The Royal Contract

"Edward, you are the prince who should take my throne after I'm gone, but because of your misconduct, The Council might take the crown away from you." Edward the II spoke to his son with determination in his voice. 

He wanted him to understand that the threat to his position was due to his irresponsibility. If he had cleaned up his act, the way he had continued to tell him to, then they would not be in this position right now, fighting not to get overthrown. 

"What will they do? Give my crown to Alex. It is my birthright to sit on your throne. You, as my father, should insist that I am the next in line to your Empire. I have your blood." Prince Edward asserted his right to claim the seat to the throne.

"If that is only the case, then I will easily pass the crown to you, my son. But there is a law in our Empire that I kept reminding you. But you keep on disobeying those laws. The Council of Elders still had the right to take the Empire away from you." The King could only shake his head as he thought of losing the crown to his nephew.

He had been tough on Alex when the two were growing up. He could not accept that Alex always beat Edward in everything, excelling in all the things he did. He wanted that with his son, but the more he pushed his son to succeed, the more Alex did better.

"But Alex did not want to be part of this Empire. He already denounced his right to the throne." Edward, the prince, was seated at his father's office across from his table.

"But there is no law that allowed him to denounce his right. The Elders never permitted it, so when he accepted the tradition to present his future wife on his 28th birthday, they took it as his acceptance to his right to the throne." The King had to explain to his son, who never bothered to study their ways, what happened last night at the party.

"So, what should I do now, Father. I want to be a King." He now regretted disregarding their laws. 

Prince Edward always thought that since Alex turned his back to the kingdom, he automatically lost his right to be a king. But now that Alex was back, Edward's position was threatened, once again.

He always thought that Alex would never return. He was already making a great life away from them. Therefore, he believed that the throne was only his. Nobody else except the two of them was qualified to rule. 

He hated his grandfather for giving The Council so much power. In the old ways, as long as you are the one in line to the throne, it was automatic that you are the chosen one. But now, he was still answerable to The Council in his every move.

Once he was declared a king, he would find a way to abolish The Council of Elders. He believed that a king should have absolute power over his domain. He would not be as weak as his father, who bowed down to the wishes of the Council.

"I want you to clean up your act. Make sure to follow the rules set by the Council. Let us hope that Alex makes true of his words that he will not come after your throne." The King wanted his son to take over his reign, but he also wanted him to be a good king. 

He might not be the best King that ruled their Empire, but he did try to be a good one. Now, he only wished that his son would lead their people, using the balance of wisdom and power. 

"But that will not assure my place in the throne. Even if I behave now, I don't think the Elders would reconsider their position." The prince stood from his seat to think of ways to get out of this predicament.

"As of now, that is the only way. We have to prove to them that you are still qualified and capable of ruling." His father watched his son moving around his office. If only he did concentrate on his obligations, this would not have happened.

Sometimes, he did wish that he did not become the King. He always felt his brother, Frederick, was more suitable to become one. But they had to follow the law. 

Now, since compared to his brother, his brother was doing well compared to him, the Council was reconsidering their actions, seeing that his son was less capable than Alex to rule their Empire. 

"What if the wedding did not take place in six months? What if the marriage did not push through, and Alex ended up without a bride? Would that affect his right to the throne?" The prince asked his father.

"That would certainly change the dynamic of The Council's ruling. It is one of the requirements written on the documents for Alex to get married in the allotted time." The King could already see where the mind of his son was going with this. 

"The rules were to assure that the King would marry and procreate a new heir. So, if Alex did not follow the one written, then whatever the Council decided would be declared null and void." He continued his explanation to his son.

But if it would be up to him, he would choose a different life for the prince. He would like him to follow Alex's path. But his son wanted to be like him. He did love his son, so as a king and a father, he had to do what he could to make sure that his son would sit on his throne someday.

"That is what I wanted to hear." He heard his son said as he sat back in his seat.

"Your birthday is also coming up. Have you chosen a bride for yourself?" His father asked as he observed his son, trying to read what he was thinking and planning.

"Not yet. But I am already considering someone." The prince answered his father with a satisfied smile.

There are many to choose from as far as he was concerned. He only had to tell one of them, and he was sure that they would be begging to be his queen.

"I believed Tyra would do nicely as your queen. But if you are considering someone else, make sure that she would pass all the requirements of the Council." His father reminded him.

There was a time that the people overlooked a queen before. They allowed a commoner with nothing much of a background to show for as their queen. But now, with their situation, he was not too sure. 

"I can still consider Tyra. But I certainly had another one in mind. She would certainly be more than qualified to be my wife." Prince Edward assured his father.

"Well, I hope that you would introduce her to me soon." His father was glad to hear that. At least in that regard, he wanted to be assured that everything was the way it should be.

This time, they could not afford any more mistakes if his son was going to sit on the throne. They had to be more careful in choosing the next queen.