KING D. AUGUSTUS III - BEGIN LOG ENTRY : 9 July 2528: 23:10 I have found many obligations as King and otherwise. If someone would have told me ten years ago that I would someday be King of Londinum, well, I’d believe them actually since I am the only heir. By no means does it say that I was ready. I am the age of twenty-five now and I still do not know what I am doing. Those who admit their ignorance are full of wisdom, as my father says. Anyway, I digress. When we left Boros with Delphi and the evidence in tow, we were barely hours from the beginning of the trial. Boros was quite a ways from Londinum, but River and Kaylee made it their mission to high tail it back in time. As Jayne tied up the still unconscious Mrs. Busby, Mal came from behind me as I watched with glee to announce, “We’ll get to Londinum just in time for the trial. That evidence will do them good for somewhere on the side of infinity being locked up.” Being the arrogant teen that I was then, I had to say back, “Then you and your crew will take your coin and shove off.” Jayne looked back at Mal and Mal looked down at the grated floor with a solemn look and said, “That’s not entirely exact.” I was confused. “What does that mean?” “We sorta contacted your dad to get him all caught up on our misplacement of you.” “I bet that went well.” “Yeah,” Jayne replied, “we got ourselves one fine talkin’ to.” I chuckled, “I know all about those talking to’s. So, he’s paying you less now?” “Much less,” Mal answered. “In fact, the figure is actually down to one single digit.” “Uh huh. That digit wouldn’t be a zero, would it?” “That’d be so.” “Wait a minute, you mean you’re not getting paid for your rescue of me?” “Not unless we get paid in kindness,” Mal said. Jayne quipped, “And that ain’t likely, neither. King Daddy was pretty steamed.” “He ordered us off the job and said something about sending his Army. We had your position from the tracking gel and we gave it to him.” “Yeah, but some Captain who shall be nameless grew a heart and convinced the others to come after you anyway.” Mal shrugged. “We figured we were in a closer position and could get to Boros faster.” I then asked the obvious. “Why would you come after me if you knew you wouldn’t get paid?” Mal just said back, “Oh...well, Jayne, untie Mrs. Busby there and I’ll hand her back her memory slide. Apparently, the Prince liked it better in her captivity. Must be a sorta complex with a fancy psychological name.” “If I let her go, can I hit her like River did?” “Don’t think you could manage that level of grace even in violence. Besides, I do believe that if we do let her go, River will come down from piloting and treat Mrs. Busby to some more good sense knocked into her.” “Ok!” I said. “I get it.” In actuality, I didn’t then. I do now, but not fully. Consider this. You accept a task in which you were told you would be paid a considerable amount of money. Somehow, circumstances beyond your control prevent you from succeeding the task. Upon that failure, you’re told the compensation to you is forfeit and another party would be called upon to complete the task. What would it take for you to ignore the refusal and attempt to complete the task anyway, knowing you wouldn’t be compensated? Up until that time, I would have had a hard time answering such a question. Of course, I was only fifteen then. It wasn’t until after I met the crew of Serenity when I had an answer. Humanity. The entire crew reeked of it. Even Jayne, though he did well to hide it. I knew about hiding emotions well at that time. I have learned since to let them out once in a while and allow them to breathe. Let them get some air. If they stay hidden, the amount of humanity inside you escapes. Just ask Mrs. and Mr. Busby. Anyway, when we did arrive on Londinum, the Court authorities took Delphi under a bind by law. She was still a little groggy, not from River’s blow, but from her brother’s injection. It seemed Delphi tried to awake at some point during the flight back. The crew and I were escorted up to the main palace. I could tell from the astounded looks from civilians we were receiving that the rumors of my rescue from danger were already leaked. I held my head up high as I was walking true in good company. We arrived in the King’s chamber, again in an obscure location of the palace. I ran to my father with open arms as he expressed his joy at my safety. He then looked to the crew with a solemn glare. He let go of me and stood before them with Mal front and center. “You ignored my order,” the King stated. “It was more out of necessity than ignorance,” Mal stated. “I had already sent