“So, you hear the news about the royal wedding?”
“I’m not interested in that kind of thing Jorge.”
Two men stand inside of a dimly lit tobacco shop. The larger of the two is the humble owner of the shop named Jorge Costanza. The other is a mysterious, toned young man who visits the shop semi-regularly to fuel his nicotine addiction. Despite being a frequent customer of his, the shop-keep has yet to learn his name.
“Interested or not, it's the only thing that's been in the news for the last few weeks here. I'm sure you’ve at least heard something about it.” says Jorge.
The man shrugs and lights a cigarette
“I know you're not from around here, but I need you to show more respect to the royal family around these parts. Just hear me out kid.” Walking his loyal customer to the door whilst pulling out a cigarette of his own, Jorge keeps talking.
“Rumor has it she's gonna be marrying some bigshot’s son from another kingdom for some sort of alliance. Heard he has some kinda electric energy about him. If you’re asking me, Princess Windstar should be marrying a natural born Flawidian. These dumb little ‘political marriages’ never end well. This is just gonna be a repeat of what happened with Chi-Town and Seeaddle. Honestly, I expect better from a man like King Windstar!”
“The only thing your King cares about is appearances, he could be sending his daughter off to fall in love with a rat from the sewer for all he cares. As long as he keeps up his hollow reputation of being a peacekeeper - he’ll be satisfied.”
The prosperous kingdom of Flawdah is ruled by High General Marshal Sergeant Lord Major Admiral Supreme Ruler, King Andrew Windstar III. Well known as one of the main eight slices of The World, it is a renowned and lively kingdom that is known for their fabulous wealth and military power, as well as the famous Windstar bloodline.
“Say what you will but I know my King. His Majesty comes from one of the most powerful bloodlines!” Jorge exclaims. “Flawdah would never have been considered to be one of the big eight without him! He normally makes the calls in these sorts of situ-”
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“Alright, I get it. Listen, I don’t care about all that shit alright? Come on let’s get outta here, I’m sweating my dick off.” The man retorts.
The two exit the shop into the hot outside. Jorge places his tanned hand above his squinted eyes as they adjust to the bright sun beaming down onto them.
He chuckles and shakes his head. “If there’s really three Gods, can one of you please do something about this damn heat!”
Jorge ignites one of his fingertips and lights his cigarette using his Meld.
A copper glint catches the eye of the man and a smirk quickly paints his face. “Hey man, looks like your King missed the mailbox with your paycheck over there.”
Jorge chortles as he walks over to pick up the penny, “Wow he must be feeling generous, aye? Biggest work bonus I've gotten since I opened up shop!” Kneeling down to snatch the cent, He hears a commotion down the street.
Countless exclamations of “is that the princess?” and “why is she running?” are echoed down the street as a young woman sprints as fast as she can.
“GET THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY JORGE!”
She yells as she approaches the duo. Jorge jumps out of the way, narrowly dodging the gazelle-like woman's brisk stride as she continues to run as if her life were in danger. Looking around as if he just dodged a bullet, Jorge turns to his companion.
“Man, am I finally losing it from this heat or did I almost get the shit kicked out of me by princess Windstar running for her life in tattered clothes?”
Three men in black suits then seem to burst from the onlooking crowd, taking off in the same direction of the fleeing princess.
Jorge, still starstruck, shakes his head to grasp the situation.
“Was that the goddamn royal guard? The hell is going on today?”
Flicking half of a cigarette onto the ground, the customer sighs and says “Don’t know, but they’re running on my path to get home so I guess I'll go see for myself.”