"Reunited..." - Chapter Thirty-One

Reunited...

Chapter Thirty-One

By Douglas E. Gogerty

King Thorbjorn and his small entourage headed into the Pirate Penninsula. There was a government there, but to outsiders it seemed quite ineffectual. It appeared that the government leaders spent all of their time arguing and not actually governing. From an outside perspective, these leaders spent all of their efforts pandering to the mob. With this form of government, there was no one to stop the raiding and the piracy. Nowhere would you find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.

Nonetheless, it was a place where anything could be purchased, and that is what King Thorbjorn wanted. He planned to purchase a few raids upon Princess Angelina's newly formed kingdom. He could contact several people for this purpose; however, he had to speak to the provincial government first. The King very much wanted to get in and out of the peninsula as fast as he could, but he could not do anything without the permission of the area authority.

The government required a transaction permit was required for any business to take place on the peninsula. In other words, the government wanted its cut on anything that went on within its jurisdiction. The King just thought of it as a bribe.

Fortunately, the governmental establishment was not out of the way. It was on the northern part of the peninsula on the coast. Thus, the trip, while still dangerous, was not arduous. There were many major roads heading in and out of the capitol.

The King and his group arrived at the statehouse at midday. He told one of the guards that he wished to see the governor. The King laughed to himself because the thought of the man he was about to meet governing was funny to him. It seemed to the king that the man pandered to the people in every conceivable way. At no point did he feel that the governor actually led anyone. He felt that this governor just bent to the will of the people.

"Good afternoon sir!" greeted the governor's office assistant. "How can i help you?"

"I came to see the governor -- miss," replied the King a little miffed that their government would be so backwards as to hire women.

"And whom may I say is asking?" she responded with a similar condescending tone.

"I am King Thorbjorn of Lakeland!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Please have a seat," the office assistant replied unintimidatedly. "He will be with you as soon as he can."

"Did you not hear me? I am the King of Lakeland!"

"Well I did not vote for you, so please have a seat."

The King stormed away, but he refused to sit down. He paced like a caged tiger until the governor's office assistant informed him that he could see the governor.

"How dare you keep me waiting!" raged the King at the governor.

"Your visit is most unexpected," whimpered the governor. "If you had an appointment..."

"Appointment? I am the king of the largest kingdom in Morica. Do you really expect me to make an appointment?"

"Sorry -- it is just..."

"Enough of this small talk. Let us get down to business."

"Very well -- what business?"

"I need a permit to do business with a few of your citizens."

"My secretary could have handled that."

"Have you not been listening? I am the King of Lakeland!"

"Oh right, I apologize."

"I have wasted enough time here. Tell me what you want."

"What type of business transaction is it?"

"Nautical."

"How much is the transaction worth?"

"How should I know?"

"Any estimate?"

"I do not know. It will probably be a lot!"

"Less than a million gold pieces?"

"I should certainly hope so."

"Are goods being traded?"

"I am purchasing a service. No goods are involved."

"So, a commercial transaction for less than a million is 1000 gold, plus another 500 for the nautical permit. I will waive the rush processing fee. Thus, the total will be 1500 gold pieces."

"Robbery! I will not pay such an exorbitant price!"

"I could add the 100 for processing the request immediately..."

"You sir are a thief!"

The King waved at one of his men, and the man produced a case. Out of the case he counted out 1500 gold pieces.

"I wish you would have informed me that you were paying cash," the governor said shyly. "There is an additional 100 for cash handling."

"What!?!!" stated the King sternly.

"We will handle it. It was an oversight on my part. I should have asked how you intended to pay. It is just that I am not involved in these things often."

"Are we through?"

"We need to process the request and issue the permit. It will take a bit. You can take advantage of the commissary while you wait."

"Wait!?!!"

"You will need the permit to make the transaction. It will take a few minutes to type it up. We will have to an the accountant count the gold. A few minutes will be required to type your receipt."

"What?"

"These things take time. We will rush it through..."

"I will wait here until it is done to make sure that you do!"

The governor gave the request to his office assistant, and she typed in the information. Her fingers flew along the typing device. A short time later, a knock came at the door. Another woman walked in with the printed permit. The governor immediately signed it and handed it to King Thorbjorn.

The King began to leave, but the governor reminded him that the transaction would not be complete until the gold was counted. The accountant had not yet arrived. Thus, they had to wait for several minutes. Another knock at the door, and a third woman arrived. She was the accountant. She carefully counted the gold coins. Once she was through, she counted them again.

She typed the information into her little device, and out came a sheet of paper. She handed three gold pieces and the paper to the governor. Without a word, the accountant left the room. The governor handed the receipt and the three gold pieces to the king. The transaction was complete, and the King was now able to continue on his journey.