The hall though filled with many souls was quiet except the shrill whining of the condemned man situated in the center of the chamber below the dais upon which the king sat, a bored expression on his face as he attempted to listen.

The man before El Rey was on his knees, his crumpled hat in hand and his clothes, a dishevelled mess of something that obviously was expensive when first acquired. He was Warlord Echaniz, or was before he became this sad puddle of a man, of the north western region at the border of Montañaria, and had attempted to rally an uprising against Herrera's rule recently before being quashed and dragged before the monarch.

"...my lord, I- I- I didn't mean, it wasn't our intention to, to..."

He miserable moaning was finally cut short by a sharp, poignant blast, and his frame crumpled to the floor, a small hole through his head. Behind him a large man continued quickly pacing past the corpse towards the dais, hardly having paused long enough to make the shot, and holstered his pistol as he moved. At the foot of the steps he dropped to a knee, his wild hair falling about his head as he bowed a moment and snapped back to full height.

The man had a look of violence about him. He was somewhat young, dark compleced from many years in the sun, fierce blazing eyes like embers refusing to go out, and full beard coming down from temples to flank his face. His recently sheathed pistol was a Type 9 Exxos Elite Energy Pulse, itss once solid black frame, now rubbed grey at all corners and the grip completely faded out from assumed years of service.

"My king, I've come as requested. I assume we were all done with the dribble of that oveja?"

The King, Enrique Herrera, sat up sharply at the shot and smiled thinly, recognizing the man bowing before him. Alfonso Sagarra had a reputation that had made its way to his court, having been a vital component in the conquest of el Circulo de Oro. His well-paid legions of mercenaries had fought viciously in the Elleqar region and Sagarra's sharp wit and domineering demeanor had led to the incredible capture of a couple supply depots and launch fields that had been critical to the unification. Though his methods were known to be brutal and unforgiving, the loyalty of his followers were unquestioned to the overall cause of Montanaria.

"Ah, Senor Sagarra! Your appointment at the Court was expected but I see it has been moved forward, a bit eh? Yes, that wretch was ailing my mind to hear his sobbing. Guards! Remove this filth before the stench grows!"

A couple armoured figures, las rifles upon shooulder, trotted forwards and dragged the dead man away.

Looking back at Sagarra, he continued:

"Senor, your work is well known to the Black Court and we thank you for your service. Though your strength as a capitán de hombres is noted, I have need of one of your other talents. Our treasury continues to grow and as my fleet begins to assemble offworld, so too does our opportunities to bring more riches to the Empire. I have need of a man with shrewd thinking and sharper wit since the challenges we face in becoming a starfaring nation are many. I'd like to offer you the appointment as Master of Coin for the Empire, a great honour I tell you, and not one easily refused."

The members of the court remained silent, with not much care a couple of soldiers dragged the corpse out and before Alfonso could turn around, a few steps of boots were heard arriving from the great door, passing by the side of the corpse and their two companions, a man with his hemet wearing his combat suit came in and with a strong, serious but friendly tone interrupts them.

“Ah ustedes si que se la pasan bien… “
"Ah... You're always having a good time"

He continued walking and stood close but a few steps ahead of the other gentlemen who attended the court, as if they did not care, something thin and with an expression on his face that at the time made him seem confident and calm, he looked directly at Henrique and continued…

“Henrique! Como vas? Perdoname por interrumpirte así, no quiero ser descortés pero acabo de llegar... venga pues, tengo algo que decirte, en Cadiz nos ha llegado cierta información desde Rheinland a mis hombres y a mi, parece que se traen algo grande entre manos, que dices, le doy rienda suelta a mis hombres?”
Henrique! How're you? Excuse me for interrupting like that, I don't want to be rude but I just landed... Come on then, I have something to tell you, at Cadiz certain information from Rheinland has reached my men, they seem to be up to something big, what do you say? Do I give my men green light?

Sagarra turned to the newcomer and played a smirk over his face. He clapped the man upon his back and shook him.

"Warlord Almagro, its been some time mi hermano." He turned back to his liege and raised a hand, then clenched it to a fist and punched his chest with it,

"El Rey, we need no more ceremony. I accept your offer and enter your service in the position you would have for me. My men will be awaiting your command as well. Let us turn our attention to Almagro here, his matters seem of a pressing nature."

Alfonso bowed swiftly and stepped to the side of the chamber, joining the crowd of courtiers.

The King Enrique turned his attention to the warlord before him and made a small nod,
"Go ahead Almagro, Cuéntanos de este asunto. What have the Rheinlanders done now?"

A tall, aged man with an ornate silver cane walked slowly through the main door. He had balding silver hair, and a wrinkled complexion, yet he subtly seemed to not need his cane to walk. A young man ran ahead of him, and took his long-coat with a slight bow. A few soldiers nodded as he came through, and he offered a gentle smile and a nod back to them. He then raised his hand, and the young man with his coat speedily bowed and left the room. He walked down the center isle in the court, towards the thrown. Stopping in front of it, he bowed, using his cane for support.

