# The Memoirs of King Louis XIV de Spiceaux
## Spring of 1540 - Rendezvous in the North

Hammering thunder and pitch-dark clouds. His long hair fluttered in the icy winds. Large waves bashed against the hull of the ship, over and over again. The heavy downpour soaked his simple brown overcoat. He had left his flamboyant blue garment in the royal palace in Paris, having rushed towards the harbour in Calais in the evening. Now, standing alone on the deck of the transport ship at midnight, the raging sea storm helped cool his burning thoughts.

"*Betrayal!*"

The word pounded inside his head, over and over again.

"*This is a betrayal of the highest proportion.*"

He looked up into the thundering clouds.

"*That whoreson, orphan, indulging in such perversion!*
*Causing me to cross the nauseous ocean, setting this in motion,*
*I won't pardon his notion, no, i will punish his desertion!*
*Scorching anger, burning emotion; this will be his utmost misfortune!*

Louis XIV took a deep breath and stared at his clenched fist.

"*There is but one option:*
*Execution.*"

Slowly, the storm started to die down and the sky began to clear. He looked ahead. His sharp gaze caught the famous white cliffs of Dover far away in the distance. Soon, he would arrive at his destination.

---

"*Your majesty! Finally haben sie arrived!*"

King Louis was greeted by his vassal, Duke Gustavus Adolfus I, a german noble, who was put upon the Swedish throne by his father Louis XIII.
Gustavus Adolfus led King Louis towards the round table, at which King George I of England, a firm ally of King Louis, was sat. The three of them met in a remote Castle near London to confere in secret. George I greeted King Louis with a quick handshake and began speaking while pouring in a cup of tea for his two guests.

"*To reiterate*", he began his attempt to make sense of the current situation,

"*During the two-pronged attack on the Eastern Alliance, the Germanic princes gave control over one half of the attacking force to the imbecile King of Denmark?*"

"*Of course.*", confirmed King Louis, taking the first sip out of his cup,
"*I don't understand their reasoning or cause, to have someone like him endorsed. From a strategic standpoint, it would make more sense to have me as a leader, but they didn't want me to lead their force. Maybe they think of me as a trojan horse?*"

"*This is the result of terrible planning.*", Gustavus Adolfus continued, "*Soon after the war began, the Eastern Alliance realized that the Danish-French forces were much stronger than the Imperial ones. Therefore, they immediately surrendered to the Danish King, who signed a peace deal shortly after, forcing France to end its war effort as well.*"

King George was confused, "*And then the Danish king proceeded to take their Baltic holdings for himself, instead of furthering the Coalition's cause by removing that bloody wall of fortifications along the Imperial border? How can anyone be **that** greedy?*"

King Louis explained: "*That's why i wanted to meet with the two of you; this is terrible behaviour we can't tolerate or attend to! The Danish King betrayed his allies and everyone he knew -- he doesn't deserve the royal blue, Sacre bleu! I suggest a little Scandinavian rendezvous and split his land in two: Without further ado, it's time to wave little Denmark 'adieu'!*"

"*A great proposition!*", King George exclaimed, "*One half of his land for me, and one for Sweden, i presume?*"

"*Count me in on that plan! The greedy Dane must be punished!*", Gustavus Adolfus said.

"*It's decided!*", King George responded enthusiastically, now giving out wine glasses to his guests, "*Let's have a round tonight! To the three of us!*"

Gustavus Adolfus and King Louis followed, while clinking their glasses: "*Let's have another round tonight!*"

---