Hello everyone Dillon is back with another story. This is a story based on the Character of Gustav in the story Rise of a King. This is a collab with Silvolde (go check out his stories) who helped me write this and will be a major part of this story. So sit back and enjoy Gustav: A Roak Story.

The door opened and Gustavus was hit by a small but fast moving blur.

"Uncle!" The blur squealed before stopping and looking up at the man, revealing a 5 year old boy who was bouncing with excitement.

"Hello there, Gustav" Gustavus replied with a grin, picking up the boy when the door had closed behind him.

Gustav's mother walks in to see her brother-in-law holding her son. Gustavus looked up and smiled at his sister-in-law.

"Hello Cecilia" he greeted.

"Hello Gustavus. I wonder why the king would come visit us commoners."

"Cecilia-" he began but stopped when he noticed her smile.

"It's good to see you"

"Likewise. Clearly, though my nephew has missed me a lot." He paused and his smile disappeared. "As to why I'm here...well...I'm sure you've heard the news?"

"Oh, Gustavus…You don't mean…"

He nodded sadly. "I'm going to fight in the war. Maybe I'll get lucky and the war will end. Then I can come back to see my nephew again."

Gustavus looked down at his nephew, but the boy didn't seem to know what his Uncle and Mother were talking about.

"Where is Carl?" he said, looking away from his nephew and focusing on Cecilia again.

"You know him, off at the tavern with his friends. I swear that man spends more time with the bottle than his own son!" Cecilia shouted.

"Perhaps I could knock some sense into that drunkard," he said with a half-hearted chuckle.

Cecilia shook her head "No, Gustavus. Thank you for offering but I prefer him to be able to work. How is little Christina doing?"

"Oh, she is an angel. Your sister says otherwise but you know how she is. Remember when everyone thought she was a boy?" he said as he chuckled.

"I remember" Cecilia replied in between her own laughs. "Yet you still love her to death."

"Of course, she is my only daughter, how could I not?" Gustavus felt a tug on his beard and looked down at his nephew. The boy looked nothing like his father but hold him up to the king and you would think he had an affair.

"Gustav don't pull on your uncle's beard!" Cecilia yelled, reprimanding the young boy.

"It's fine, he is a young boy, children are curious little things." Gustavus said looking back at Cecilia.

"That he is."

Gustavus looked back down at his nephew "Do you like the toys I sent you?"

"Yes I do uncle. Do you want to see them?" Gustav asked with the brightest smile.

"Of course" replied the king as he put down the 5 year old. Following the child, he entered a room with toy soldiers scattered across the floor. They were made by some of the best blacksmiths in the kingdom, each one of them were unique in some way.

"Look uncle this is you" Gustav said while holding a soldier on a horse.

"It is? What am I doing there?" Gustavus said smiling at the young boy.

"You're leading soldiers into battle. Isn't that what you do?" asked Gustav.

"It's part of what I do, yes" Gustavus replied.

"When I am bigger I want to be a soldier, just like you," Gustav said with determination in his eyes.

"Well if you want to be a soldier you have got to help your mother around the house," Gustavus said while gesturing to Cecilia.

"Yes, speaking of which help bring in some clothes that are done drying."

"Yes mother" Gustav said with a sigh.

Once the boy was outside the two of them began to talk again.

"I don't want him to be a soldier Gustavus, he'll get himself killed," Cecilia said with a hint of anger in her voice.

"You can't stop him, either he'll grow out of it or he'll become one. I understand your worry but he won't be an average soldier."

"What do you mean?" asked Cecilia.

"When he is 15 I can guarantee education for him at Stockholm Military Academy. They'll teach him to become an officer."

"I want the best for him, a career in the army is not it" she responded.

"I want the best for him as well and the army will treat him well. Cecilia think about it, with the money he could make, he would be able to live in the city" Gustavus pleaded.

"Gustav Adolph the Second!" Gustavus winced when she said his full name. "I do not care that you're the king, he is my son, I will not send him to die just because you think it's best for him!"

Gustavus sighed, his sister-in-law was adamant that Gustav wouldn't become a soldier. The king stroked his beard before giving his response.

"Cecilia, please listen to me. I can see it in his eyes, he is destined to be a soldier. But I will tell you this: when he becomes 15, he'll live in the palace with me and Christina. He will learn at the academy until he is 18 from there he can decide if he wants to continue with the career in the army or not. Do we have a deal?" Gustavus held out his hand.

"Fine, I'll let him go to the academy but I want to come to Stockholm with him."

"Deal" Gustavus smiled and shook her hand. "Good, now one more thing-" Gustavus grabbed the scabbard from his side and drew a sword, his best sword.

"This sword will go to him when he comes of age. It was made by the royal blacksmiths so it's a good weapon." He put the blade back in its scabbard and placed on the nearby mantle.

"Isn't that your sword?" Cecilia asked.

"It was my sword."

Gustav came running in with a small basket of clothes. He placed on the floor near his mother and ran over to Gustavus.

"You are strong little one," he said while laughing. "I must be going. We are marching out soon, down the road to be exact if you want to watch us."

"Can we mother, please?" Gustav asked, pleading with the woman.

"Alright, but only until Gustavus goes past us 'cause you and I need to go to town later."

"Yes mother." Gustav sighed.

"Farewell you two, I'll see you in a bit."

30 Minutes later…

A crowd had begun to gather alongside the road, the families of those soldier waiting for their sons, brothers, fathers, uncles, and cousins to march by. Gustav and his mother were standing alongside a fence waiting for the army. Their ears were filled with the sound of drums beating, soon their eyes met those of the soldiers marching past.

