.

"I would like you to have my study cleaned as soon as possible. In there lies the dust of months, maybe of years. And have replaced all my utensils to work there. And while you do this, would you bring me a coffee, the same as your guests."

He again needed some moments to process what I just said, before he opened his mouth again, "Of course, Your Majesty. I was going to announce the High Priests to you in the next few minutes, they are not my guests, they are guests of the palace."

"Naturally, and I would have enjoyed talking to them in my meeting room. But now I will just enjoy the talk in your office." When those two were mentioned, they stopped sneaking out of the room.

"Please, Your Graces, take a seat again," I said to them, as the Commander left, and I took a seat myself on his couch by the window.

"What is it you two wanted to talk about? Was it the legitimacy of royal marriages or maybe the correct procedures for a High Priest to step down?"

So, this was the way matters of state were done after my father's mind lost its sharpness. They arranged everything in back rooms or, in this case, in antechambers. The fact that hardly anything of weight was discussed in the royal councils anymore, but that there was nevertheless a lot of change in the background, had already struck me for some time.

They exchanged glances and finally Naliir said, "I wanted to thank you for the excellent way you accepted my resignation. Your father could not have done it better."

"And you Hillga, what did you come to thank me for?"

"No, Your Majesty, I did not want to thank you for anything..."

"You have nothing to thank your king for?"

"No, that's not what I meant. I did not come here to thank you, but to, ahhhm, to, to, to ask you to take the first steps for my resignation too. I am even older than Naliir."

"So, you don't want to rush it, like our friend here."

"No, I don't, Your Majesty."

"Good. We will talk about this in the privy council session, which will be held tomorrow," I said, just as Chrusor came in with my coffee.

"A privy Council session, already tomorrow, Your Majesty?" the Commander asked with wide eyes.

"Just put my coffee on the table before you spill it, Commander, would you? -- Yes, a privy council session, just as they were on every Kaldrosday afternoon until my father died. Or did you think all this would go on just the way it did the last four months?"

"No, of course not, Your Majesty, but some of the members will have difficulties to come, since they don't know about the session yet."

"Why would they assume there is no session since the mourning period is over now. There is much to talk about, as you can clearly see. Or would these two be here, when there was nothing to talk about," I took a sip of my coffee. Chrusor may be bad at scheming, but he was good at making coffee.

"Of course, Your Majesty. I will send for the members immediately. Tomorrow, two hours after noon, as it has always been."

"Thank you, Commander, for this meeting. It was very revealing. Since without any doubt you warned everyone from here to the western rotunda that I am strolling around through the offices, there is no point in doing so any further. I will go for a walk through the palace gardens. Would you send for Queen Darnela to meet me at the fountain in the spiral garden in twenty minutes?"