Father, I can beat him, he'd said, and
he'd ridden out and returned to a hero's
welcome, to have his armour stripped by
servants, to have his father greet him
with pride. He remembered that night,
all those nights, the galvanising power of
his father's expansionist victories, the
approbation, as success flowed from
success. He had not thought about the
way it had played out on the other side
of the field. When this game began, I
was younger.

Author: C.S. Pacat