Mercifully.
"All hail the king," Entreri said when the door of his cell opened and Gareth Dragonsbane unexpectedly walked in. The king turned to the guard and motioned for him to move away.
The man hesitated, looked hard at the dangerous assassin, but Gareth was the king and he could not question him.
"You will forgive me if I do not kneel," Entreri said.
"I did not ask you to do so."
"But your monk could make me, I suppose. A word from his mouth and my muscles betray me, yes?"
"Master Kane could have killed you, legally and without inquiry, and yet he did not. For that you should be grateful."
"Saved for the spectacle of the gallows, no doubt."
Gareth didn't answer.
"Why have you come here?" Entreri asked. "To taunt me?" He paused and studied Gareth's face for a moment, and a smile spread upon his own. "No," he said. "I know why you have come. You fear me."
Gareth didn't answer.
"You fear me because you see the truth in me, don't you, King of Damara?" Entreri laughed and paced his cell, a knowing grin splayed across his face, and Gareth followed his every step warily, with eyes that reflected a deep and pervading turmoil.
"Because you know I was right," Entreri continued. "In your audience chamber, when the others grew outraged, you did not. You could not, because my words echoed not just in your ears but in your heart. Your claim is no stronger than was my own."
"I did not say that, nor do I agree."
"Some things need not be spoken. You know the truth of it as well as I do—I wonder how many kings or pashas or lords know it. I wonder how many could admit it."
"You presume much, King Artemis."
"Don't call me that."
"I did not bestow the title."
"Nor did I. Nor does it suit me. Nor would I want it."
"Are you bargaining?"
Entreri scoffed at him. "I assure you, paladin king, that if I had a sword in hand, I would willingly cut out your heart, here and now. If you expect me to beg, then look elsewhere. The fool monk can bring me to my knees, but if I am not there of my own choosing, then calling it begging would ring as hollow as does your crown, yes?"
"As I said, you presume much. Too much."
"Do I? Then why are you here?"
Gareth's eyes flared with anger, but he said nothing.
"An accident of birth?" Entreri asked. "Had I been born to your mother, would I then be the rightful king? Would your mighty friends rally to my side as they do yours? Would the monk exercise his powers over an enemy of mine at my bidding?"
"It is far more complicated than that."
"Is it?"
"Blood is not enough. Deed—"
"I killed the dracolich, have you forgotten?"
"And all the deeds along your road led you to this point?" Gareth asked, a sharp edge creeping into his voice. "You have lived a life worthy of the throne?"
"I survived, and in a place you could not know," Entreri growled back at him. "How easy for the son of a lord to proclaim the goodness of his road! I am certain that your trials were grand, heir of Dragonsbane. Oh, but the bards could fill a month of merrymaking with the tales of thee."
"Enough," Gareth bade him. "You know nothing."
"I know that you are here. And I know why you are here."
"Indeed?" came the doubtful reply.
"To learn more of me. To study me. Because you must find the differences between us. You must convince yourself that we are not alike."
"Do you believe that we are?"
The incredulity did not impress Entreri. "In more ways than his majesty wishes to admit," he said. "So you come here to learn more in the hope that you will discern where our paths and characters diverge. Because if you cannot find that place, Gareth, then your worst fears are realized."
"And those would be?"
"Rightful. The rightful king. An odd phrase, that, don't you agree? What does it mean to be the rightful king, Gareth Dragonsbane? Does it mean that you are the strongest? The most holy? Does your god Ilmater anoint you?"
"I am the descendant of the former king, long before Damara was split by war."
"And if I had been born to your parents?"
Gareth shook his head. "It could not have been so. I am the product of their loins, of their breeding and of my heritage."
"So it is not just circumstance? There is meaning in bloodlines, you say?"
"Yes."
"You have to believe that, don't you? For the sake of your own sanity. You are king because your father was king?"
"He was a baron, at a time when Damara had no king. The kingdom was not unified until joined in common cause against Zhengyi."
"And that is where, by deed, Gareth rose above the other barons and dukes and their children?"
Gareth's look showed Entreri that he knew he was being mocked, or at least, that he suspected as much.
"A wonderful nexus of circumstance and heritage," Entreri said. "I am truly touched."
"Should I give you your sword and slay you in combat to rightly claim Vaasa?" Gareth asked, and Entreri smiled at every word.
"And if I should slay you?"
"My god would not allow it."
"You have to believe that, don't you? But humor me, I pray you. Let us say that we did battle, and I emerged the victor. By your reasoning, I would thus become the rightful King of Vaa—oh, wait. I see now. That would not serve, since I haven't the proper bloodline. What a cunning system you have there. You and all the other self-proclaimed royalty of Faerûn. By your conditions, you alone are kings and queens and lords and ladies of court. You alone matter, while the peasant grovels and kneels in the mud, and since you are 'rightful' in the eyes of this god or that, then the peasant cannot complain. He must accept his muddy lot in life and revel in his misery, all in the knowledge that he serves the rightful king."
Gareth's jaw tightened, and he ground his teeth as he continued to stare unblinking at Entreri.
"You should have had Kane kill me, back at the castle. Break the mirror, King Gareth. You will fancy yourself prettier in that instance."
Gareth stared at him a short while longer, then moved to the cell door, which was opened by the returned guard. Beside him stood Master Kane, who stared at Entreri.
Entreri saw him and offered an exaggerated bow.
Gareth pushed past the pair and moved along, his hard boots stomping on the stone floor.
"You wish that you had killed me, I expect," Entreri said to Kane. "Of course, you still can. I feel the vibrations of your demonic touch."
"I am not your judge."
"Just my executioner."
Kane bowed and walked off. By the time he caught up to Gareth, the man had departed the dungeons and was nearing his private rooms.
"You heard?" Gareth asked him.
"He is a clever one."
"Is he so wrong?"
"Yes."
The simple answer stopped Gareth and he turned to face the monk.
"In my order, rank is attained through achievement and single combat," Kane explained. "In a kingdom as large as Damara, in a town as large as Bloodstone Village, such a system would invite anarchy and terrible suffering. On that level, it is the way of the orc."
"And so we have bloodlines of royalty?"
"It is one way. But such would be meaningless absent heroic deeds. In the darkest hours of Damara, when Zhengyi ruled, Gareth Dragonsbane stepped forward."
"Many did," said Gareth. "You did."
"I followed King Gareth."
Gareth smiled in gratitude and put a hand on Kane's shoulder.