[centre][h3][b]Laxion Hosarusson[/b][/h3]
[img]https://s32.postimg.org/xz3aev8mt/LAXION.png[/img]
[sub]Fear means punishment, and that's something people never forget[/sub][/centre]

Late that night, long after Torinus had returned from his meeting with Rurik, and after Laxion and his son had washed themselves and gotten into cleaner clothing, Laxion sat reading at his desk. [i]On Kingship[/i] sat open before him and he read once more the passages and pages which had caught his eye on his first reading earlier in the night.

[indent][i]When rulers think more about frills than fighting they lose their thrones. Indeed, the thing most likely to bring about a ruler's downfall is his neglect of the art of war; the thing most likely to win him power is becoming an expert in it.
Take for instance Fransina d'Sforzia: a military man with his own army, he rose from commoner to Duke of Aeril; shunning military hardships, his sons fell from dukes to mere commoners and Aeril was forever lost to them. For of the many negatives of not having an army is that all will deem you pathetic, and 'tis a stigma a ruler must guard against, as shall be explained.
...
A ruler, then, must never stop thinking about war and preparing for war and he must work at it even more in peacetime than in war itself. He can do this in two ways, physically and mentally. Physically, aside from keeping his men exercised and disciplined, he should go hunting a great deal, which will toughen up his body. It will also help him get to know different landscapes...
One of the things students of history admire about the Mercilian leader Hiyapoman was that even in peacetime he thought of nothing but military strategy and when he was in the country with his friends he would often stop and ask them: If the enemy were over there on that hill and we were down here with our army, who would be in the better position? How could we attack them without breaking ranks? If we decided to retreat, how would we do it...[/i]
[/indent]

Laxion turned the pages until he came to the fifteenth chapter and read through some of the more interest tracts in that, also.

[indent]
[i]Many writers have dreamed up republics and kingdoms that bear no resemblance to experience and never existed in reality; there is such a gap between how people actually live and how they ought to live that anyone who declines to behave as people do, in order to behave as he should, is schooling himself for catastrophe and had better forget personal security: if you always want to play the good man in a world where most people are not good, you'll end up badly. Hence, let us be utterly truthful with one another, if a ruler wants to survive, he'll have to learn to stop being good. At least, when the occasion demands...
If you think about it, there'll always be things that look morally right but would actually lead to disaster, and something else that looks wrong but will bring secuirity and success...[/i]
[/indent]

Once more Laxion turned the pages and came upon the passages discussing compassion and cruelty.

[indent][i]These reflections prompt the question: is it better tobe loved rather than feared? The answer is that one one would prefer to be both but, since they don't go together easily, if you have to choose, it's much safer to be feared than loved. We can say this of most people: that they are ungrateful and unreliable, they lie, they fake, they're greedy for coin and they melt away in the face of danger. So long as you're generous and, as I have before said, not in immediate danger, they're all on your side: they'd shed their blood for you, they'd give you their belongings, their lives, their children. But come the moment when you need them they turn their backs on you. The ruler who has relied entirely on their promises and taken no other precautions is lost. Friendship that comes at a price, and not because people admire your spirit and achievements, may have indeed been paid for, but that doesn't mean you really possess it and you certainly won't be able to count on it when you need it. Men are less worried about letting down someone who has made himself loved than someone who makes himself feared. Love binds when someone recognises he should be grateful to you, but, since men are a sad lot, gratitude is forgotten the moment it's inconvenient. Fear means punishment, and that's something people never forget.[/i][/indent]

Laxion at last pushed the tome away and got to his feet. Blowing out the few candles which sat on the desk, he moved out of the large study and into the bedroom. He closed and locked the door and hid the key in a designated location before checking up on Torinus, who was sat up in his bed, a candle on the bedside table and a little book in his hands.
'Reading so late, Torinus?' he asked gently. The boy looked up, with his sleepy eyes and yawned.
'Yesh, jus some...some things I wan-wanted to read up on...before bed,' the boy's reply came. Laxion chuckled and moved towards the boy. He took the book from him and put the dry leaf Torinus used as a marker within before closing the book and putting it beside the candle. 
'We have much to do on the morrow, and your friend does not want to meet with me until after noon, so you will have much time to read in the morning,' with that, Laxion ruffled the boy's hair, tucked him in, and blew out the candle. And soon enough, the old man was also asleep in his bed.

Knocking came early the next morning and Laxion, having been sat in his new study, did not hear it. Torinus did, however, and notified his father that the council had been convened and Laxion had been called. Laxion was not one for hurry, and so he and his boy readied themselves and ensured they were as presentable as befit ones who would soon show themselves before the King. Torinus grabbed his little book and ran along behind Laxion as the old man took his might strides towards the famed Chamber of Council. And though the guards attempted to stop Torinus from sneaking in with his father, he flashed them a disarming smile and stuck close to Laxion. The other advisers had all taken their seats, but Laxion remained standing, waiting on the king to enter and sit first. Like Torinus, he allowed his eyes to take in the beauty of this place - and he ascertained, in that moment, that it was more beautiful than the descriptions and attempts at drawing it; and the blueprints he had seen did the mosaics and icons of past Paragons no justice. Other than the icons, intricate patterns flowed across the dome and Laxion knew this to be an Andalujan influence, for in place of icons and statues they had intricate patterns and geometrics marvels back home. And each was an exquisite and elevated form of divine art! 

