Control: Paladins

I, Dalton Lewis, want to be a paladin. Paladins fight for justice and temperament. They do the right thing even if the right thing proves difficult and dangerous. I grew up reading pulp fantasy novels by writers like David Eddings and Terry Brooks and R. A. Salvatore. I stopped reading those novels and don’t know why. Reading those books saved me from countless negative thoughts and emotions during a terrible time of my life.

Doing the right thing — no matter how hard it hurts — impresses me. Cyclops of the X-Men, in the comic book, used to do anything if it was the right thing to do. He would save anyone who needed saving. He had a code of honor that would neither bend nor break. I don’t care if a paladin rides a warhorse or wears plate mail. I care about someone who fights injustice. I talk about someone who saves the goblins who are oppressed by the local lord. I talk about someone who defends a small village from a massive invasion. I talk about someone who educates a troubled young man and prevents him from turning to evil. I talk about goodness.

I want to write a novel about this — about someone so good that it hurts, someone who fights all the sin that everyone else seems to accept as fine. I read a novel recently, The Emperor’s Gift, about a group of Grey Knights in the 41st millenium. They try to fight a demon invasion and end up fighting against the Space Wolves, a different group of space marine. I enjoyed watching dramatic conflict instead of melodramatic conflict, but I hate it when people stupidly fight people on their own team. It bothers me for the good guys to kill other good guys.

How does that relate to the real world, in America, in 2019? Paladins make the right choices. They do the little things to help others. Volunteering at a homeless shelter or mentoring children at the local library can help people. Encouraging others to make the right choices can help the world get better. The butterfly effect means that every little act of kindness adds up to everyone saving more people and improving everyone’s lives.

People always complain about how bad things have become. I like to think that things have always been terrible and are slowly changing for the better. The people how used to enslave and rape people now do mass shootings and rape people. The celebrities who used to rape people and make millions now rape people and have trouble with their careers and go to expensive rehab centers to get better. The racists just talk online instead of all those fucking meetings.

Paladins are sometimes seen as humans fighting all those awful nonhumans. I don’t want that kind of paladin. I don’t want someone who feels better than everyone else. I don’t want lawful stupid, someone who isn’t fun and ruins the role-playing session for everyone else. I don’t want someone who fights chaotic evil people who have no shred of innocence or dignity. I want a realistic person who does the right thing and ignores the painful cost of being innocent.

The paladins of legend are untrue, right? No one is that good. I am here to argue that there are real paladins, on Earth, in America, right now. Amazing people do extraordinary acts of goodness and kindness every single day. People fight criminals every day because it’s the right thing to do. I believe that people can impress and do wonderful things every day. Paladins are real, folks.

Thanks, and take care, friends.