Politics? Intrigue? Let's play Choice of Romance: Affairs of the Court!

Gameboards
#128

It is a subtle matter, and takes several conversations to accomplish. You sympathize with her grief of the lack of an heir…you wish on Her Majesty’s behalf that her marriage to the King Consort brought her more joy. You comment that it is a shame about the King Consort’s dishonorable actions…

The Queen does not like this idea at all. “What?”

“Why, I meant–you know,” you say, as though it should be obvious…and then you pretend confusion, and claim the story to be so popular that you assumed the Queen knew of it and cared not, and…

Her pride outraged, the Queen demands that her advisors investigate your accusation.

The investigation turns up some surprisingly strong witnesses who tell the same story you do (as you knew it would).

The Queen demands the matter be heard in open Court.

The King Consort, horrified, asserts that he is innocent of such slander. But it is difficult to disprove such an allegation. You and your witness claim to have heard the King Consort’s misdeeds discussed as though they were common knowledge; all the King Consort’s witnesses can say is that they have no knowledge of such a thing.

The Queen listens to speech after speech, chin resting on her hand and eyes fixed in the distance. When all the witnesses have spoken, there is a long silence. Finally the Queen says, “The Court will reconvene tomorrow morning. We will render our judgement at that time.”

The following morning, you take great care to dress in a manner that is both attractive and respectable. You flock to the Great Hall with everyone else, anxious to hear Her Majesty’s judgement.

The Queen sits, tall and terrible, atop her throne. All at once, she rises, and the room falls silent.

“Bring him in,” she orders a guard.

The guard disappears, and returns leading the King Consort. He is dressed in something drab and dark, and is not wearing a crown or any jewels at all.

Your heart pounds. Your conspiracy worked. The Queen is going to set the King Consort aside.

The Queen does not glance his way even once. She looks around the room instead, speaking calmly and clearly.

“It has been proven to our satisfaction that Esteban, once called King Consort, has betrayed us. This is no light matter. Betrayal of a Queen is treason. And to treason there can only be one answer.”

A gasp runs through the room. All the blood drains out of the King Consort’s face. Luis de Vega stares at the Queen in shock; clearly he was not informed of what the Queen’s judgement would be. “Um, Your Majesty,” he is heard to say softly. “Treason–?”

The Queen gestures him to silence. “For the crime of treason, we sentence Esteban de Aguilar to death by beheading. Sentence to be carried out at once.”

The King Consort cries out in horror, falling to his knees. “Your Majesty! Agustina! I have ever been true and faithful and loving, I swear–”

The Queen turns away.

Esteban de Aguilar is executed that very morning, still protesting his innocence, before a crowd that seems too stunned to really believe what they are seeing. You’re not sure you believe it yourself.

The following day, the Queen holds Court again. To the surprise of everyone there, including yourself, she announces her intention to marry again. To marry you, in short.

The metaphorical howl of outrage from the de Aguilar family, and from the country in general, is enough to shake the palace walls…but what do you care for that? The Queen asks for your hand in marriage, and you accept. You have won the highest prize imaginable. The crown is yours.

…with all the comfort, luxury, amusement, and personal power that implies. Anything you fancy that money can buy is yours for the requesting; if you find yourself wanting something less tangible, it is usually straightforward enough to get that too. Not only is the Queen willing to grant your desires (be they whims or something more serious), but others in the Court now consider you to be a friend worth having, and see advantage to themselves in your being kindly disposed towards them, or at least in your owing them favors.

But there is a sharp downside to your position, as well. The day your betrothal is formally announced, you are aware of all the eyes fixed on you: the hatred on the face of the Duquesa de Aguilar and Princess Juanita; the horror in the expressions of the prominent Life Mages; the interested appraisal from Luis de Vega, the guardians of young Tomás de Reyes, and the prominent Death Mages.

You have won yourself a most powerful and impressive position.

…now the question is, can you keep it?

Okay, with that ends the first part of our LP. Before I go into the next part there are two things!

First, although we hadn’t gotten ANY achievements so far (Yeah, you guys suck) this update gave us three achievements! Yeah :D! Here they are:

Royal Calumny: The Monarch’s spouse was beheaded. (25 points)
Royal Wedding: Married the Monarch. (75 points)
Choice of Romance: Survived the first episode. (10 points)

Second, is there any feedback or something you people wish to give? Stuff like how can this be improved, how do you like it so far and etc.

Next part starts tomorrow! We are just getting started guys. :3

4 Likes
#129

yay, we win!

I was convinced that we were dead the second we were given a choice as to whether we should go through with the plan, but I guess not!

So is the next part a full continuation? We’ve got our goal now but we can do better obviously.

