All Kingdom - MANDATORY

[magnus]

He is still as the meeting continues, his body tense and ever ready for the fight. It would be clear, even to the untrained eye, that he was a soldier—a fighter, a warrior. He had been born into it and readied for it from the first breath. Both his parents had been monarchs of allied kingdoms—one of which was the kingdom that was the wolf and their doorstep. Unfortunately, he had once been Lord of that same kingdom. Of course, he was not deceptive of his time spent at the Chamber, nor his ties there, but that did not mean that he brought it up often. It was history now. In the past. Minus his panther-father roaming through the mountains, there was little reason for him to be tied to the kingdom of fog and pine.

So he says nothing, his mouth a grim slash across his handsome (if not scarred) features as he listens to their King, taking the time to meet the gaze of each new horse to join the group and nodding his head at them. Kingdom manners were yet another thing that had been trained in him. When the group becomes mostly silent, he turns his attention to Mast, finding himself grateful that Heaven had a good King at the helm. He had seen what it was like when the kingdom fell under the rule of an undeserving leader.

“My visit to the Amazons was not as fruitful as we all would like,” he says, his voice deep and husky. “I do not think they view an alliance with us as…beneficial to their kingdom.” It is hard for him to begrudge Lagertha that. It was hard enough to rule a kingdom, and not every decision could be made for the good of others. She had to put the sisterhood first and foremost. He understood, even if it had stung. He looks to Mast. “You can journey there, and I would be happy to accompany you, but I don’t think even a visit from the King will do much to change their mind. The sisterhood is not one to be easily swayed.”

He glances to Kronk. “I hope your diplomatic mission fared better than mine.”

Magnus is silent for a second, thinking, “If I am to speak bluntly,” he addresses the group of them, “we do not currently have much to offer in terms of an alliance. We are asking kingdoms to form an alliance with us based on their good graces—and, perhaps, their pity.” His expression sours on this word. “So perhaps focusing on building up our alliances is not the best use of our time. Instead, perhaps, we focus on building up internally. Adding good soldiers. Training our diplomats. To successfully do that though, we need a purpose, a clear one. What makes Heaven’s Gates different from the other kingdoms?”

He pauses to look at them before continuing on. “To me, it’s a haven. A safe place. We are where the battered and the bruised and the weary can come to rest their head. So perhaps the greatest card to play would be the honest one. We open our borders to those individuals and let them know they can find rest here. There is no judgment. We do not turn away. We protect the tired with our soldiers and we fight on their behalf. If someone comes to us weak, we negotiate with the Falls for access to their healing waters—even if it means one of us serves a sentence in their kingdom. If someone comes to us the victim of abuse, our soldiers fight for them on the challenge grounds. We care for them when they are here.”

His eyes are bright, “We carve out a name for ourselves. People will come to a kingdom with purpose more easily than they will come to a kingdom that has nothing to offer—and when people come, we will become stronger. And when we are strong, we can stand against the Chamber and give the other kingdoms not only a reason to stand with us, but the belief that we can prevail.” He takes a deep breath, feeling the truth of it sing through his veins. “Thank you for the gift of wings, Mast. I promise to follow where you lead.”