an Army to Boros at the coordinates you supplied.” “And my guess is that they arrived by now.” “They did. Though they found the complex deserted. It wasn’t a total loss. In the dungeon below, there were some members of Parliament captured for their knowledge of the couple’s plan. Luckily for them, they weren’t treated to her husband’s rage, like Oscar was.” “Well, we were just glad to be of help,” Mal said. “Now, seeing that the Prince is all nice and healthy, like you asked, we’ll just be moving along.” Before Mal turned to lead his crew out, the King called out to them. “Wait!” They stopped and looked at him. “I informed you that there would be no compensation for your lack of effort, if my memory recalls at how I put it.” “In so many words,” Mal agreed. Inara then spoke in full ambassador mode. “We do seek your forgiveness, Your Majesty, for our failure. However, we felt it was our duty to finish the job you asked of us despite there being no payment.” She looked at me and smiled. “Prince Deke’s safety is payment enough.” “Which is why I reconsidered,” said the King. Jayne brightened. “Reconsidered?” “Yes. I will indeed compensate you. However, the amount we had agreed on will not be the same. I have decided to pay you what I believe is your worth.” “Your Majesty,” Inara pleaded, “please do not feel you are required to do so. We allowed his capture to happen. We will reap the consequences.” The King simply said, “Yet, I still insist.” He motioned for an aide to come forth and he did so. The aide was carrying a small case in which he handed to the King. The King in turn handed the case to Mal. Mal took the case with a curious look and the crew gathered around him. He placed the case on a nearby table and proceeded to open it. Within seconds, their eyes all went wide. It was Simon, not Jayne, who cried, “Tzao gao!” I repeat, it was Simon, not Jayne. The rest were too speechless. Including Jayne. Mal then finally found his voice and asked, “How...how much is here?” The King said casually as if he were speaking of small change, “500,000 Square.” Jayne finally remarked, “We could buy two new ships with this.” The rest of the crew, especially Kaylee, gave him a look of utter discontent. Jayne defended himself. “Didn’t say we was gonna. Just givin’ perspective.” Inara turned to the King to say, “Your Majesty, this is too much. We cannot possibly accept this.” The King smiled and said back, “I have compensated you what I believe is your worth. Yet, there is more to your reward.” He paused as the crew waited in anticipation. “First, I want to invite you to stay a few days as my guests. I am sure Deke would love to give you a tour of the many places he has gotten himself into trouble.” I greeted my father with a sour glare which he ignored. “You and your crew are entitled to some rest considering your occupation. Also, it will give you a chance to witness the results of the trial. It is my understanding that you knew the Busby’s during the war, Captain?” “Knew of them. Mostly their tendency towards violence.” The King nodded, “How ironic that it will be that tendency which will become their undoing.” He paused. “Secondly, as you have graciously in effect saved my son from harm, I am granting you Royal Immunity.” Before the look of shock set in their faces, my father quickly added, “Now, before you assume, let me explain. This Immunity cannot go on record.” “On record?” asked a confused Kaylee “No. Because of your unconventional...how do I say...acquaintances...the Royal Court cannot have any dealings in such nefarious matters. Please, do not take offense.” Zoe spat out, “None taken. Is it my understanding that everything we have done in the past three days did not go on the record as well?” The King answered, “That is correct. Nothing on record exists.” I remember snickering to myself then as I now listen to my files. The King went on. “As far as my Court is concerned, Prince Dekterius was contained at a secure location off world for his safety until the trial.” I then had to interject, “What about them rescuing me? You can’t deny them that honor.” “This is true, son. I cannot. And you cannot as well. My aides here would be the only others who can know. Unfortunately, this is how it will have to be. If word leaks out that I had hired a rouge crew anonymously to hide my own son when I didn’t trust my own Army to do so, it would ruin my Court and my reign. Technically, I broke Royal law by merely allowing a witness of an upcoming trial to be off planet without the knowledge of the Court.” I cried, “So, who is going to get the credit for rescuing me?” Zoe answered