asgardeventide | o16 ♔ video

Asgard. I hope you've not yet tired of what I'm told are "long-winded" speeches, as I've yet another for you on this bright morning.

[ He's trying to stay light-hearted, calm, but Arthur is angry and sick like all the rest; sick of this war and the trials it's brought them. ]

Recent affairs have caused a schism between the people of this city, in regards to both the Utgardian spy and the manner in which we would conduct ourselves, and it is in that space between each other that we find ourselves poisoned. Whether you think it justice or cruelty, there is blood in our streets and some of it is that of our own. We cannot afford to remain divided now; we cannot afford to grow so comfortable and complacent in this war that we find enemies in each other. The Giants win this war when they fill our veins with venom so that we might hold nothing but spite in our hearts. It is imperative now more than ever that we stand together - or not at all.

[ Getting to the point. Arthur straightens a bit, sparing only a moment for the people lost between now and the last time he made a very similar broadcast. ]

For those of you new to the city since the Battle of Ragnarok, I would introduce myself once again. I am Arthur Pendragon, King of Camelot, and I come before you today to remind you of that which we fight for: our homes, our futures, our lives. We fight for each other, and it is for each other that I would see this city united once more.

Shortly before that fated battle, I'd coordinated some of the finest and bravest men and women of this city into a body of defence, to stand guard at the frontlines between the Giants and the countless lives both within these walls and in the realms beyond them. Many of them have since departed from this world to the next, be it their own or the Otherworld, but as their sacrifices will not go forgotten, so too do their spirits remain. I see them daily in all of you, in your stubborn refusal to take these assaults lying down. We refuse to be beaten, and it is in this that I know we will win this war.

Stand with me again, my friends. Forget these petty quarrels that bring us closer to the brink; stand together, and show them we are not yet broken. If any of you would join me, I aim to revive the Guard in a meeting of the Round in three days' time. We have time now to prepare, so that we might stand ever stronger against the Giants. Let them know we are not to be underestimated again.

And to those of you not yet learned in the combative artes, the Citadel doors are always open to those willing to train hard and find their own strengths. We have courses available in a wide array of weaponry, as well as basic hand-to-hand combat for all ages and weights. There are also the Teachers' Council for learning the use of our god-given abilities and Aladdin's magic guild for learning of both Asgard's runic arrays and other magicks across the realms. Our options are countless, our strengths limitless.

We are far from defeated, Asgard. Do not forget: we have achieved the unthinkable, the impossible. Fates be damned. We will carry our destinies in our own hands and share this burden together. Joined as one, there is nothing that can stand in our way.

[ ooc; Holy crap is this long the important bits are all outlined in an OOC post over here. There's a reason I am called the loquacious one. ;; Links are not IC, just for OOC reference! ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It came from all ends of the table. There were even some insisting the gods should wipe his mind clear and create a new identity for him, or to use him as their own spy in return against Thiazi - and very few were temperate in their insistence. If he were not caught and held by my own men, I would have feared for the spy reaching Asgard unharmed.

[ Implying that there were a lot of people that wanted to act independently. ]

I wished to see him executed, but only on fair grounds. These were not them. The recordings still exist, if you'd care for them, but the point stands regardless. Discord can be healthy; disregard cannot. We cannot continue in this fashion, not if we are to win this war.

[Harry is silent for a while—possibly too long—digesting that. Removing his identity, using him against them ... none of that is good, either, though what is better than death? He thinks to the dementors and how they're used in the wizarding world.

They terrify him. They are awful.

And yet.]

What are 'fair grounds'? To you, I mean.

If this were Camelot, it would be my word to determine the fate of not just the accused but the entire kingdom as a direct result of it, and I would bear that weight with my crown. But in this realm, this task was given unto each of us, and it is each of us that is responsible for our futures.

Fair grounds, under these circumstances, are when each of us stands on the same platform. Not any one above the other. I am King in name only here, my voice rings the same as yours or anyone else's. Fair is when we accept this as fact, that there is one thing we all have in common and it is that we are here now, whether we like it or not, and the path we follow is ours to share.

I would have seen him executed, but I was willing to concede my point if it was decided amongst the majority that he ought to be imprisoned. Instead, discussions were turned into arguments and threats, and even the gods looked down upon us in disdain. Now there are men boasting a death and demanding reparations, when this decision should have been upon all of us. Fair grounds exist within a civility we seem to have lost sight of, and that is the path we find ourselves on now.

But when they did it, they claimed there was no one to do that. That was their excuse. If it were where I came from, where I imagine a lot of people come from, they'd be in trouble now for taking that action. That is where acting without waiting gets you in trouble.

There is no law to govern us here. We have only each other, and so it is that their fate is in our hands, much the same as the spy's had been at the start - which is where I would not see us going after our own once again.

I understand, though I'd also be surprised if anyone did. There might be a lot of people willing to let things lie ... at least for the moment. But at the same time, I don't think we'll be likely to forget they acted that way.

[He pauses to think it through.]

I can see where we need to stand united ... you're right. Or at least we need to come to some consensus, but different worlds and all that. It might be more difficult than it seems.

[ He laughs quietly, wry. ]

It is an impossible task. But I would try to accomplish it all the same. I have faith that our strengths will overcome our weaknesses when the moment calls.

That is how it usually goes, at least. People are much stronger even if they might otherwise not believe it. And sometimes things do fall into place on their own.

One can only hope, but then hoping can only get us so far. We will do what we can, and if luck should favour us at all, it will be good enough.

[ Or at least they'll have died trying. ]

... I have a feeling it will be enough. I just hope that it isn't too bad getting there to prove it.

But that's more hope, too.

[ He chuckles quietly. ]

And such is the folly of men. Gods be with us.

o16 ♔ video

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video; man, Harry, you are asking the rough questions sorry for the tl;dr

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