a tale of the fair
an excerpt

Bravo he cried that is the most magnificent poem I have ever heard, come you must come closer and let me see you and hear some more of your wonderful singing. We approached him watched intently by his guards who had one eye on my sword which I removed and placed behind my back where most people would be unable to draw it, but where a steward could easily draw it if required. At this I noticed one of the princes advisors draw in a breath as he recognized the way I held my sword. I stepped back to allow sarina of the fair to go forward as she asked the prince about the city of carkon and how he had come up with the idea to build a city to rival the city itself. He smiled and said that beautiful women like her should not bother with affairs of state and that she should sing some more of her poems, to which she sang a song of the fair, and of the fall of elithium. He looked annoyed at this and shouted that the time of the fair was over and that the were the subject of fables and rumours only and that he would prove it by creating a city to rival the city that the fair had created, and that the greatest minds in the world would sing his praises rather than those of the fair. And that he would defy the fair with the last breath in the city of carkon. Sarina of the fair just smiled and asked if he would say that to their face, and he repeated that he was not afraid of them and sarina of the fair walked away from him and stood in front of them. She smiled as she said my name is sarina of the fair and I have come to carkon to judge it.
With a gesture all the guards and advisors fell asleep, she smiled and announced that there would be three witnesses from each side to her decision, on her side me and the two citizens and on the side of the prince one of his advisors of his choice and two of the guards of his choice. He gestured at two of the strongest guards and they woke up and I disarmed them placing both their and my weapons in a heap on the floor, he gestured again and the advisor he had chosen, the same one that had recognized me too late as a steward of the fair awoke. And ten sarina of the fair told the prince that he must tell his side of the story and that he must not lie if he wanted the judgment to be correct.
Carkon should have been the greatest of cities he said, but it was always a second best to the city, second best in culture, second best in style, second best in people, second best in everything it did not deserve to be for what was the city, a dead place of dead people, while carkon was full of life and deserved to be praised, so I asked the greatest artisans in the world to come praise my city, and they came, they came to show my city and the world what it could be, to praise it to the sky, but with them came the others, the ones with no talent who came to take the money and praise of carkon and give nothing back, they got in the way and provided nothing in return so they were asked to leave, some didn’t and I had to make them you understand they had to go and their was peace and joy in the city, for such a short while, and the people were glad, but they were not all worthy of living in a city such as carkon was becoming, the beggars and the thieves ruining the sight of carkon, I had to hide them away, just while carkon was being rebuilt in its greatness, and then the ones who complained about the things I had done for them they had to be made to understand that it was for tem that I was doing these things, and that if I let them stay in carkon they would do nothing but disturb the others so I had to let them go away you see, it was all for the inhabitants of carkon, none of it was for me it was al for them but surely the unicorn has told you all this I know he was sneaking away to talk to someone in carkon but my guards could not find out who, surely he has told you of what I did for my people, it was for my people you see. Yes, said sarina of the fair he has told me of what you did for the people. Then you know, he continued you know that the people would have praised me in the future, when they saw what I had done to the city of carkon. I have made it a monument to art, I have made it a monument to the greatness of my vision. Is there any statues of you my dear fair, is there anyone who will remember you in the long ages to come when all the memories of this age are dust, but my city will remain, carkon will live forever. And you have come to judge me, what right to the fair have to judge this city and this world, you are just the stuff of the stories that you tell yourselves at night, what are stories next to my greatness and my city. We will live forever while stories are forgotten and nothing of the fair can stop that.
All the while the witnesses just stood and listened as the prince talked about what he had done. They could not believe that he had said all this as his justification in front of sarina of the fair. She asked if all of the witnesses were satisfied that the prince had been allowed his chance to reply, and she asked him if he would have done anything different. He replied that he had done everything as he wanted it done, and that the people were satisfied in what he had done. And she shoed him what he people thought of what he had done, she showed him and the witnesses how the people lived, in fear, and showed them the empty houses, and the people in their cages as they sat away from those areas the artisans could see. She showed them the city as it was, not as how it had been designed to be, she asked the citizens to tell of the city and of how a city of artisans should be and she asked the guards to tell of their jobs in carkon, to tell of how they dealt with the people of carkon. She asked the advisor to talk of what he had seen of the princes orders and of what he had been advised and of what he had told the advisors to do. She asked me to tell of the world and of what the people in it felt about carkon, I told of the elves and their guard to prepare for the decision of the fair, and of their certainty of what it would be. And then she returned us all to the entrance chamber to await the verdict of the fair.
And this was her verdict and her words.