Also, only 62% wealth? We have everything in the land, what the fuck?

2 Likes
#130

More fire magic.
More fire in general.

2 Likes
#131

I like the fast updates.

Also, when you just want him exiled but the scheme goes too well and he gets killed instead.
Pretty good way to end part 1, let’s see who NepNep screws over next.

1 Like
#132

The next part starts with a time jump but yes it is a continuation.

And as for fires… Can’t promise anything :3

And thanks Blackrune! They are fast because of my policies in updating. I update either when the vote has an obvious favor or when I hit 10 votes and the margin is like 2-3 votes at least or when I hit the 12 hours mark. Keeps it fun :smiley:

#133

Sorry about the week break, was on vacation! Now let’s continue with Part II: Choice of Intrigues!

“Is he not beautiful?” you say to the Queen. Agustina does not reply.

Five years have passed. It is a hot summer day in the city of Orovilla. You and the Queen stand in your palace apartments, looking down at your newborn son in his cradle. It took a frighteningly long time for the two of you to find a Life Mage willing to perform the spell that would grant you a child, notwithstanding the fact that Agustina is the Queen. Neither you nor the Queen are favorites with the Life Mage Houses nowadays, for obvious reasons.

But Ricardo was worth the wait. He is a fine healthy child, with pink cheeks and your golden hair and blue eyes and the Queen’s forehead and mouth…and he is a Death Mage, like both of his parents.

“There was never any great likelihood of him being a Life Mage,” you say cautiously. There was, in fact, no more than a 1 in 100 chance that a Death Mage (such as yourself) and a Death Mage with some Life Mage blood (like the Queen) would engender a Life Mage child.

Agustina shakes herself out of a reverie. “Oh, I know. It is only that it would have made things much easier.” She kisses you absently on the forehead and turns away. Her interactions with you are increasingly impersonal these days.

How are you going to respond?

  • Angrily.
  • Tearfully.
  • Charmingly.
  • I just let her go.

0 voters

Show results
#134

As you have done so often before, you arrange your lips into a charming smile. “It would have,” you agree. “I wish I could make things easier for you.”

She turns around, trying to smile back. “Oh, you do that quite well, I assure you.”

“Ricardo is a fine, healthy child,” you say. “We can have another healthy child. Perhaps the next time…”

“Perhaps,” the Queen says.

“And between now and next time,” you say coquettishly, “I am certain we could think of something to do that will ease the pressures upon you…”

Agustina’s smile is genuine that time. She steps towards you, eying your laces. “Right now? In the middle of the afternoon? How decadent.”

There is a tap on the door. You feel like cursing, but keep the pleasant look on your face.

“Yes?” the Queen calls.

It is a messenger from de Vega, requesting a few minutes of the Queen’s time before Court convenes.

“Ah, yes, of course. Tell him to come to my study. I shall be there directly.” The Queen kisses you quickly. “Duty calls, alas. I shall see you at Court.” She hurries out the door before you can say anything in reply.

You turn away from the door and return to staring down at your child. You know what Agustina meant by “it would have made things much easier.”

Though you are Queen Consort, your life has not been altogether pleasant these past five years. The prominent Life Mage families of Iberia openly loathe you, blaming you and the Queen equally for the death of King Consort Esteban. Shortly after your betrothal, Flora de Aguilar (the younger sister of the late King Consort) went so far as to accuse you of conspiring in Esteban’s death. The Queen had her shut away as a madwoman, and this demonstration of the Queen’s power effectively discouraged others from making public accusations against you in Court.

Nothing can stop the silent undercurrents of hatred from the Life Mage families, however, or from your stepdaughter Juanita. Worse, no command of the Queen’s can make the common folk love you as they did Esteban. You are not often actually booed in the streets…but you have never once been cheered.

And worst of all…the hatred of the Life Mages has begun to have serious consequences for Iberia.

The south has been unquiet for several months now. While no borderlord is actually in a state of rebellion, an unusual number of disputes have taken place between the soldiers of the Queen and the soldiers of local lords. The Duquesa de Aguilar, who left Court just before the disquiet began, is widely assumed to be encouraging and coordinating it. No one doubts her motives are as much personal as political.

What actions, if any, have you taken with regard to the situation in the south?

  • I have tried to promote reconciliation between the Queen and Family de Aguilar (and the rest of the borderlords). I have been unsuccessful so far–and no wonder, all things considered–but I live in hope.
  • I have encouraged the Queen’s anger against Family de Aguilar (and the rest of the borderlords). I cannot have her reconciling with them. It would endanger my position.
  • I have taken no action.

