Post by blackest_knight on Apr 3, 2004 3:12:51 GMT -5
There once lived an evil queen who dwelt in her castle. She seldom left it, as she greatly feared the enemies that evil queens generally accumulate during their lifetimes. Suspicious of all but her maid, manservant, and twenty loyal guards, she set forth on her quest to fortify her castle (which, conveniently, meant she didn't have to actually leave it). To accomplish her task, she taxed her people nearly to death.
It just so happened that a peasant farmer named Jack happened to (unfortunately) live in these lands. Jack's family had been quite prosperous in previous generations, but since the queen began her evil rule, Jack's family has become quite poor.
Jack himself was not the most courageous fellow. He was also not the brightest fellow. He was a strong lad, and the youngest son of three. And he had a pretty good sense of what was just and what was unfair, which he had mostly gleaned from the older men griping at the local inn.
In particular, Cecil, the oldest man from the town, griped a whole lot to anyone who would listen. Jack, being polite, got stuck listening to Cecil a whole lot.
It all started on a night like any other. Cecil would be sitting at his usual table by the fire, stroking his rather long grey beard. His grey eyes would alight on Jack, who happened to have a knack for being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and the old man would beckon him over. Jack, who was far too polite to say no, would obey the summons.
"Sit down, sonny! Sit down!" Cecil always said. "Come, sit with an old an' lonely ol' man." (Cecil, who owned the inn, was never lonely).
Cecil would then talk for hours about the taxes, how much better everything would be without the queen, and so on for several hours. Jack, polite as always, would mumble noncommittedly or nod whenever it was appropriate.
But on this fateful night, Cecil leaned conspirationally closer to Jack. "Jack, m'boy, I's something to tell ye."
Jack was surprised at this, yet also intrigued. He leaned closer to hear what the old man had to say.
"Jack, I know I's been saying this for most of ye're life, but me time's almost up. I saw th' black crow today." (The black crow is a very ominous sign amongst the villagers. It means death is imminent for whoever sees it.) "Jack, m'boy, I've somethin' to give ye. An' I want ye to use it to aid th' village."
The old man slid a pouch across to Jack, who took it cautiously. He heard the telling chink of coins, and peered inside. His blue eyes widened in disbelief. Gold! There was more gold than Jack had ever seen in his life. (Not that he had seen all that much).
"Now listen, sonny. Take that there gold an' leave this village. For me family, and ye're family, go and stop the queen from taxing us to death." And with that, he pitched forward and landed face first in his soup. (This was just for dramatic effect. He was quite fine actually).
Jack jumped out of his chair as the old man hit the soup. He was bewildered when Cecil calmly got up and wiped the soup off his face and told him to leave. Now.
So starts Jack's journey to stop the evil queen.
It just so happened that a peasant farmer named Jack happened to (unfortunately) live in these lands. Jack's family had been quite prosperous in previous generations, but since the queen began her evil rule, Jack's family has become quite poor.
Jack himself was not the most courageous fellow. He was also not the brightest fellow. He was a strong lad, and the youngest son of three. And he had a pretty good sense of what was just and what was unfair, which he had mostly gleaned from the older men griping at the local inn.
In particular, Cecil, the oldest man from the town, griped a whole lot to anyone who would listen. Jack, being polite, got stuck listening to Cecil a whole lot.
It all started on a night like any other. Cecil would be sitting at his usual table by the fire, stroking his rather long grey beard. His grey eyes would alight on Jack, who happened to have a knack for being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and the old man would beckon him over. Jack, who was far too polite to say no, would obey the summons.
"Sit down, sonny! Sit down!" Cecil always said. "Come, sit with an old an' lonely ol' man." (Cecil, who owned the inn, was never lonely).
Cecil would then talk for hours about the taxes, how much better everything would be without the queen, and so on for several hours. Jack, polite as always, would mumble noncommittedly or nod whenever it was appropriate.
But on this fateful night, Cecil leaned conspirationally closer to Jack. "Jack, m'boy, I's something to tell ye."
Jack was surprised at this, yet also intrigued. He leaned closer to hear what the old man had to say.
"Jack, I know I's been saying this for most of ye're life, but me time's almost up. I saw th' black crow today." (The black crow is a very ominous sign amongst the villagers. It means death is imminent for whoever sees it.) "Jack, m'boy, I've somethin' to give ye. An' I want ye to use it to aid th' village."
The old man slid a pouch across to Jack, who took it cautiously. He heard the telling chink of coins, and peered inside. His blue eyes widened in disbelief. Gold! There was more gold than Jack had ever seen in his life. (Not that he had seen all that much).
"Now listen, sonny. Take that there gold an' leave this village. For me family, and ye're family, go and stop the queen from taxing us to death." And with that, he pitched forward and landed face first in his soup. (This was just for dramatic effect. He was quite fine actually).
Jack jumped out of his chair as the old man hit the soup. He was bewildered when Cecil calmly got up and wiped the soup off his face and told him to leave. Now.
So starts Jack's journey to stop the evil queen.