"Buenos tardes, Rey Enrique Herrera. I am Jacinto De La Parca, honored husband of La Parca Rosa, Roberta Penninx. I've had a gift of customary incenses brought, per demand of my wife, but between us, I did try to bring fine drink and good food instead." He offered a light chuckle at his joke. "My wife is bedridden as of late, so I do hope you'll forgive the startling lack of elderly Grim Reaper. She does, however, send her regards and her best wishes. And, of course, me."

Jacinto straightened up and stepped back, switching his cane to his left hand so that he could hold his right arm horizontally in front of him, a pilot's salute from the Penninx family. Now that he was standing straight, a few medals pinned to his short-coat were visible, as well as a merit bar that read "Bloodhound". "It is an honor to be in your court, mi Rey."

Sebastian's slim body shook after Alfonso's pat... You could hear how the air escaped from his lungs.

“*Agggh*...Hey tio, a mi también me da gusto verte! Joder que tienes la mano pesada.“
"Hello friend, glad to see you too, damn you have a heavy hand."

Then both men looked back and saw the old timer approaching ... They were quite surprised as they did not understand the situation.
They both stayed as he appeared before the king, they looked at each other, looked at the King and looked back, as if searching for an answer ... As soon as Jacinto finished, Almagro added:

“Joder viejo... Vaya cojones tienes, pues venga, que has traido para el almuerzo?”
Damn old man... You have balls!, so, what's for lunch?

After a brief laugh in the distance, a short awkward silence invaded the court. Immediately the King stood from the throne in a calm gesture, he looked pleased, even so the members present knelt. Seeing him calm was no reason to go overboard, Almagro knew him, and he knew very well that behind that calm and sharp gaze he could send you to execute without showing remorse.

With a challenging and somewhat annoyed look, Henrique got up from the throne, looked at the old man and answered him.

"Acaso estais loco?, Como os atraveis a entrar asi por la puerta de mi gran salón?. Me cuesta entender como nadie te ha disparado en la cabeza cuando abriste la puerta de la corte... Supongo que mas de uno por estos lados debe conocerte, esta bien Jacinto, bienvenido seas por ahora, pero recuerda, si no os traeis nada de valor en estos dias, o no reportais nada interesante no tendre mas opcion que deshacerme de ti... Mientras tanto te doy las gracias por este gran banquete que me has traido. Puedes irte ahora, mis hombres te acompañaran a la salida."
Una cosita mas, si necesitas una casa o un lugar donde parar por estos lados, solo pidelo.
Buena suerte!"
Are you insane? How dare you to come throught the door of my great court? It's hard for me to understand how nobody has shooted you in the head when you opened the court door... I suppose that more than one around here knows you, it's OK Jacinto, welcome, but remember, if you don't bring anything of value or don't report anything interesting in the following days I'll have to depose you... Meanwhile I thank you for this great banquet that you have brought me. You can leave now, my men will escort you out.
One more thing, if you need a house or a place around here just ask for it.
Good luck."

In a wave of his arm, the king signals the way out.
Then he looked at the skinny Medina Almagro ... His gaze became even sharper.
Almagro looked like he was going to explode from nerves and pressure, some drops of sweat fell from his forehead, passed through his nose and accumulated on his chin.

"Señor Medina Almagro... Si no le tuviera un minimo de aprecio de seguro su delgada calvaera estaria adornando este salon... Pero no es el caso."
"Sr. Medina Almagro.... If I did not have a modicum of appreciation for you, surely your bald thin skull would be adorning this room ... But it is not the case."

The pilot's face relaxed ... a short sigh of relief came out of his mouth.

"Has sido fiel a la causa, confio en tus instintos y en que no haras estupideces... Tienes todo mi permiso para llevar a cabo tus planes en Rheinland, solo te pido una cosa, que me mantengas al tanto... Ahora vete... TODOS! DESPEJEN EL SALON!... Es hora del almuerzo, les recomiendo que disfruten del suyo tanto como puedan... Nadie aquí vivira lo suficiente como para engordar."
"You have been faithful to the cause, I trust your instincts and that you will not do stupid things ... You have all my permission to carry out your plans in Rheinland, I only ask one thing, that you keep me updated ... Now go ... EVERYONE! CLEAR THE ROOM! ... It's time for lunch, I recommend you enjoy yours as much as you can ... No one here will live long enough to get fat ."


He then looked at Sagarra...

"Sagarra! Estare esperando noticias de ti. Buena suerte a ti tambien hombre."
"Sagarra! I'll be waiting news for you, good luck to you too."

He finally stated to all the present.

"Aplastaremos a nuestros enemigos! No tengan piedad."
"We'll crush our enemies, show no mercy!"

Slowly everyone present left the hall, the king sat with his chin resting on his right hand, staring at the great court door with a sagacious gaze ... As if he were planning the future, as if he knew strangely how to fix any inconvenience that came his way ... His ingenuity and his will had put him by right on that throne, he was aware that he had been awarded power in his own right and he was sure that whatever happens, no one could take it away with ease, moreover, it is men like him who have the power to change the course of history ... Well, he had already secured more than one chapter all dedicated to it with the great conquest of the Golden Circle. The only problem , is that men like him, a couple of chapters are not enough ... It was clear that he would go further.