Friday Fictioneers

 

old-london.regular

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‘Forgive me questioning your wisdom sire,’ said the Knight, ‘but I am unassured of our readiness for battle’

‘We need to speak privately husband’ said the Queen. The King’s concerned advisors shuffled back and retired.

His mind unchanged, the army assembled atop a hill. A thousand pawns stood in nervous anticipation; scores of cavalrymen sat astride spirited steeds. The Bishop made the sign of the cross as the king lowered his flag. A rook squawked as the troops advanced.

Despite a hundred loyal souls perishing the fray was won.

Later at Court, a triumphant King raised his goblet, stuck out his tongue and shouted ‘Told you so!’

 

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chess-eyesFriday Fictioneers is hosted by Rochelle. The photo was provided by Jeff Arnold

71 thoughts on “Friday Fictioneers

  1. Neil MacDonald's avatar neilmacdon Oct 31, 2018 / 12:47

    In chess, of course, the king does not give battle (at least not until the very end). Though the king is th most important piece on the board, it’s the queen who moves and mates and slays

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Iain Kelly's avatar Iain Kelly Oct 31, 2018 / 13:26

    I wonder if this is how chess pieces see each game, as part of an epic battle that is fought over and over again! Great fun Keith.

    Liked by 4 people

  3. Sandra's avatar Sandra Oct 31, 2018 / 13:29

    A hundred souls… a mere bagatelle to a king of such masterly strategic powers.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. ceayr's avatar ceayr Oct 31, 2018 / 19:19

    In a grown-up mature sort of way, followed no doubt with ‘na na na na na!’

    Liked by 2 people

  5. rochellewisoff's avatar rochellewisoff Oct 31, 2018 / 20:52

    Dear Keith,

    The maturity level of the king is underwhelming. 😉 Nicely played.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

  6. JS Brand's avatar JS Brand Oct 31, 2018 / 21:51

    True to life, Keith. I’ve never mixed with royalty, but I’ve worked with a few people who adopted this king’s management style.

    Liked by 1 person

  7. hilarymb's avatar hilarymb Nov 1, 2018 / 01:59

    Hi Keith … sadly that was the way it was, and still is in places … loved the story line … fun to read – cheers Hilary

    Liked by 1 person

  8. KB's avatar KB Nov 1, 2018 / 02:16

    The Queen needs to work on her powers of persuasion. Love it!

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Dale's avatar Dale Nov 1, 2018 / 03:54

    That was a fun one… only because of how you ended it…

    Liked by 1 person

  10. anuragbakhshi's avatar anuragbakhshi Nov 1, 2018 / 04:29

    The world needs more mature rulers like him. Oh wait, some countries already have them 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Abhijit Ray's avatar Abhijit Ray Nov 1, 2018 / 07:24

    Battle was fought despite not being prepared. Pawns were sacrificed at the altar of victory while the King drank his wine.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. draliman's avatar draliman Nov 1, 2018 / 07:55

    You managed to get all the pieces in there! Surely someone with such an attitude would never be in charge… 😉

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Keith's Ramblings's avatar Keith's Ramblings Nov 1, 2018 / 13:37

    …hence the Queen taking him aside, but he chose to disobey her. Cheers Jo

    Like

  14. mjlstories's avatar mjlstories Nov 1, 2018 / 20:40

    The sort of king who bounces on the four-poster. I kind of like him, but for those dead souls.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. Priya's avatar Priya Nov 2, 2018 / 07:33

    Haha.. I like the king, already.
    A great story. Elements of tragedy and comedy combined.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. jillyfunnell's avatar jillyfunnell Nov 2, 2018 / 10:05

    He might be the king but he is also a naughty boy. Stop pulling the footman’s ponytail this minute!

    Liked by 1 person

  17. 4963andypop's avatar 4963andypop Nov 2, 2018 / 11:30

    Not a terribly dignified expression of triumph. One would expect more of a king, or any leader, for that matter, no matter how crushing or unexpected the victory. 😊

    Liked by 1 person

  18. granonine's avatar granonine Nov 2, 2018 / 14:39

    It is interesting to me that in chess, the Queen is the one to defeat; in reality, so many queens down through the ages have been nothing more than pawns themselves.

    Liked by 1 person

  19. plaridel's avatar plaridel Nov 2, 2018 / 16:58

    the battle was won, but at what cost? poor subjects dying for the king’s amusement.

    Liked by 1 person

  20. Piyali's avatar Piyali Nov 4, 2018 / 10:58

    I loved the ‘told you so’ moment. Awaiting a reaction from the queen 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  21. Brenda's Thoughts's avatar Brenda's Thoughts Nov 4, 2018 / 13:44

    One hundred loyal souls, was that worth the win? I guess for the king it was. Creative take on the chess set and entertaining tale.

    Liked by 1 person

  22. subroto's avatar subroto Nov 4, 2018 / 20:53

    Ha! Ha! Now that is how mature adults should resolve arguments.

    Liked by 1 person

  23. Laurie Bell's avatar Laurie Bell Nov 5, 2018 / 10:33

    Bahahahaha! Hilarious last line. Great story. Epic war

    Like

  24. Prior...'s avatar Prior... Nov 8, 2018 / 07:32

    The ending was silly but also nice twist to the seriousness of battle – and nice way to use the chess pieces like this – Keith – you are creative with the wit

    Liked by 1 person

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