His eyes then drifted over the advisers, nodding to each respectfully in turn. And when his eyes met steely blue Tirgana Doms', he paused. There was a gravity in her eyes which made even one so old as he feel like a newborn babe. Holding her gaze, he slowly bowed his head and looked at the last person seated in the room. He had been talking with Bastien when Laxion walked in, but had quitened down now. He flashed Laxion a ruddy smile, but something within Laxion did not quite feel at ease with his warmth. Something about it felt...off. It was as though Tirgana Doms' steely eyes held more true warmth than this man's. But Laxion curbed his thoughts and withheld judgement. Noticing the cup of wine on the table, he picked it up and handed it to Torinus, who immediately went with it to one of the servants and asked her for a replacement.
'The Lord Adviser Laxion imbibes water only, and freshly squeezed juice on special occasions,' the boy whispered to her. She soon returned with a new cup, filled to the brim with crystal clear water, which Torinus took from her and put on the table before his father. 

Soon thereafter, the King swept into the room and took up his place upon the small-scale throne, with Lord Rurik and two guards taking their positions behind His Majesty. With that, Laxion took his seat and Torinus stood by his right shoulder and tried to be as invisible as he could possibly be. Out of habit, the old man brought the paper, inkpot and quill closer to him.

"Welcome to the Chamber of Council.  It is here that the many decisions, that shaped our empire, were taken. I hope you all have slept well, and I apologize for dragging you to your duties so early,' with that he gestured to the two sat to either side of him and continued, 'some may know these individuals already, other perhaps not. They are the Holders of Faith and Sword. Tirgana, Ecclesiarch of the Belief of Man." The woman surveyed them all before giving a slight nod in acknowledgement. 'And Oldavan, Grand-General of the Imperial Army.'
At this, the Boy-King paused and suddenly launched into an explanation of why the table was the shape it was, to Laxion's slight pleasure and surprise. 
'The table symbolizes the unity of the crown, sword, and faith - with the Provinces as their connections and...' but a swift word from Rurik caused Elendin to quickly quieten and move on quickly. He pulled out a piece of paper and revealed that a rebellion was underway in the westernmost provinces of Brevash, Comtè, Pelinque and Irva.

'They do not believe me fit to rule. ℬastien de Warenne, you have probably received reports earlier this month about military activities in these regions. If our sources are to be believed, the provinces in question are Brevash, Comtè, Pelinque and Irva. Reports suggest that some higher nobles have taken the reigns, and that the ruling counts have nothing to do with this deceleration, but sources are vague and nothing is confirmed,' with this the young king looked around the table and made his plea, 'well then, my advisers, friends... How do we deal with this before it turns into a civil war!'

For some time Laxion merely listened, and he watched sadly as Ser Bastien left for the battlefield. Silence reigned and Laxion decided that this was the time for him to put forth his suggestion.
'Your Majesty, if I may,' he paused and waited on Elendin's approval before continuing, 'you are yet a new king, you have not the clout with the aristocracy that your father had. And you are also young, they do not deem you competent enough to rule over them. They have filled themselves with notions of glory and foolishly think that [i]this[/i] is the time for them to strike. But little do they realise that they have given you the chance to establish your authority once and for all. A new king must not be kind. Kindness is the bane of kings. You must clamp down on them with all the mighty and power that you can muster, use unequal force and use all that the tools of statecraft offer you,' here he paused and looked around the table.
'Your Majesty must not simply rally your forces against the rebels, but must send emissaries to these counts who are yet loyal, and they must infiltrate the enemy ranks and lull them into a false sense of security and support. For coup-starters always face an uphill battle, and the advantages of betraying a coup in favour of the authorities are far greater than pushing through with it. We should let a skirmish or two take place, and we must crush them utterly, and when they have lost all hope, we must send to them emissaries telling them that the king tires of the bloodshed and will give them what they want. And we shall meet with them, in their own camp, to sign the treaty of peace, and we shall ensure that it is our loyal infiltrators who they bring with them. And, thinking that they have us within their grasp, we shall sieze them. Having cut the serpent's head, we can then make an example of them and all who followed them, and we must be merciless and brutal in this, else others shall also entertain similar delusions. We must be cruel and firm with these rebels, so that future blood may not be spilled, so that anarchy and chaos are nipped today and now so that they may never again raise their heads. And then, having known how merciless you are to your enemies, they will learn to appreciate your mercy and generosity when you choose to give it. And they may, in time, learn to love you. But first, let their hearts know fear, for as a wise man once said: Fear means punishment, and that's something people never forget. For people may, after having loved, forget to love, but fear is not so easily forgotten.' 

With that, Laxion leaned back and was once more silent.

[sub]Disclaimer: All [i]On Kingship[/i] extracts are adapted from Machiavelli's [i]The Prince[/i] as translated by Tim Parks and are not the original work of Kho & Kho Ltd.[/sub]