You say you did it all for the people but have you ever met the people, or lived like them, or even considered them as people rather than just people who obey and worship you. How many of your people can you name, can you name the guards you have chosen as your witnesses, or did you just choose them as the most likely to beat us. Do you believe that you are better than the fair because you are a prince, there are those better than us but they are not of your kind and shall never be of your kind. I came hear to make a decision based on rumors, rumours that you wished your city to be greater than the city, you asked me through my stewards if the fair would accept your city as the one tat would succeed the city, and why I replied maybe you punished your city for requiring a choice to be made. When I replied maybe there was still a chance for your city to live under your rule and you had a chance to create a city to rival the city in our esteem, but you chose otherwise. You chose the path of yourself and your power, you chose to create a monument to your own vanity rather than a monument to the city of carkon and the world. It was your choice and your pleasure, it was not the choice of the city of carkon or its people, what choice did they have in your plans, and what choice do the fair have now. For the fair are well named we of the fair never make a decision without witnesses, and an option of release. I came here to see for myself what the truth of the matter was and make my decision on that, I could have chosen the city of carkon to rule for a thousand years and none could have vouchsafed me the right to do so, I could destroy the city of carkon so none could live here for a thousand years and none could have vouchsafed me. I saw the people that you have rejected in your wish to make a city for the people to enjoy in the world. And what city have you made for them, a city where the artisans of the world can enjoy themselves and the pleasures of their skills, but also one where the people of carkon who you were born to rule in the name of cower in fear at your works. Where are the staqtues commemorating the world outside the tower, where is the galleries displaying the creativity of the greatest of the artisans that you gathered to praise the city of carkon, buried beneath the ashes of your dreams in the designs of your souls to live forever, as no man or being can ever hope to live for forever is denied even to the fair but lies only in the dreams of the world and the world itself. You claim you wished for carkon to be praised to the sky but forced the praisers to hide in the dirt. What did you think the world would think of you, did you believe that the world would praise you for what you have done, would they praise you for the endless portraits and statues to yourself that you had created for the people to enjoy. Did you remember what carkon was like, a city of joy and love where the people were happy and praised you for making them happy and feel ashamed of their happiness, did you believe that they wished for this to happen, that they wished that their lives would be replaced by the lives of those who lived only to reflect the greatness of your ideas and the smallness of your soul. Are you pleased with your works that the mighty and the fair might look upon them and despair, but despair not of themselves and their works but despair of your works and what might have been. Do you look at the crops and the farms that have lived in the families of your peole for longer than your family has ruled carkon, but now lie in ruins at the hands not of those who would give joy for the life they lead but at those who give joy at your love but never in their hearts, for they would rather see their crops lie fallow than allow your worshippers to partake of the grain of carkon. And you never knew, one look in the eyes of those you put in charge and you would have known of your mistakes but you never looked at their hearts or their eyes, you never looked at anything outside the tower, but the fair did, and we have come to judge. We saw those you did not and heard those you would not, we saw what you had created and heard what you wished to create. These artisans you called to praise you were never here to praise you but here to praise their work and their joy in their work, but you turned their work into one of joylessness and despair. Have you ever walked the streets of carkon and seen the artisans dance and drink to themselves and their master, but never to the prince in his tower, for their master is art and creation. And in the dark the people who should have praised you as their master hide in themselves. And the guards that you think will protect you, they will not. When you are gone they will leave, a little richer, a little more regrets maybe, but they will leave. And all that will be left will be ashes in the dust of the streets where once a proud and joyful people ran. And that is what you have created with you idea to rise above the fair, nothing but vanity and tears. And despair and now you wait to hear our verdict, and you are afraid, for all your words that is what you are afraid. As you wait to hear the verdict of the fair what are you thinking, do you regret what you have done, do you wish that you could change anything or everything, but now the decision must be made and I call on the witnesses. I ask you to say if you feel that the decision has been made justly and that the arties have been heard, if you have any objections to the way the decision of the fair was made they must be dealt with before the decision is made.
The citizens of the city agreed that they could see nothing that could have been made fairer, I agreed that the decision would be just and that all the information had been given, the advisor asked why he should agree to a decision before it was made and sarina of the fair replied that once made the decision could not be revoked and that if the decision went gainst the prince she would expect you to object but if the objection was made before you could not know if the objection would harm or hinder the decision, all you could know was that you knew of nothing that was rejected, of nothing that was hidden never to be told, and that you know have the right of compact to have anything you wish to say heard as part of evidence and considered but if you agree that the evidence has been shown and heard then you must witness the decision and what follows as just. And for this you must be fairly chosen without the choice of the fair but with the choice of those whom the decision will affect. At this the guards looked at themselves and asked if the decision would affect them, sarina of the fair replied that they would not be harmed by anything the fair did and that in this way their choice to agree or object shall never be tainted by fear. At this they relaxed and both agreed that as the knew that the fair were always just and that they could see nothing that they could imagine that could not have been seen they agreed that the decision would be just. And so we all turned to the advisor, who made a speech saying, what is there left to say, there is nothing left to say, I agree that the words spoken by the prince were true, and that if you could read my heart, and I give you permission to do so if you can, then I say that if the prince can say one last thing in his defence then I agree to the decision of the fair. So the witnesses have been heard and I grant you prince of carkon one last opportunity to sway me in my decision, for it shall not be made until you have spoken one last time in this place and court.
