Forest Kingdom Trilogy 2 - Blood and Honor

benefit from a short break. Heather, hand round my pipes and tobacco. You know where they are. And there are drinks in the cabinet for those who'd like them.'
    Jordan shot a quick guilty look at the drinks cabinet, and tried to remember if he'd put the whisky decanter back in the right place. Luckily, nobody seemed interested in a drink or the rack of long clay pipes that Heather passed around. Everyone was too tense to even think of relaxing. Jordan scowled briefly. He could have done with a stiff drink, but he didn't like to ask if nobody else was drinking. They all sat or stood in silence for a while, each of them lost in their own thoughts, and finding little pleasure or hope there.
    'I think I'm missing something,' said Jordan finally. 'You all seem to be implying that the Regent is risking civil war in Redhart for a reason. What reason? What could he hope to gain?'
    'It's complicated,' said Argent, without looking up. 'Basi-cally, King Malcolm made Count William the Regent because William is an honest man. Possibly the most honest and honourable man at Court.
    Unfortunately, because of his overly strict sense of morality, William has never approved of the present royal line. He certainly doesn't approve of the three Princes who stand to inherit Malcolm's throne. By William's lights, none of them are worthy of it. So, by declaring the Rite of Transference, he is hoping a new royal line will emerge to sit on the throne, and replace the existing line. That new line would of course be heavily dependent on the Regent when it came to actually running the country . . .'
    'Just what is this Rite of Transference?' said Jordan. 'I mean, what exactly does it do? And while we're on the subject, why wasn't I told about it before?'
    'Because it hasn't been used in three hundred years,' growled Roderik. 'The last time it was declared, it was used to establish the present royal line, after extensive inbreeding had made the old line worthless.
    I'd forgotten the damn thing was still on the law books.'
    Jordan frowned. 'All right, so it's legal. But can the Regent back it up? Does he have the troops? And would the Court stand for it? I mean, their interests are tied in with the Princes. Aren't they?'
    'Not necessarily,' said Prince Viktor. He looked increasingly tired and drawn, but his voice was still steady. 'The aristocracy is based on Blood, and as things stand anyone with Blood could use the crown and seal to make themselves King. As far as the Court is concerned, this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to ascend to the throne. Not that it'll happen that way, of course.'
    'Why not?' said Jordan.
    Viktor looked at him pityingly. 'Because neither I nor my brothers will stand for it, that's why not. As you pointed out, in the end it all comes down to force of arms. The Regent commands the Castle guards, but as Princes we each have our own private troops, more than enough to take the crown and seal away from whoever has them.'
    'You're talking about waging a war in your own country,' said Jordan slowly. 'Not just against the Regent, but against your brothers as well. How many of your people would die in those wars? Not just your guards and men-at-arms, how many peasants and townspeople, how many farmers and merchants, how many men, women and children would have to die to make you King? Hundreds? Thousands?'
    'At least,' said Viktor. 'It isn't important. It is my right to be King. And it is the duty of all my subjects to fight and if need be die for their King.'
    'I'm not sure raising an army would prove all that easy, your highness,' said Gawaine quietly. 'With so many questions still unanswered over King Malcolm's death, nobody trusts anybody any more. The way things are, neither you nor your brothers can be as sure of support as you once could.'
    'No one can blame me,' said Viktor. 'I was still in exile when the old man died.'
    'Yes, Sire, you were,' said Gawaine. 'But you could have ordered it done.'
    There was an awkward pause.
    'Look,' said Jordan. 'It seems to me that we're worrying too much about things that haven't happened,
    and might never happen. If we worry about every little thing that could go wrong, we'll never get anything done. Let's stick to the things that matter. For example, how was my performance? Nobody's said a thing about that yet. Was I convincing? Do I need to work on the voice more?'
    'Trust an actor to care only about his reviews,' said Heather.
    'You did very well, Sire,' said Gawaine, smiling