history.

[benumbing]

Jack Benjamin was born a prince, son of King Silas and Queen Rose of Gilboa, heir to the crown despite being four minutes younger than his twin sister, Michelle. As part of his preparations for being king, Jack also served in the military during a very active war between Gilboa and the neighboring country of Gath. During an ambush on his men (one in which King Silas orchestrated himself, not knowing that Jack was there), Jack is taken hostage and later rescued by one David Shepherd, our honest, unassuming hero of the story who becomes a major thorn in Jack's side.

Because the capital of Shiloh loves David. His sister loves David. His own father loves David and makes him Captain. Meanwhile, Jack is left to worry about being blamed for the deaths of his own men. All this leaves him feeling pretty bitter and insecure, and more than a little pissed off. During an argument with his father, Silas reveals that he knows Jack is gay, and warns him that he is unable to be who he is. "For a king, it's not possible".

Jack's uncle William, head of the Crossgen corporation that would greatly benefit from the war's continuation, starts whispering his plan to overthrow Silas and put Jack in his place into the prince's ear. Meanwhile, a fragile peace is finally had between the two countries. But it comes with a price tag - part of Gilboa's land given to Gath. Not only Port Prosperity, but also David's home, and Jack sees the ensuing protests at this as an opportunity. William gives Jack control over a large news station, which he in turn uses to show this criticism of the king, a rare thing in Gilboa. When Michelle intervenes and is taken hostage, Jack's network is the only one that refuses a blackout order. Silas responds by having Katrina Ghent, a wealthy young woman who wants to buy position and her reputation back, buy out the news network. Katrina is also given a ministry position in name only. Silas gives Jack the power, her the title.

Come Judgement Day, a day when the king personally hears and rules over a few lucky cases, Jack secretly pits David against Michelle. Both have reasons for wanting to be heard on Judgement Day, David on behalf of his brother who was involved in the chaos at Port Prosperity. Jack also tries to get David to denounce the king in exchange for a lighter sentence for his brother. When David doesn't and his ties with both Silas and Michelle are unbroken, Jack has the judge called in his anger, wanting David's brother to get the full penalty - a death sentence for treason. Fortunately, Silas ends up arranging a much lighter sentence.

Jack tries to earn his father's favor by volunteering to lead a secret mission into Gath. David, who continues to linger like a bad smell, gets sent along with him. During this mission David saves Jack's life for a second time, making him feel that he owes him a debt.

The king's birthday is a big deal in Shiloh, and Jack arrives with Lucinda Wolfson, a sweet girl from a prestigious family. But when the power mysteriously goes out, Jack takes some good advice from a stranger to be anyone he wants to be for the night. He returns to his lover, Joseph. But only while the lights are down, while no one can see.

Soon after, Joseph sends Jack a video, telling him that he loves him and encouraging him to stop hiding who he really is before committing suicide. He also sends a copy to Unity News Network. The queen gets hold of Jack's copy first, and he denies the relationship before finding out that Joseph is dead. Around the same time, Michelle asks him for help with her secret relationship with David. Jack refuses, though not for his usual spiteful reasons. He also goes to Joseph's funeral, but keeps his distance. His mother is angered by this, and Jack confesses that he loved Joseph, tha he cut him out of his heart because that's what his parents wanted. Jack realizes that Joseph was the only person who really saw him and still loved him.

Katrina Ghent, recently snubbed by the queen, gets the other copy of the video. She makes Rose choose between saving Jack or Michelle, after also getting her hands on the Princess's nude pictures, taken by and stolen from David. Rose chooses Jack. Jack tries to trade his video for Michelle's pictures, but Katrina offers him another deal - to marry her and make her royalty, the ultimate slap in Rose's face. But when his fiancee is killed in a tragic car accident, he arrives at his engagement party with Lucinda Wolfson on his arm once more. Silas really dangles the carrot in front of him, promising him that on the day of Jack's wedding day, he will declare him his heir and the future king in front of everyone. Jack tries to back out of the coup but finds that he is more of a pawn than a king.

And then Silas starts to pull at him from the other side. David has fallen out of favor for keeping his relationship with Michelle a secret from him, and against all odds returns from a mission where the king had hoped he'd die. But instead of a hero's welcome, Silas arranges charges of treason. He brings Jack in on his trial, to accuse David as a spy and back up his lies. "Turns out you have the right teeth for flesh", his father tells him. Even his uncle likes this plan, for the way it will turn the people against Silas. But as the trial and the accusations continue, Jack's conscience seems to be getting the better of him.

David warns Jack of the plot against the king, not knowing that he's in on the coup. Jack finally breaks when David pleads guilty, after being manipulated by Silas into believing that it's the best thing for the country. Jack is arrested, but rescued by William and goes into hiding. At Rose's urging, he's pardoned, but it comes with a heavy dose of humiliation. Jack is forced to kneel and kiss the ground that Silas walks on. During the ceremony to hand over Port Prosperity, Jack jumps in front of an assassination attempt. He's hit in the arm, but Silas is hit many more times. At this same time, David is also rescued from the firing squad. Gath military blamed, handover cancelled.

Jack soon finds that he's essentially been used, that what he wants to do as king doesn't matter as long as his uncle controls the media and the military. But Silas isn't as dead as everyone thinks, and David brings him back, knowing that he's the country's only chance to end the war. Jack becomes more brutal as his father nears. Everything is unraveling for him; the crown goes missing, replaced by a false crown that never touches his head. Silas returns with Gath tanks and the promise of peace once more at his back. Rose returns the crown to Silas. William flees, but Jack refuses to run, even if he expects Silas to kill him. But Silas decides to give him a worse fate: a living death, imprisoned with Lucinda until he produces an heir for Silas to raise as his own.