announcement in our community. It surely reaffirms your admiration for Maske and I am forever grateful,” Mayorgovern Touro said.
“Although it has been many years since I have been to Maske, I have only fond memories of my visits here. Of course, it is logistically difficult for me to visit more often than I have, given the distance of this village from Obengaard.”
“I understand, Majesty, and any visit you can make, no matter the frequency, is always highly regarded,” Tate Touro said. “Please tell me, Majesty, how long do you plan to remain in Maske?”
“I believe that, given its proximity, I should stay for nearly a week. I hope that this does not inconvenience you or the residents here,” Zander replied.
“It is no inconvenience at all, Majesty. We are thrilled to have you in Maske for such a length of time, and we will do our best to accommodate you and your men during your stay with us.”
“Tell me, Mayorgovern, are the Spiers planning to send a delegation to meet with me during my visit? I very much wish to get a look at the mines that are providing such beautiful materials to our great kingdom. Likewise, it is my intention to inform them of the upcoming summit of leaders and implore them to provide me with gold and jewels from the mines to use as gifts to the other rulers.”
“It’s my understanding that the Spiers will indeed have a delegation at the festivities this evening, and would like very much to meet with you. As far as the gifts that we can provide to the rulers of Bore and Tongar, the Spiers have never seemed concerned with the volume of our outtake from their mines, so long as we provide equal compensation for their gifts. They have no use for the treasures and are more than willing to part with them.”
“I see,” said Zander. “Do you suppose that they are creatures that are without the ability to see the beauty in such treasures, or do you believe that the abundance of the treasures makes them indifferent to its value?”
“Majesty, it is my humble opinion that greed and lust for such items as gold, silver, and jewels is a manmade obsession. If it were simple rocks, for instance, that were so difficult to obtain, then I believe that ordinary rocks would be elevated to the status of riches. But because the Spiers have these things in abundance, they do not see them as items of any great value. We always want those things that are rare or difficult to obtain.”
“You are a very wise man, Tate Touro. I certainly regret that you did not accept the position as ambassador to the Sovereign Trees. That is not to say that our current ambassador is not doing an excellent job. I understand that you turned down the position in order to start a family. May I have the pleasure of meeting the young man whose existence inadvertently directed you on the path to become mayorgovern of Maske, as opposed to becoming my high counselor on matters of state?”
“Certainly, majesty. May I present to you my son, Balki Touro.”
At this point, Balki came forward from behind Tate and bowed low before King Zander. When he rose, King Zander held out his hand to present Balki with the ring of the realm, which had been placed on every ruler of Forris since its creation. It was a simple ring of gold with the crest of the kingdom now barely visible on the oval top of the piece. It had been worn down over the centuries and had only been vacant of a royal hand to rest on during its transition from one monarch to another as the line of succession continued.
As Balki kissed the ring, he had already cloaked himself—not visibly, but mentally. He focused all of his energy to projecting his opposite to the king—kindness and wisdom, trust and loyalty. While Balki was indeed wise, he was anything but kind.
The inflock, being not fully awake at this point, had no intention of leaving its comfortable home within the medallion, but it sensed the cloaking and read the nature of King Zander. What the inflock
“Although it has been many years since I have been to Maske, I have only fond memories of my visits here. Of course, it is logistically difficult for me to visit more often than I have, given the distance of this village from Obengaard.”
“I understand, Majesty, and any visit you can make, no matter the frequency, is always highly regarded,” Tate Touro said. “Please tell me, Majesty, how long do you plan to remain in Maske?”
“I believe that, given its proximity, I should stay for nearly a week. I hope that this does not inconvenience you or the residents here,” Zander replied.
“It is no inconvenience at all, Majesty. We are thrilled to have you in Maske for such a length of time, and we will do our best to accommodate you and your men during your stay with us.”
“Tell me, Mayorgovern, are the Spiers planning to send a delegation to meet with me during my visit? I very much wish to get a look at the mines that are providing such beautiful materials to our great kingdom. Likewise, it is my intention to inform them of the upcoming summit of leaders and implore them to provide me with gold and jewels from the mines to use as gifts to the other rulers.”
“It’s my understanding that the Spiers will indeed have a delegation at the festivities this evening, and would like very much to meet with you. As far as the gifts that we can provide to the rulers of Bore and Tongar, the Spiers have never seemed concerned with the volume of our outtake from their mines, so long as we provide equal compensation for their gifts. They have no use for the treasures and are more than willing to part with them.”
“I see,” said Zander. “Do you suppose that they are creatures that are without the ability to see the beauty in such treasures, or do you believe that the abundance of the treasures makes them indifferent to its value?”
“Majesty, it is my humble opinion that greed and lust for such items as gold, silver, and jewels is a manmade obsession. If it were simple rocks, for instance, that were so difficult to obtain, then I believe that ordinary rocks would be elevated to the status of riches. But because the Spiers have these things in abundance, they do not see them as items of any great value. We always want those things that are rare or difficult to obtain.”
“You are a very wise man, Tate Touro. I certainly regret that you did not accept the position as ambassador to the Sovereign Trees. That is not to say that our current ambassador is not doing an excellent job. I understand that you turned down the position in order to start a family. May I have the pleasure of meeting the young man whose existence inadvertently directed you on the path to become mayorgovern of Maske, as opposed to becoming my high counselor on matters of state?”
“Certainly, majesty. May I present to you my son, Balki Touro.”
At this point, Balki came forward from behind Tate and bowed low before King Zander. When he rose, King Zander held out his hand to present Balki with the ring of the realm, which had been placed on every ruler of Forris since its creation. It was a simple ring of gold with the crest of the kingdom now barely visible on the oval top of the piece. It had been worn down over the centuries and had only been vacant of a royal hand to rest on during its transition from one monarch to another as the line of succession continued.
As Balki kissed the ring, he had already cloaked himself—not visibly, but mentally. He focused all of his energy to projecting his opposite to the king—kindness and wisdom, trust and loyalty. While Balki was indeed wise, he was anything but kind.
The inflock, being not fully awake at this point, had no intention of leaving its comfortable home within the medallion, but it sensed the cloaking and read the nature of King Zander. What the inflock
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