"Give the Catholics hell!"

"Rid this world of these heretics!"

"Build us an empire!"

These were the cries of the people as the men of Sweden marched past. The war had entered its eleventh year and showed no sign of stopping. It was the hope of Protestants all over Germany that Sweden could end this war.

The people began to cheer as Gustavus rode by. Some began singing a song that had begun to make its way around the kingdom.

A time of religion and war

Legends tell the tale of lion

A beast in the shape of a man

With a dream to rule sea and land

And all those who stand in his way

Die by god and victorious arms

With the righteous that follows him south

Once more set ashore to war

Legends have taught, battles fought

This lion has no fear at heart

Lion come forth, come from the north

Come from the north

Gustavus Adolphus

Libera et impera

Acerbus et ingens

Augusta per augusta

Gustavus smiled at the sight of his nephew and waved to him.

"I will be back soon Gustav" he called out.

"Don't worry uncle. I won't get too big."

Gustavus smiled, he then turned back to the road in front of him. He took a deep breath and watched the sunrise over the port of Malmo. This war would be his true test as a leader and king.

"Forward boys, we must win this war and give our children a better future!" He yelled.

The men around him cheered as they continued to march for the ships.

Lutzen, Saxony

The Swedish intervention in the 30 years war had entered its 3rd year. Gustavus had led his army into major victories turning the war in favor of the Protestant states of German. Now he found himself in Saxony where a Catholic army led by Albrecht Von Wallenstein held the position. Gustavus wanted to take this position, it would serve as another great victory as well as destroying another Catholic army.

The battle began early with the regiments of pike and shot fighting in the center. By noon neither side looked like they had an advantage, furious, Gustavus ordered his cavalry to the right flank.

"My lord, the right flank is exposed. We should attack now."

"I know general Munro. Sound the trumpets, we are moving out!"

"Yes, sir!"

Trumpets began to blare and the royal cavalry rode out onto the field. It was quiet, the only sound was the sounds of the horses galloping.

"I've heard that in the barbaric archipelago there are dragons."

"General Munro, have you been reading folktales again?"

"No, when we were in Berlin a couple months ago, I met a man who was from the islands. He said dragons are alive and aggressive beasts."

"Munro, you are from the British Isles, you should know that good King Richard the Lionheart, god rest his soul, wiped the dragons off the face of the earth."

"Once this war is over I will go there and see for myself."

"If you say so."

In front of them, musketeers stood up and fired a volley at the cavalry.

"Muskets! Charge into them!"

The men followed Gustavus and hit the Holy Roman infantry hard. Pikemen appeared and attempted to save the musketeers. Munro and his men flanked around the pikemen and charged from the rear. Gunsmoke began blocking the view of the Swedish king, who was worried that they charged too recklessly.

"That's the general right there men, follow me!" Gustavus said pointing at the outline of a few horses.

20 of his men followed him as they advanced up the small hill. As they emerged from the gunsmoke, there was the German general. Gustavus ordered to go faster but his eagerness was quickly turned into fear. 30 musketeers appeared and prepared to fire a volley at him and his men.

"Retreat!"

Some of the men stopped their horses and attempted to turn around. Gustavus reared his horse but it was too late.

"Fire!"

The musketeers fired their guns at Gustavus and his men. Horses and men fell to the ground, dead upon impact. Two bullets hit Gustavus, the pain was immense. Yeah, he had been shot before but not like this. His horse also took a shot as well but continued to gallop away.

Eventually the horse collapsed underneath him forcing him to walk. The gun smoke clouded his view of where his men were but he felt like he was going in the right direction. Soon he found himself at a camp.

"Hello… anyone there?"

Three men came into view looking at the wounded king.

"Hey, there friend. What brings you to our camp?"

"I've been wounded. A battle raging on somewhere is what caused it. I need medical ai-"

One of the men had shot him in the head, killing him instantly.

"Was that necessary Dutch?"

"Arthur I've got a goddamn plan to make money, I don't need a wounded man giving us away. Now, John strip him, grab what you can off of him and let's move."

The three men rode away, leaving the king's body in a ditch.

Munro and his men rode around searching for the king. No one knew what had happened to Gustavus, many feared for his life. The battle had been won, the Catholics in full retreat back to Austria. Once again the Swedish armies stood victoriously over their enemies but at what cost? Soon the king was found in a ditch, dead.

Sweden

News reached Sweden that the king was dead. Many lined the streets watching the funeral train march by. The young king was in military uniform and draped in the banners of the Swedish kingdom. Cecilia only felt sorrow as her brother-in-law passed by, she knew her sister would be upset.

"Mommy, when is uncle Gustavus going to wake up?"

"Oh sweetie, uncle isn't going to wake up," she replied sadly.

Poor Gustav began crying into his mother's side, upset at the loss of his uncle.

Sweden's intervention in the 30 Years War turned the war in favor of the Protestants. However with the loss of Gustavus Adolphus, the crown falls onto his daughter who wasn't of age yet. Until her 15th Birthday, Sweden would have a regency council.

Hope you enjoyed this story it took us a while to think of what to write. As I looked back I saw that I had aged Gustav at 50 years which I intended for him to be in his 60s so had to go back and fix it. So here is a historical fact for you, during the great northern war Karl XII stormed the fortress of Krakow with 300 men with unloaded muskets and pikes. -Dilloncoll