After some consideration, during which the group's leader showed his impatience through further gesticulations of his sword, the king got an idea. It was questionable, but it might work to diffuse this situation. Well, as far as the King was concerned, at least.
"I have one question," the former king said as he slowly lowered the pack from his shoulder and began sifting through it, as though he was trying to retrieve some money. At least, that is what the on-looking brigands thought he was doing. But instead of pulling out a bag of coins, he pulled out a fairly small, black, ball-like object. "How many of you know what this is?"
His question was met with blank stares until the leader spoke up. "What is this? This is ball! Black ball, useless for this purpose. Give us this money, or this is this moment's end for you!" He waved his sword in a slightly less random motion, and his men brought their weapons up in even more hostile attitudes.
"Wait! Just wait a moment," the king said, holding the object up in a showman's gesture. "This may look like just a ball, but no! It is so much more than the naked eye can see. Give me a chance, and I can show you just how this incredible item can change your lives. Decide quickly, for this limited time offer won't last long!"
The looks on the faces of some of the brigands indicated that they were curious about his words, but the leader quickly countered. "Nonsense! This is nothing but this desperate plea for this life. This will not save you!"
The former king threw up his hands and sighed. "Well, I tried. If none of you want the chance of a lifetime, who am I to argue?"
One of the brigands in the back of the group shouted, "Come on, at least let him tell us what it is!"
A different man near the front of the group nodded his head vigorously. "Yeah. I wants to know how much we can sells it for."
Someone else piped up with, "Is it magic or something?"
"No! This is not this way! Cease this talk of this ball!" The mask on the leader's face didn't allow a view of his expression, but the former king was quite certain the man's face was probably becoming red and contorted.
The former king threw his arms wide, saying, "Well, what will it be, folks? Do I have to take this miracle product elsewhere? I can only give this limited time offer on a first-come basis, so act fast before it's gone!"
Chaos ensued. Several of the bandits desperately wanted the special offer, but since their leader wouldn't hear of it (he was quite tight with the purse-strings, at least as long it regarded his underlings), they decided to force the issue despite the forceful swinging of their leader's sword. The king took their momentary distraction as a chance to sneak away into the cover of the forest's canopy and continue in the direction of the crossroads.
It wasn't long before he was intercepted by yet another shadowy form in the forest. After a moment of breathless mutual observation, the newcomer spoke. "Call me Ivan."
Well, it was as good a name as any.
(551 words)    indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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