King Lucifer

          Some of them loved him, some of them hated him, as for myself, I didn't trust him. Of course, as a rule I don't trust royalty. My motto is, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. My family instilled this in me. You see, we are farmers. We work the land, and care for our livestock. Simple and honest work. We don't like to impose our will on others and we don't like them to impose their will on us. Simply put, we mind our own business as best we can. At the end of the day, we bow our heads and give thanks to the Lord Almighty for all that we have.  

          When King Lucifer claimed the throne many of those around us gave a sigh of relief. He promised he'd redistribute the wealth so that none of us commoners would ever go hungry. He also promised to build a great wall around our kingdom so as to keep our enemies out. 

True to his word, a great wall was built around our kingdom. Many of our friends were joyful and claimed they felt a sense of peace knowing our enemies would be kept out. All I could think was, "Do they ever question why we have enemies to begin with?"My father would privately lament that it was because so many of the previous kings had sent soldiers into foreign lands to plunder their resources for many prior years.

         As far as the wealth redistribution, this also came true. However, it was mainly us farmers, and our skilled friends who were forced to distribute our goods to the King, his soldiers, and their families. Many of the young men of our village proudly signed up to be King Lucifer's soldiers. It meant 3 meals a day without having to work in the fields.

          As King Lucifer's army and wall grew, so did our kingdom's enemies. Soon the enemies weren't just outside of our walls, but inside as well. Of course it didn't take much to become an enemy of King Lucifer's. If you were a soldier and refused to fight in battle, you were an enemy. If you didn't give at least half of your produce, livestock, or goods, to the royal crown, you were an enemy. If you criticized King Lucifer, his kingdom, or army in any way, you were an enemy. We quit saying prayers aloud, as King Lucifer felt that God didn't deserve thanks for keeping us safe and alive, but rather he. If we didn't bow in his presence, it meant imprisonment. Our prison became so full that soon they began public hangings on a daily basis. People began trying to escape, but with the heavily guarded wall in place, it was futile.