At this the prince rose and said: One last time to speak before the fair, one last word in my defence, what is there left to say, you say that no decision will be made until I finish my speech and I believe you for when have the fair ever broken their word in a court such as this. If I said I had not meant it to go this far would it matter as I did nothing to stop it when it did, if I said that the people should have been proud of what I created would it matter as they were not. If I can just say this one thing what I did I truly did for the people of carkon, they deserved to be known throughout the world for themselves, and I truly believed that if the artisans of the world could praise me and the city it would have been the best for them. But I can see that that is not true, I did it not truly for them but I see that I did it for me, and that they would have been better had I never been their prince. It was to praise me that I ordered the artisans to do and not to praise carkon. I take full blame and if there is one last thing I can do for my people it is this I request that all the blame and curse of the fair be given to me, and that my people be spared. They have done nothing wrong they deserve nothing but my sorrow at what I have done, if the city must die then let my people live, this alone I ask of you let not my curse and my city be told of, let not my folly be remembered as the last tale of carkon, let the tales of carkon be ones of joy not despair for I see now that it had what I wanted for carkon all along and that it was there all along. I am sorry to the fair for not understanding their message and see now that you could have decided in my favour at the beginning and it was my vanity and fear that changed the city of carkon from one I ruled to one that ruled me in its fear and despair. I throw myself on the mercy of the fair.
There was a pause for a short while and sarina of the fair asked once more if the decision that would now be taken was taken fairly and was just. To which all the witnesses now agreed.
And sarina of the fair now moved away to think in her mind as to what the final decision of the fair about the prince and the people of carkon should be. We al lstood quietly waiting, myself and the guards casually standing at rest, the citizens and the advisor to the prince were more restless but knew more than to say a word, and the prince just sitting and watching everything.
Sarina of the fair moved towards the center of the room and spoke to the prince, your statues are gone, crumbled to the dust that they were, your people are freed from their bonds and can now return to their homes, this I have now done. Eventually they might forget what their prince did to their city. The guards shall wake up soon and know that they are leaving carkon for there is no longer any use for them here. The artisans also will leave for once you are gone there will be no reason for them to stay but unlike the guards I will give them a free choice in the matter, if they wish to stay and provide their gifts to the people of carkon they may. All this is happening as we speak all that remains is to deal with the prince and the government of carkon. You are truly sorry about what you have done so I shall spare your life. You will leave the tower and enter carkon, and you shall live your life as one of the normal people, a trader in small things, and you shall live your entire life without knowing consciously what you have lost.
She then turned to the advisor and told him that he was in charge of the city until its inhabitants could decide who they wanted to rule them. And then she left the room and I followed her. Behind us the guards woke up to see their prince follow us out. The advisor just told them that it was over and it was time to go. Sarina of the fair traveled down to the city squares, as she passed the guards watched her and then turned and slowly left the city as she passed every statue I saw that they were all gone, to be replaced with trees and bushes. The artisans realized that she was of the fair and bowed their knees to her, as she walked to the warehouses where the disappeared were kept, as she walked people left their houses to follow her. When she arrived at the warehouses she waved her hand and the cages were opened and everyone saw their loved ones and friends walk out safe and sound. As she passed the outskirts I noticed that the prince had disappeared and that tulon had appeared at her side. When she stopped at the biggest square in the city, she looked out upon the inhabitants of carkon and announced that the fair had judged the prince of carkon and found him wanting. She announced that the people were free, that they could live their lives as they deserved to live, that the fair would protect them until they could protect themselves. And we left carkon.
We traveled across the fields and watched them grow stronger and saw the real farmers glow with pride as they felt the power of the fair, those whose farms were merely given by the prince simply left with all the rest. We only stopped when we reached the camp of the elves and there we rested.
Jackina was the first person who tried to ask us what had happened and the citizens explained as much as they had understood. I talked to the elves myself and told them that the prince was finished and carkon was returned to itself. Sarina of the fair asked the elves to enter carkon the next day and help it’s inhabitants to deal with what had happened to them. Sarina of the fair rested in the camp of the elves for the next few days as even for one of the fair what she had done needed time to recover. I rested also as I always do when one of my journeys with the fair are over. Even though the fair are the most powerful people in the world they only use their power as a last resort and I always have to be prepared to fight even though I never have to. A stewards task is sometimes an easy one but it is always dangerous to assume that it will always be so easy, when the fair are not around we have to fight anything or anyone that the fair ask us to.
For the next day the elves prepared to leave and we sat in our houses in the camp and did nothing but sleep, until it was time to start the journey to return the citizens to the city. Jackina had decided to travel back to the city with us and try to help her kin in the city make contact with their far kin. One of the elves agreed to travel back to the city and help them adjust to their kin in the world. And so we prepared to travel a reverse route back to where the story began weeks ago and left the elves as they entered the city of carkon to help the people. Sarina of the fair seemed more distant as she talked to the elves for the last time and said her goodbyes. I had seen the fair this way before and it was always after they had had to use their powers in such a definitive way. I knew that she would soon recover by the time she arrived back in the city. I made ready to protect sarina of the fair from anything that might happen now that all the guards had left carkon but I did not really expect much of a problem, they would be too dazed to understand what had happened and for the most part would simply be heading to other cities to obtain work. Te seven of us, as we now include the elf carina of the kin of gador and tulon, relaxed as we went for a quiet and peaceful walk.