The Great Kings of Jerudan

“You both will have many questions, but few will be answered.  In the next moments, you will encounter your friend, but not through discussion.  When you wake, it will be as if you had experienced his thoughts for yourselves, and you will hold some of the answers to your questions.”

Jessap, troubled and confused, asked, “Some of the answers?  But what of the other questions?”

“It is the honor and purpose of kings to seek such answers.”

These last words resonated within both men, and the image of Blakely faded into deep blackness.

The men jested and disputed for a few moments, and then each congratulated Blakely on the shot.  “Yes, indeed, it was my shot that bagged the water, and yet we must credit our king with the catch,” Blakely said, throwing a towel the king’s way.

Blakely was the youngest of these men who made up the king’s court, yet he was several seasons older than the prince.  With curly brown hair and sharp blue eyes, he was a warm and kind man who became fierce in competition or battle.  Blakely was known as an honorable and talented young man of Jerudan.  He had so impressed the king through his few years of service as a worthy soldier and fresh-thinking counselor that the king selected him as a personal royal guard.

“I have just been told… that Hershath is less than one day’s march from here and will be upon us by nightfall.”

Gasps of horror and alarm echoed through the hall, and panic ruled for a few moments, until King Jariel bellowed, “Listen to me!  Have we forgotten what has just taken place?  A man devoted to the safety and perseverance of this kingdom has passed away, but his legacy remains!  He has left us with the work of his own hands and prepared us for this very moment.  Let us not cower, but rise up and face our enemy as he did in this very hall!”