0 voters

Show results
#135

War will have to suffice for now.

2 Likes
#136

I am so ready to fight the borderlords. It will be good practice for when we eventually take over the world. :smug:

2 Likes
#137

Indeed. If the queen loses interest in us, her problem, because that means she’ll end up on the chopping block next :cackle:

2 Likes
#138

This game is about our choice of romance, right? If Beatrice taught me anything, it’s that murder is the purest form of romance :cackle:

7 Likes
#139

You know the common people would like you more, and the fangs of the Life Mages would be effectively pulled, if you could only manage to give the Queen a Life Mage child. It was not absolutely impossible that Ricardo could have been one…and you hoped for it fervently…but alas, your hope was in vain.

At least you have Luis de Vega as an ally. You and he spend many hours together, with Her Majesty and sometimes even without her, discussing the issues that face Iberia and the best ways to address them. You know your alienation of the Life Mage families has made de Vega’s job much harder than it used to be, but–perhaps because of the Queen’s regard for you, perhaps because of his own–he never throws it in your face.

A bell tolls in the distance, and you rouse yourself with a start. You have been sitting and daydreaming for a long time. It is more than time you got dressed for Court.

“What gown do you wish me to fetch for you, Your Majesty?” the servant asks as you lead the way into your dressing room. “There is the blue gown, the one trimmed with peacock feathers…” Peacock feathers cost a fortune, and therefore demonstrate the wearer’s wealth in a polite but unmistakable fashion. “Or the gray gown with the high collar is back from being mended. Or…” The servant does not raise her eyes or alter her tone in a manner even slightly objectionable, but the words reveal that she overheard every word that passed between you and the Queen. “There is the red one.” The red gown is the most daring piece of clothing in your possession. Agustina has declared it to be her favorite more than once, but it is risque even for a ball, and you are only going down to Court.

Which do you tell the servant to fetch for you?

  • The rich blue gown.
  • The respectable and sensible gray gown.
  • The sexy red gown.

0 voters

Show results
#140

I’m going for the red one since while I would go for the gray gown to try to give the common folk some better opinion of us, responding “charmingly” worked earlier…so just for consistency’s sake I guess.

#141

I guess it’s technically too late to start caring about our reputation.

#142

I don’t know about that.
A sexy warlord is kinda cool in term of reputation.

#143

The servant helps you don the red, and without asking brings you a selection of jewelry inlaid with rubies and garnets.

There is a tap on the door.

“Yes?” you call.

Another servant pokes her head deferentially inside. “It is your sister Doña Magdalena, Your Majesty. Shall I show her in?”

“Yes, of course.” The servants know that Magdalena is always welcome here, unless you and the Queen are enjoying some time alone.

She comes through the door in a swoosh of cloth and a sparkle of gemstones. Since marrying the extremely wealthy widower Don Felix de Chaves two years ago, Magdalena is usually so attired. She still approaches life with the enthusiasm of the fourteen-year-old she was when you both came to Court. Granted, she no longer runs down the corridors and she has acquired some understanding of the functioning of the world, but she still tends to see the bright side and speak in exclamations. Her marriage to Don Felix is reasonably happy. They have no children as yet, but Magdalena is very fond of her young stepdaughter Rosa, Don Felix’s child by his first marriage.

“Oh, NepNep!” Magdalena says, speaking in exclamations as usual. “That is an excellent choice of gown–you look wonderful! It cries out for jewelry to finish the picture, though.” She comes over to sit beside you and begins pawing through your jewelry boxes. You dismiss the servants with a nod.

Magdalena’s chatter washes over you, and you pay little attention, giving only a vague yes or no as she debates the merits of various jewels and discourses on what other courtiers have been seen wearing today. You do not expect Magdalena to have noticed–her good fortune has made her somewhat self-absorbed–but when she stands to fasten a clasp around your neck, she says, “What makes you so melancholy today?”

“Oh,” you say, trying to shrug it off, “am I melancholy?”

“Yes,” Magdalena says firmly. “What is it?” She drops her voice, even though there are no servants in the room. “Is the Queen upset over Ricardo being a Death Mage?”

What do you say?

  • I admit it is true.
  • I deny it.

0 voters

Show results
1 Like
#144

You nod without speaking, and Magdalena pats your shoulder in a comforting manner. “I was afraid that was it. Listen, NepNep…”

Magdalena takes a deep breath before continuing. “I heard some of the older courtiers talking last night. About you, and the baby, and the need for an heir, and all. One of them said that there’s an old bit of magic–Life Magic, naturally–that can increase the odds of having a child of one affiliation or the other. Faithless women use it sometimes, to cover an indiscretion. Maybe you could find a Life Mage powerful enough to…”

How do you react?

