The king-captain summoned his closest people around him for a quick council meeting. They met on the Princess, as everyone was already getting a little bit homesick and the gentle rocking of the ocean reminded them of better times.
"If I am going to be the king, I need not only a doctor of the crown, but a military leader as well," Spade explained. "I know it will be a lot, but William, wouldn't you consider being that person? I can't think of anyone with more naval competence. You could appoint someone else, too, someone to whom you could delegate your tasks, but I would very much like you to be the one in charge."
The Admiral groaned. "That's an awful lot of trouble. I suppose you have some sort of a reward for me if I happen to agree?"
The captain raised an eyebrow and passed the cup of coffee to his friend. "You will not do such things for glory alone?"
"You can't eat glory," the first mate said. "Do you know why I left the navy?"
