From Little Acorns (short story)

From Little Acorns was the first short story in the Short Trips anthology Short Trips: The Quality of Leadership. It was written by John S. Drew. It featured the Eighth Doctor.

Summary
With King Mihal dying, it is Lycon's job to announce it. First, though, he has a sad job to do: tell the king's grandchildren.

Talking with the children, Lycon mentions that Mihal hadn't wanted to be king. When they question him about this, he tells them the story of how Mihal became king:


 * One day, Mihal and Lycon went hunting in the woods. Unknown to them, Mihal's uncle, Kalem, killed Mihal's father, King Loran, and usurped the throne. Kalem and a group of men followed Mihal and Lycon to ambush them. Mihal and Lycon were able to escape with the help of a man calling himself the Doctor. He took them to the palace ahead of Kalem. Mihal and Kalem dueled, and Mihal, upon besting Kalem, showed him mercy by having him sent to the dungeon. Mihal was still reluctant to become king, afraid that he would make mistakes, but the Doctor offered to tell him stories about other great leaders who had to overcome their fears.

Characters

 * Lycon
 * Mihal
 * Kieran
 * Judai
 * Davad
 * Shaila
 * Eighth Doctor
 * Kalem
 * Loran
 * Torg
 * Dirge
 * Ethnos

Continuity

 * The Doctor later meets Mihal in PROSE: Epilogue.
 * The Doctor's disabling of the enemy's weapons using his sonic screwdriver is similar to the Sontarans' disabling of UNIT guns during their invasion of Earth in 2009. (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem / The Poison Sky).
 * The Doctor has recently regenerated. (TV: Doctor Who)