  • This is foolishness–no Life Mage would help me–and I tell Magdalena as much.
  • I humor Magdalena, even though it is far-fetched.
  • The Life Mages hate me, but even so, I must pursue any chance that I can find.

0 voters

Show results
1 Like
#145

“Perhaps you are right, Magdalena. We will have to search vigorously for any hints of a Life Mage willing to help us–this will not be easy. But the rewards could be great…”

Magdalena nods excitedly, caught up in the idea. “I promise you, NepNep, I will stop at nothing to find a Life Mage to help you. I know how much this means to you.”

“Thank you, Magdalena. I have always known that I could count on you for anything. Now, come, we had better go down to Court.”

In the corridor, you are joined by Uncle Pedro. Life at the center of Court agrees with him, and he looks happy and prosperous–and handsome in a new coat of black with silver buttons. His fourth new coat in as many months, you happen to know. Wealth agrees with him, too. And it agrees with Aunt Leonor, who is off in the country, happily managing their new estate.

Uncle Pedro greets you pleasantly and falls in behind you, as is only appropriate. You lead the way to the stairway.

Below you stretches a hallway full of courtiers and servants bustling to and fro. Most of them are making for the entrance to the Grand Hall, as you are. Suddenly the bustle stops, and the crowd parts neatly in two. You know what that means. You pause in your descent down the staircase to watch the Queen come purposefully down the corridor with de Vega just behind her. Both Agustina’s face and de Vega’s are dark and worried. Whatever business they were just discussing, it was not good.

“Oh, Your Majesty!” a high voice calls. “Your Majesty!”

The Queen stops. All heads turn in the direction of the voice. A girl all in white scampers up to the Queen, golden hair streaming behind her. “You dropped this, Your Majesty,” she says breathlessly, holding out a scarf.

The Queen’s black look lifts slightly from her face. She smiles indulgently. “Aren’t you a sweet thing. We thank you.” She reaches out and caresses the girl’s cheek, and she drops into a low curtsy, practically wiggling like a puppy in her delight at receiving attention.

You recognize the girl now. Adelita de Delgado, sixteen years of age, come to Court for the Season. Her father is an hildago of a wealthy upstart Life Mage house.

You feel Uncle Pedro’s hand close over your arm.

“Rise, rise,” the Queen says, and Adelita does. “Are you coming to see our Court?” The girl nods with wide eyes and parted lips. “Excellent. We hope you find it instructive.”

“Oh, I am sure I will, Your Majesty!” Adelita says. The Queen smiles again at her enthusiasm, and dismisses her with a nod.

What are you going to do?

  • Storm down the stairs and make a scene. How dare Agustina publicly flirt with that girl?
  • Say something calm but cutting. Let Agustina know I saw and do not approve.
  • Pretend I saw nothing, or that I saw but do not care. It is beneath my dignity to challenge the Queen over her flirtations.

0 voters

Show results
#146

Probably the right response–anything else would only make matters worse. Still, it is a frightening thing to watch the Queen looking at a pretty girl.

The Queen turns back to de Vega and they enter the Great Hall together. You are not certain if any of the crowd in the hallway are eyeing you as you pass them.

At the doorway to the Great Hall, you come face to face with Princess Juanita. She regards you calmly, almost expressionlessly, with the very faintest of poisonous smiles. She must have been listening to the exchange regarding the Queen’s scarf.

“Your Majesty,” Juanita says in a polite tone but with hard eyes. “I hope this fine day finds you well. And how fares your child Ricardo?”

There is nothing remotely objectionable about the words, but as she meets your gaze, the hatred in her eyes makes a shiver run up your spine.

How do you respond?

  • Blandly, as though I took her words at face value.
  • In a friendly manner. I will not ignore any opportunity to try to build a better relationship with her.
  • With words and a tone that match her poisonous feigned politeness.

0 voters

Show results
#147

“He fares very well indeed,” you say enthusiastically. “It is kind of you to inquire. I think he may have even smiled at Agustina this morning, though the nurses say he is still too young. You really must come and spend some time with us, Juanita. He is your brother, after all. I know the Queen would like it if you became fond of each other.”

“Ah, yes,” Juanita murmurs darkly. “My ‘brother.’ I suppose I should take the opportunity to become better acquainted with my ‘brother.’”

There are many ways that could be taken, and many ways you could respond. What do you say?

  • “Well, your half-brother, then. I know it is an awkward situation, Juanita, but he is still your family.”
  • “Are you implying something, Juanita?”
  • “How dare you threaten my child, Juanita?”

0 voters

Show results
1 Like