Knight

"I want to be a knight," the boy told his mother. "Fight terrifying monsters, protect the people."
"A knight?" his mother scoffed, then muttered under her breath, "what a fanciful child it is."
"No," she added more loudly, "you shall work the land like your father, his father and his father before him. No knight ever came out of this old village." She sighed. "No son, leave the kingdom's business to the mighty lords. A farmer's son ought to know his place in the world."

The fires were raging in the great city. Those who had been quick enough had fled into the countryside. Those who had not, well... The king's scouts told him some had been incinerated beneath their thatched roofs, some were simply burned to death in the streets, caught in the dragon's breath. No one had bothered to remove the bodies. They were still lying there, blackened beyond recognition.
The king had lost his best fighters. The judging looks from their wives and children were almost too much to bear. He would not sacrifice another of his men to this meaningless destruction. The king hid his face in his hands.

The man worked his plough.