In the Court of the Traveling Crown - 1) A Strange Arrival

Aethierium -
A vast planet on the outskirts of space and time. Home of the Arkn and their many flourishing cities and villages. A very colorful landscape with an enormous vista encompassing everything from mountains and lakes; rivers and streams and waterfalls; out-lands and deserts and grasslands.

Meph’ridome - The City of Steam
A large locomotive comes to a subtle, slow stop, spewing a large mass of steam out from underneath. Several travelers depart from their car in a hurried fashion, while others remain mingling around the station. Most are dressed in some form of business attire, while others wear casual everyday clothing.  All of which, in appearance, are variants of Victorian styles. All, of course, except for one.

This man, wearing unusual attire compared to the others, steps down off the platform, exiting the train in a slow stride towards the main plaza. He is wearing a long dirt-stained overcoat,  a flimsy hat that can only be described as a ‘cowboy hat’, mud-covered boots of the same aesthetic, and a revolver—circa 1800′s—which hangs in its holster around his waist. He stands in the center of the busy plaza, looking about himself in a very subtle manor.

The man stands out like a sore thumb among the crowd, collecting a number of glances from all over. This doesn’t seem to bother him much, though. He just continues on his business, finally moving towards the ticket booth at the front of the exit tunnels. He approaches the man in the box office and slides a card through the bars and onto the countertop.

“I am looking for the Red Reality Brothel, I’m new to town and I was hoping you could get me some kind of directions.” The man speaks with a young but heavy voice.

“Clearly,” the man in the box office responds, referring to the “out of town” remark.

The Cowboy leans against the wall now, glaring, waiting for some kind of an answer.

“Name?” The man in the box office finally responds.

“Excuse me?” The cowboy defends.

“Name. Who is asking. That’s a very high priority brothel, we don’t just let strays off the first locomotive out of town inside.” The man responds matter-of-factly.

The cowboy stares at him, not in shock or appall but in entertainment. He had been discriminated against many times before, but this man genuinely seemed like he had no idea who he was.  The thought struck the cowboy as amusing as he let out a small chuckle.

“What’s funny? I’m dead serious. Name, or you’re not getting any directions except for the way to the marshal’s court.  We don’t like strange people coming to town asking about our high class businesses like the Red Reality.  Friend, you’re lucky I don’t blast you here myself.” He responds with a very harsh tone.

The cowboy broke from his light chuckle into massive roaring laughter now.

“That’s it, name, or I’m personally going to make sure you’re—” The man is cut off.

“Uriel. Son of Gilgamesh.  Born of the Infernous and father to Ellpagg. Ex-king of battle and current Arknza.” Uriel responds with a harsh tone matching that of the man in the box. The man’s face grows faint and his tone instantly changes to that of an apologetic child. He becomes especially nervous when Uriel draws his revolver on him and sticks it in his face.

“Now that I’ve tried politely, friend, I’ll ask again. Where the fuck is the Red Reality? I don’t ask a 3rd time.” Uriel spoke loud, drawing much unwanted attention from the passerby crowd.  The man pulled some paper work out from under his desk and slid it through the gap.

“Here, here.  I am so very sorry, King Uriel.  Please forgive me—had I known, I wouldn’t have acted as I had. Please, forgive me. Is there anything I can do for you? Can I get you a cab or something? Can I get you something to eat, do you need fare? I can—” Uriel holstered his revolver and took the paper work from him, simply laughing again.

“Ex-king.” Uriel said, shaking his head as he walked off into the crowd.