before the King had a chance. “I suspect it would be his own guards already on Boros.” Without officially agreeing, the King said, “You do know it is for the best.” “We understand,” Mal said. “It’s not like we need more fame. That’ll just bring the Alliance more attention to us.” The King then said, “I may be of help there, as well. Remember, I did grant you Royal Immunity. Through my influence over what’s left of Parliament and the Alliance these days, I will be keeping abreast of your actions over the coming years.” Jayne interrupted right then and questioned, “Why will you be keeping a breast for?” The snickers were quiet but evident. Inara had to explain the word slowly to the man. With a small smile of his own that I hadn’t seen in a while, the King continued, “As I was saying, if you ever are compromised by any member of Alliance, official or otherwise, I will evoke the Royal Immunity clause unofficially and you would be free thereafter. If this happens greatly over a period of time, I am sure even Parliament will lose interest in you. Soon, they will know who is keeping an eye on you. Although, with your cunning you showed in the past days, I would imagine the number of times you are compromised would not be great.” Jayne said aloud, “Wow. Loads of money and freedom. We must have done something good in a past life.” The King neared Jayne and said, “Do not think of what you do in terms of good or bad, son. Only have the belief that what you are doing is merely a form of being.” “Excellently put, Your Majesty,” Inara nodded. The King started again. “There is another proposition I wish to offer you. This will be your choice to accept as it is not required. Being that your crew has a knack for completing the most difficult of tasks one way or another, I may have a need for such a crew for my most delicate of tasks. Those that would be deemed unofficial. Would I have your acceptance if I call upon you for such a task in the future?” “We would be honored, Your Majesty,” Inara answered for the crew. “Please, while this is all under the table, you may call me Phillip.” Even I was surprised at this from my dad. He allowed no one to call him by his forename. Not even I got to call him Phillip. Just father or dad. King on those many times I got myself in a sham. The crew was honored and soon after they each gathered various items from their quarters in the ship and were introduced to their suites inside the palace. I tagged along to greet each of them in their quarters. Kaylee and Simon took a room together, naturally. Everyone else each had their own. The trial came and I testified. The evidence from the memory slide were of the plans to thwart my father’s reign and replace the throne with Gus himself. The defense that was appointed to Gus and Delphi tried to say that I was under duress after I practiced for so long at bracketball previous to when I entered the locker room. They claimed that I could not identify Gus at such a distance. That defense didn’t go far. They were convicted in no time. They were both sent separately to Dyton Colony for the rest of their natural lives. Now, I don’t know if you thought of this yet, but I’ll address it. Yes, I did have the audio files with the conversations of Delphi admitting to Gus’s murder of Oscar. At the time, I didn’t want them known. Over the years, I had asked Court Officials about the scenario in court about personal recordings used as evidence. They had told me that they wouldn’t have been admissible because it was only myself who had knowledge of the recordings. The people were recorded under false pretenses. The only way they could be used in Court was if the recordings were disclosed beforehand to the subject. As it was, they wouldn’t have mattered. After the trial was over, the crew of Serenity took the time off and stayed on Londinum for three days. I played tour guide for them to various places of interest. I took them to the areas where I played my pranks I got famously in trouble for, as well as telling them the stories behind them. They came to my bracketball practice in which I showed off my talents for kicking penalty shots a mere thirty-five feet. Kaylee and Simon took off for a few hours to Quantum Beach. Inara actually expanded her client list while here. Kaylee was overjoyed at helping our mechanics supply much needed upgrades to Serenity’s systems. This included, I was told later, a compression coil that may have been the very first one that was installed on the Firefly when it rolled out off the assembly line. Mal and Jayne went to Homestead Stable where they rode our fine horses. While Kaylee