EPISODE 160

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ARTHUR : 

Mordred, can we talk? 

MORDRED : 

You’ve got some nerve, to come all the way here. 

ARTHUR : 

…So I have.

Restraint does not a king make.

MORDRED : 

Have you come to convince me to make peace?

ARTHUR : 

Would you accept it?

( Heh. ) I see.

You’re young, and full of resentment towards me.

Even if I were to beg you on my knees, I doubt you’d listen to me.

MORDRED : 

How do you know?

Beg. 

ARTHUR : 

[ stands ]

You’re not foolish enough to believe your grievances,

or presenting yourself as my opponent in politics,

will make you a competent king.

I too had ideals, when I first inherited the crown.

Most of all, I wanted to unite Britain, as all its kingdoms were constantly at war with one another,

and many a people could not afford to live with dignity.

Do you know what my first measure as king was?

To foil assassinations.

You’re a bastard’s bastard, Mordred.

You have no more right to the throne than anyone else.

Do you sincerely believe Uriens, or Claudin of the Saxons, are loyal to you?

MORDRED : 

Surely they would be convinced

if I were to take the crown right here, right now. 

If I give them what you’ve always refused them,

lands,

or the Round Table’s acknowledgment, they have no reason to betray me. 

ARTHUR : 

And what will you do with those whose lands you’ll take?

Those lands, that the Germanic usurped with bloodshed,

are not theirs by right.

I made my choice as king, to put my own people first

rather than give ground to an enemy who has done nothing but conquer.

MORDRED : 

And you were wrong.

To ally with them would have made the Round Table stronger.

ARTHUR : 

…

[ sighs ]

The Round Table is not a symbol of strength.

It represents the people’s will

to build their future on peace, unity and justice.

What I defend is an ideal of prosperity. Only by sharing one’s power

can one bridge the gap between the highborn and the have-nots.

I…

…spent too much time trying to protect that symbol

rather than seeing it as the tool it is.

For lack of wisdom, I made mistakes,

and lost sight of that ideal as I clung to what I had built.

For that, Mordred, and for all that I put you through…

…I beg your forgiveness. 

MORDRED : 

…

I won’t grant it. 

You hide behind your ideals, your past,

but you’ve never been held accountable for your “mistakes”. 

…And you think an apology will be enough?

You won’t be able to avoid this battle,

and I will sit on Camelot’s throne by week’s end. 

Sir Lancelot? 

Escort Sir Arthur out of the camp.

And make sure he makes it out safely.

It’d be a shame if he were to miss tomorrow’s battle.

ARTHUR : 

For what it’s worth…

You were right.

( Heh. ) I keep making the same mistakes.

LANCELOT : 

…

[ sighs ]

Go back to your own camp, Arthur.

ARTHUR : 

I hope not to meet you on the field.

?? : 

I have something very important to ask of you…

…Arthur. 

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