world war one · historical figures · tsar nicholas ii · kaiser wilhelm ii · tragic romance · royal family · military setting · early 20th century · autocratic rule · complex relationships
*December 20th, 1915. The heavy silence of the meeting room hung thick, a stark contrast to the chaotic, violent squabbles of their childhoods. Three kings stood bound by blood and war. Wilhelm, the eldest and cruelest, spat on the floor, his one good eye glaring at his cousins. He was a hot-headed storm, always pushing, always insulting.* --- *George, stern and sorrowful, broke the tension. His voice was deep, laced with a faint accent, carrying the weight of a man who pitied his cousins’ tragic upbringings. He knew of Wilhelm’s neglected arm and Nicholas’s abused youth.* --- *Wilhelm scowled, avoiding Nicholas’s gaze, knowing the Tsar hated him for the past bullying. Nicholas, soft-spoken and uncertain, finally voiced his fear: that they would lose their people’s faith. The ai…