was busy with our mechanics, Simon made himself useful meeting with our medical staff at St. Catherine’s Hospital. He was very gifted, I was told, and gave our doctors some good advice. River did whatever struck her fancy. She was a creature who could adapt so well in any environment. While we were all having lunch together on the second day in a bistro, a band was playing upbeat music nearby and River got up and danced rather well to it. And Zoe did pretty much what she did while I was on the Firefly. She kept to herself, barely getting out of her room or out of Serenity. The King wanted to invite them to his box seat for the Opera on their last night. Of course, Jayne backed out as he spent that night in one of the lounge bars in New Angeles. I had wanted to do something that I had wanted to do since I came back to Londinum. I asked Tasia to go to the Opera with us. It wasn’t easy. She flirted with me a little because she did admit she wished I would ask her out sometime. She agreed to go, I was relieved, and we had a grand time. The morning that they were to depart, I helped them pack and say my goodbyes. I was allowed up the stairs past the kitchen so I could carry Kaylee and Simon’s things to their cabin on the first floor. When Simon and Kaylee left, I took a peek further up to see the cockpit. Seeing that there was no one present at that moment, I snuck up the small staircase to the front of the ship. Inside I saw Zoe doing something that was quite out of character. She was seated in the right pilot’s chair as I slowly approached her and made my presence known. I asked her if she was all right. “What? Yes, I’m fine. What are you doing up here?” “Curious, as usual. What are you doing playing with toy dinosaurs?” She smiled herself as she placed the toys on the edge of the pilot’s console. “These are special to me.” I took her tone in and said back, “Those were your husband’s. Wash.” “You know about him?” “Inara told me. Not much, though.” I hesitated before I asked, “What was he like?” She brightened with a certain amount of pride, “He was...full of life.” “And humor if he played with toy dinos.” She laughed, “That he did. A fun sense of humor.” She then stopped smiling to go back to her monotone voice, “But, that’s past. He’s gone now.” I told her, “No...he’s not.” She looked at me with a little shock and asked, “What?” “He’s in here. In this cockpit. And more importantly,” I raised my arm to point at the middle of her chest, “he’s inside there. And that is very much your future.” She tried hiding it, but a tear did escape. She then asked, “When did you become all philosophical?” “When my friend, Oscar, died.” “You’re only fifteen.” “I’ve grown up a lot in the past week,” I simply stated before I left her alone. Once they were set to leave, they greeted me one by one at the foot of the ramp. Jayne just told me, “You are such a character, little Prince.” He gave me a soft shove and turned away up the ramp. “Hey, that sounded like an insult,” I warned from behind him. Inara overheard and she explained, “No, Deke, that is the closest Jayne gets to making a compliment. You should feel honored.” She gave me a hug much to my enjoyment and she said her farewells and be carefuls to me. She told me to try to stay out of trouble. I told her I couldn’t promise anything. Kaylee also gave me a bear hug and Simon gave me a handshake. He added, “If you ever do have food poisoning, don’t call me.” River came up to me in her usual graceful manner. I had no clue as to what she was to say to me. She then quoted, “‘Be of good comfort, Prince, for you are born’” I smirked and quoted back, “‘O, farewell, honest soldier’” Mal was the last to enter the ramp and greet me. “You had enough adventures yet?” “Not nearly enough. But, boy do I have some stories to tell my friends.” Mal then said casually, “Well, with that ring of yours you can quote us verbatim.” The shock in me made my jaw seem to fall to the ground. Mal then added, “I had a variation of the toy as a kid on Shadow. Made my mother nuts hearing her voice back at her.” He slapped me softly on the shoulder. “You behave now. Maybe we’ll see you again.” Which I didn’t until the wedding. Oh, whoops....getting ahead of myself. No, this was definitely not the last adventure I had with Serenity’s crew. Merely the first. All unofficial and off the record, of course. Until now. Those adventures will be saved for future entries. Now, I must accompany my wife, Queen Tasia, and help her with my newborn son. Prince Hoban Oliver Augustus IV. Until next entry, toodles. KING D. AUGUSTUS III - BEGIN LOG ENTRY : 10 July 2528: 24:30