The Dandelion Knight [Kingston's Death Post]

Once upon a time, there was a boy born from a far away land. This boy had always carried a single dream on his heart. He wanted to be free. Freer than the sky and the stars themselves; he wanted to be free enough to see beyond the world in front of him. A dream he carried with him close to his chest, almost unbearably close to his actual heart. The boy would work day in and day out. Around the clock, he would keep his mind forever working. He did not want to miss an opportunity to be free. To drift with the wind until the surface of the planet grew calm.

The boy lived a kind life. He helped people who needed help. The boy would show other boys and girls his ideas, his mind always seeming to run with creative ideas. Sparks settling in eyes, a story behind every word he spoke. The boy helped the community. Days spent repairing old buildings, cleaning up messes of others, and doing the things no one else thought about. The people of this far away land saw him as he was. A boy with a golden heart. The far away land always gave back to him. Everyone smiled at him. The world was brighter with the boy in it.

One day, the boy rose at the earliest dawn. A day where the sun barely touched the edge of the horizon and the morning dew had frosted over. The boy would sit up on his rooftop with a smile. The world was quiet there. Nothing terrible could happen as long as he sat up there on that rooftop. The sun rising ever so slightly. A story on his tongue as he lets his words fly, slow and steady to the surrounding town. No one bothered the boy. People would only listen if they caught him up there. To them, the boy was free there. To them, the boy was a knight, a hero, and a brother.

Only that peace never lasted; for every story there comes a hardship. The Kingdom called for him; a problem had occurred far beyond their scope. They demanded for the boy to come. The three gods would take him away in the morning. Their words splitting between the corners of the kingdom as he sleeps.

"He's not worthy enough to be a knight"

"He's brave to sleep in front of us."

"He's got courage."

The three of them talk and talk and talk. The boy sleeps. An eerie dream of a kingdom lost in stone. It's in the midst of the journey where he wakes; the voices of the gods in front of him. The boy raises himself higher. He frowns at their words. Courageous as he is, he was just as scared of the world as anyone else. If they needed a night, the boy could be one. With a flourish of words, he stands taller. His voice ever so heavy as he speaks.

"A knight is what I will be! I may not be worthy, but I care about people. Let me help the people."

The gods leave him there. In a kingdom of stone, people litter the place as far as he can see. A tale of love shattered by the faults of progress. The boy looks saddened as he passes each solemn face in stone. There's no end to the village of people. Even as he moves, there is hesitation in his step. Fear bubbling at the bottom of his stomach, but the boy always had been brave. For others, he would always be brave.

"You aren't supposed to be here."

A knight made of stone speaks; grief stricken against the stone helmet as if the boy could see the emotions hidden under the surface. The knight moves with a blade; weapon held out as the boy jumps back in surprise. A fight breaks out. A knight against a boy. The boy can only pull free an axe from a stump. The knight strikes and all the boy can do is block the strikes. After the fourth strike, the stone knight cuts the boy's cheek. Exhaustion in the knight's form, the boy sees his opening, but stops.

Is this what a knight would do?

No. He thinks. A knight would help those in trouble. Instead, the boy takes the opportunity to reach out. Arms splayed against stone as he holds on tight. A hug for a broken knight. The curse of a land far away in the boy's mind; he does the only thing he knew how to do. He loved. He loved as hard as he could. Squeezing the knight, he hoped the other would understand. He hoped the knight would understand then feeling underneath his arms. The fluttering of his heart as he could see someone broken. Someone broken and still able to be helped.

Instead, the knight drops his blade. A soft sob escapes, until there is nothing left, but stone and dandelions. Slowly, the dandelions fly as the seeds escape to the air. Free. Those seeds were the freest thing in this world. Able to drift along the sky, no one to stop their descent. A smile on his lips as he pulls away from the knight. The stone knight having turned fully to stone. The boy walks away; axe in hand. He moves with a single promise.

"I'll save you. Just like the rest."

Later that day, the boy would find a tower. A single tower where a wizard's study would lay abandoned and alone. Notes scattered across the wind; he would go up there and smile. There was life in these halls. A life spent with focus and care. A life spent with love. The boy could see it in the writings. All he could do was search the place for answers. In the end, he found the cure to the curse. The stone would wither away when he finds everything he needs.

The first stop was a field of flowers; a place of beauty. Dandelion seeds drift around him; almost dancing with the wind. The sight was a beautiful one where he watches the flowers sing praises. His eyes brighten at the sight.

"What a beautiful place."

Except, the scene flickers. Flowers standing tall with colors and dandelions fluttering in the wind start to droop. Red coats them all. Crimson hangs and hangs until it drenches the ground. The boy shivers at the sight, fear filling his eyes. A queen with bright hair and heavy words that he can't hear echo around him. Another boy who's got the same eyes at him stares back at him. The boy can see the mess of blood, of decay. It's intense. It's horrifying.

It's gone.

All that's left is a field of flowers before him. Shaking out the sight, the boy smiles as he begins to pick the dandelions. Gently twirling the stem between his fingers, he blows the seeds away. A wish as his mother would say. The boy makes a wish. A single wish to the gods that sent him here.

"I want everyone to be free like the dandelions you've left me here with."

Somewhere, a breeze blows.

The boy's eyes follow the breeze until it lands on his chest. Blood coats his blouse. There's pain fluttering through his chest. He feels the pain burning and burning. A cry echoes from his throat as he stares at the queen and the other knight there. A dandelion in his fingers; the wind blowing the seeds away.

Kingston Césaire knew he was going to die.

Every idea in his mind couldn't stop that.

Everything goes silent.

I want everyone to be free like the dandelions...

---

Once upon a time, there was a knight that didn't belong to any kingdom. The knight stood tall with a shield rising to cover his entire body. People were afraid of him; he was intimidating at first in all of the armor and the axe he carried around. On the shield, a beautiful dandelion flutters with the seeds blowing away as if a child were making a wish. The knight would spend days wandering the land, helping those who needed help.

Free to help those who needed it. The knight felt at peace. Truly, he felt free.

"I, Kingston Césaire, will always serve those who need my help."

The breeze blows, dandelions dance.

"For I am the Dandelion Knight and I go where the wind blows."