The Bitter Truth

The king was surprised. He had never been summoned by the council. The council was basically the court. They were in charge of upholding the laws of the kingdom and also planning major events that would shape the future of the kingdom. If someone screwed up they would answer to the council not the king.

The king walked to the council chambers and nodded his head at the guards outside the room. They opened the door and announced his arrival. The council stood out of respect for the king and they waited until he took his seat to sit themselves. Once the formalities were out of the way the meeting then started.

"I'm sure his majasty is curious as to the nature of the summons" said the council leader "I'm not going to beat around the bush your majesty it has come to our attention that their was an issue regarding Mack Evergreens birth. Now before you say anything everyone present that day has already testified. And we just want to here why you ordered veritas to keep the boys non existent mana core a secret instead of fallowing the law and sending him away." The council leader paused to here the kings excuse.

"Hhhhhh....i didn't want to believe it. That it was possible that I could give birth to a dud. I had never heard of a child being born without a mana core and when Veritas said that he would also stop aging I chucked it up to the ravings of an old man. I did not intend to break any laws regarding this. I didn't even know laws even existed for this."

"Your son has already stopped ageing your majesty. I took the liberty of comparing the medical files of Vorick and Mack and I noticed that at the last checkup Vorick measured to 4 foot 5 inches whereas Mack hasn't grown an inch since his ninth birthday almost a year ago measuring at the same 4 foot he was then. Also he hasn't developed anymore at all where as Vorick has" said the head Doctor "if you look at them side by side they no longer look like twins they are big brother and little brother"

"As for the laws that were broken. It is stated that all members of the royal family including all potential heirs must have mana cores and be able to produce mana in order to hold a royal title and receive the benefits of that title. This is so the individual can control the populace." Said the judge. " also in the law, it states that he cannot hold any type of noble title because again, he would be unable to control the people underneath him"

"But judge Michaels why have a law like that it seems pointless" asked the king

" I think I can answer that judge" said Veritas " my king, do you remember the story I told you about the other children who are born without mana cores"

" I do, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"well, all four of those children were Evergreens. And the law was put into place to prevent a weakling, such as your son, from ascending to the throne, or ever attaining a position of power." Said Veritas

"That brings us to the next topic" said the Council leader "it has also come to our attention that you were going to allow him to participate in the awakening ceremony knowing that nothing would happen. In doing so it would have embarrassed not only Mack making his life even worse then it will be but it would make you look bad. Poor Vorick would have to prove to the kingdom that he is worthy of not only his title but the title of king in the future. That being said we have reached a decision"

"I willingly accept the councils decision" said the king head still held high.

"Very well, you as king will serve 90 days probation where your every move will be monitored. In the case of Mack Evergreen he has been found ineligible do to the lack of a mana core. His title as prince and the benefits that go with it has been revoked by unanimous vote. His title as a royal and the respect that goes with being a royal has been revoked by unanimous vote. From this point forward he must address any member of the royal family using the appropriate title and respect that is deserving of the title. Remember, your majesty only servants are allowed in the castle or on its grounds. If he wishes to remain, he will need to become a servant. What Kind of servant he becomes is up to you, as well as the pay. if for some reason he doesn't want to become a servant then he must leave After the ceremony tomorrow." The leader banged his gavel and the king left.

The king walked aimlessly around the castle grounds processing everything that was said. Eventually he arrived at the training grounds where he saw his son Vorick training with his teacher. He made eye contact with the teacher and Signal for him to come over.

"Is everything ok my king, you look distraught" said Kent the personal trainer to Vorick.

"Oh….ummm yes I just have a lot on my mind that's all. Actually their is a reason I came out here. Can you keep him busy till an hour before dinner. The queen an I have an important meeting in the thrown room and I really don't want him barging in. It's not going to be a pleasant meeting."

"Sure thing your majesty I'll keep the tike busy" said Kent as he bowed respectfully and returned to Vorick

The king then went to the thrown room and sat on his throne. A half an hour later the head Butler walked into the throne room doing his routine check and was surprised to see the king sitting on his throne which was an odd occurrence. He could sense that something wasn't right so approached the king.

"your majesty is everything ok you don't seem to be yourself" he asked

"Ah Roy just the man I wanted to see. Can you go retrieve my wife and come back here I have something to discuss with the two of you. Also can you have a couple of servants come and take Mack's thrown to the store room."

"Your majesty" Roy said in astonishment

"It is as bad as we feared. And please I need my best friend not my butler" said the king

"I'll be back in a second" he said and went to retrieve the queen. A little while later Roy had returned with the queen in tow.

"Oh Thomas… who blabbed" she asked as she noticed that her baby's throne was missing. "Where's Macky's throne"

"I don't know who blabbed Mary" he said while handing a scroll to her

"What's this…..a decree from the council" she said as she read the contents. "So it's like that" she said as she sat in her throne. She glanced at the empty space beside her and tears filled her eyes. Roy then read the decree and sighed loudly.

"That poor boy" he stated "this is a bit harsh in my opinion"

"I agree but I have no control over the situation anymore. What do you think is the best option for Mack" said Thomas

"If I was him I'd choose to leave. Being a servant to your own family would horrifying but it world be sheer torture when considering that family is royal and you were once part of that family with a title and all. Not to mention it would be awkward especially for Vorick" Roy then stopped talking

"Their is no place for him to go. That's the problem. He'll never be old enough to live on his own or strong enough."

"You'd be surprised at how self sufficient the boy is. I watch him on a daily basis. If sending him away is not in his best wishes then keeping him out of the castle is what we need to do. I have been in the market for a new game keeper. He can have the game keepers house out behind the castle next to the stables." Said Roy

"That actually sounds like a great idea. We can still keep an eye on him and he fulfills the requirements of the council. Ultimately it's his decision in the end, of course.The only problem is the stables and game keepers residence are outside the castle grounds " Said the king

"Yes it is outside the castle ground but it's still protected by the castle guards. Plus the training academy for the young commoners who wish to be soldiers is located about 100 yards from the stables. So he won't be completely on his own." Said Roy

"hmmmm...wasn't their an issue regarding the last Game Keeper" asked the king

"He claimed to be a devout follower of zhao yang the god of youth and tried to curse one of the academy instructors. He also claimed to have the boy gods daggers from before he ascended and had a portion of the gods power. Of course everyone laughed at him when it didn't work. The spell he used was to powerful for him and it backfired and the backlash regressed him back to a 16 year old. Later that night when the guards went to his home to arrest him they found a boy of no more then 4 laying naked inside the huge shirt of the game keeper. Once the mess he made all over himself in his sleep was cleaned off of him and he was diapered they questioned him"

"Wait….they put a four year old in a diaper" asked the queen "that's too old for diapers in my opinion"

"Normally I would agree with you but this boy had absolutely no control. It was the Weirdest thing. He confessed to attempting a de-aging spell that was out of his range but I feel their is more to it." Said Roy

"Oh….and what's your opinion" asked the king

"I think he did have the boy god's weapons and was cursed for trying to use their power. Legend has it that only children were able to wheeled the weapons."

"Ah hahahahaha…oh Roy you and your myths. I needed that laugh, thank you my friend."

"Hhhhh…yeah anytime" Roy sighed

Just then the door opened and in walked a disheveled Mack. "You wished to see me" he said