The Golden King

[Mr.Fox]

7 days ago...

“So Mr. Fox, why don't tell a bit about yourself?”

Jon Fox looked over at the tall, slender gentleman sipping some sort of cheap coffee from ceramic mug on the other side of the desk. The sun had only just risen on that warm day in Corone, the morning fog had not yet lifted from the ground and yet Jon was already wide awake, having been up since a little before sun rise. Always a morning person, he had been particularly eager to get up and going on this day and it was because he wanted to meet the man on the other side of that cluttered desk.

His name was Ryan Tarpaulin, and he was the captain of The Bejeweled Empress, a luxurious ocean liner that ferried people from the Royal Harbor in Radasanth, Corone, to the southern most coast of Fallien. Once they arrived in Fallien, the passengers of the Empress could (and most did) pay an additional fee to be guided safely to the Outlander's Quarters outside of the exotic city Irrakam, an increasingly popular tourist destination.

Tomorrow morning the Empress would be leaving the harbor on the five day journey across the sea and Ryan had placed a help wanted ad in the Radasanth Reader, a major local newspaper, looking for servers and dishwashers onboard the ship. Jon was simply the first of several young men looking for work this morning who would walk through the doors of the one room, white painted, brick and mortal building that Ryan rented for an office.

“Not much to tell sir. I'm meat and fur trader but lately people haven't been buying what I've been selling so I need the work.”

“I see. Have you ever worked in a kitchen before?”

Jon nodded. “Yes sir.”

“When?”

“As a boy sir. My dad and uncle ran one of the pubs. Had me earn my keep by washing dishes and serving dinners.”

“Why'd you quit?”

“Wanted excitement. Decided to get it by fighting in the war.”

Ryan seemed to perk up when Jon mentioned the war and that was when he noticed the glass case that was hung on the back wall just behind the older man. In it were several medals that looked as though they had been recently polished. He recognized a few of them as commendations from the Imperial Navy. Jon had been right to lie to this man so far about his history. The war may have been over but tensions were still high between some of the Imperial loyalists and the former rebels, the latter of which Jon had served. Worse, as unlikely as it was, if the wrong people found out that the oldest son of Timothy and Lucile Fox had never actually wondered off to die in the woods then they might have been considered traitors to the Empire and Imperial loyalist weren't known for their kindness towards such people.

"You served in the war?" asked the captain.

“Yes sir. I was an archer in the imperial army. 14th division. C company.”

“Good, so you know how to work hard and do as you're told then?”

“Yes sir. Had to do a lot of that while serving in his majesty's army.”

Ryan laughed and downed the rest of his coffee. “I bet you did.”

There was a slight pause in conversation as Ryan regained his composure. He looked over Jon one more time, then down at some paper work, then back up at Jon.

“I'll tell you what Jon,” continued Ryan “I hate hearing about another vet being down on his luck so I'm going to give you a chance. You're going to be sweeping tables and serving dinners again. Pay is ten crowns a day plus tips. If things don't work out I'll drop you off at the nearest port.”

Crowns were the official imperial currency. Silver coins, about an inch in diameter, with the royal seal imprinted in them on one side and a rough image of the imperial treasury building on the other. Ryan stood up and extended his hand. Jon stood up and gave Ryan's hand a good firm shake. The deal was made.

"Thank you sir," said Jon.

Ryan nodded and sat back down. He reached over and grabbed the ink quill on the far side of his desk. Then he opened one of the drawers and pulled out a couple of sheets of paper.

“I'll get the paper work ready. Be at the docks by 04:00 tomorrow. Show up on time or don't show up at all. Understand?”

“Yes sir.”

***

1 day ago...

As expected great ocean liner, The Bejeweled Empress, arrived at port off southern coast of Fallien just before the harsh sun hit its peak. The port, as Jon had learned from the other staff during the last few days on the ship, was owned by the same company that owned the Empress. The armed guards the patrolled the otherwise lawless shantytown that had sprung up around the port were a private security force employed by that same company. They were paid explicitly to protect the paying customers of the Empress from thieves and muggers. They cared not the least bit about what happened to the street peddlers in their tent homes and makeshift stalls.

The staff of the Empress were permitted to go ashore for the day before returning to the ship bright and early the next morning so that they could take the next batch of passengers to Radasanth, however Jon had no intention of returning. He hadn't been lying when he told Captain Tarpaulin he needed the job because he was broke. Turns out adventuring was hard, and without the steady income he was used to receiving from the rangers he had quickly gone broke and had been living off whatever he could hunt or forage for in forests. The extra coin in his pocket was just a bonus though. The real reason he had been so eager to work on the Empress was so that he could get a ride to Fallien. Rumors had spread among the taverns goers and story tellers of mysterious ruins and great wealth to be found in the vast deserts of the region and it drove men such as Jon Fox to seek it out.

Jon was glad to get off the ship and onto the wooden docker where he could stretch his legs. He hadn't hated the job, the work was easy and his coworkers had mostly been nice, but he was not the kind of man who enjoyed being cooped up crowded spaces for days at a time. Unfortunately, the joy that came from finally being able to move freely about freely was short lived as he was quickly overwhelmed by the torrid temperatures of the region's weather. Even the hottest day in Corone seemed temperate by comparison. The slight breeze that blew in from the ocean was almost comically ineffectual.

Jon made his way off the dock and onto a roughly beaten foot path that took him among the various street merchants. Most of them seemed to be selling useless knickknacks and cheap clothing though he did notice the smell of some street foods which were made with copious amounts of local herbs and spices, the likes of which were more than a little bit tantalizing for an amateur chef like him. It was difficult for him to ignore the impulse to spend some of his recently earned coin on the delicious smelling spicy meats and fragrant pastries. At least until he found what he was really looking for. A local cartographer selling maps out of a large tent.

Jon walked into the tent and looked among the piles of maps of varying sizes until the found what he was looking for. A decent sized map that when unfolded was about a 24 by 24 inches and when folded was easily small enough to fit inside his rucksack. It was a map of the whole region but it was detailed enough that all the major cities and known land marks were easy for him to find and identify. Satisfied with his choice, Jon approached merchant who was a large, pot bellied, brown skinned man with long, thick black hair wearing what looked to be local garb.

“Do you speak common?” asked Jon.

“A little,” answered the merchant. His voice was deep and his accent was thick but Jon could just barely make out what he was saying.

“How much for this for this map?”

The merchant held up two of his meaty fingers. “Two crown.”

Jon fished into his pockets and pulled out the money which he tossed to the merchant. With the transaction complete he exited the tent. According to the map he just needed to follow the river to get to the Outlander's Quarters and ultimately into Irrakam where he hoped to find some better leads on some of the hidden treasures he head heard stories about. It would take him about a day to get there by foot which didn't bother him. If he stayed near the water he would be in no danger of him dying of dehydration and the hunting was sure to be good as the sources of water for the region's wildlife were few and far between. As long as he didn't get bitten, stung or attacked by anything particularly dangerous he would be okay.

In some ways he felt bad about lying to Captain Tarpaulin and the rest of the crew. They were good people who treated him right and he had known since the beginning that he wasn't coming back after the ship made landfall in Fallien. Oh well, he thought, he would make it up to them later after he became a world renowned adventurer. Maybe he would even dedicate a recipe or two to them in his sure to become world famous cookbook. And, if by chance, his sudden, unexplained desertion had any consequences then he would just have to deal with those as they came.