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| Chapter Two | |||||||
| The Castle | |||||||
| In an elegant and lavish mansion, in the remote mountains far above where the war was about to take place, six powerful people were gathered. For here, a rather exclusive party was being hosted and no one outside of the circle was allowed to join. Everyone present was having fun and was being entertained by the host -- Marty ?the king' Genners. | |||||||
| "May I have your attention please! The game has begun!" he called out. His guests applauded accordingly as a monitor lowered from the roof. On it showed a satellite view of the area the war was going to take place. | |||||||
| "As most of you know, Black has had a little difficulty - having lost the past three matches in a row, but I have a feeling this match will be much different. My bid will be on Black. Shall we wager the standard amount?" Marty asked curiously. He was the host of the gathering and was a retired veteran from the game and held the rank of Black King for near ten years and well over one hundred games. | |||||||
| "Why not? A billion dollars isn't irreplaceable." Duchess Gastin replied. She was a noble from Europe who left for mysterious reasons. But despite her departure, her influence overseas was nothing short of amazing. | |||||||
| "You are a glutton for punishment Marty. To be a sport, I will give you three to one odds. After all, I have to give you a chance to win some of your money back." Prince Fauthorth replied politely. He raised his Champaign glass to the host. He was a tribal prince from Africa who vanished from the media spotlight overnight. Rumors say that he controls every questionably legal or illegal resource that is exported or imported into the continent. | |||||||
| "A fool and his money are soon parted my friend. If you keep losing money as you are - you might have to come out of retirement." Jullien Thomas stated casually. He was the mayor of Unionsburge and was the person who knew everything that happened or was going to happen in or near his city. | |||||||
| "He's up to something - I'm wagering on Black this time." Ambassador Kotai said calmly. He was a representative from Japan who controlled sixty percent of all computer-related merchandise worldwide. | |||||||
| "I agree with you - but disagree as well. I know that he is up to something, but it won't make any difference. My wager is on white - and I too will give you three to one odds." Police Chief Quinton said rationally. He was a former FBI agent that went underground but still has incredible influence in Washington.	 | |||||||
| "The opening bets are now closed and are so recorded." Marty said calmly. The total money being wagered in this game was ten billion dollars, but for this gathering, that was almost the equivalent of a year's pay. | |||||||
| "Is there any new or old business that needs to be discussed?" Marty asked politely. Each of the people there took a hand-sized computer out. | |||||||
| "The Canadian Government has been asking questions again. But I placed a few phone calls, paid a few bribes and the town is invisible for another ten years. However, the money that I put into the venture was a little steep." Police Chief Quinton stated calmly. He took a few moments to do the calculations. | |||||||
| "How much?" Marty asked. | |||||||
| "The total comes to six hundred billion dollars. I also have all of the receipts in case someone believes I am padding the bill." He answered. | |||||||
| "It is the price we pay for our immunity. If the receipts are in order, you will be reimbursed for your troubles. Next order of business?" Marty asked casually. | |||||||
| "Keeping the equipment and weapons state of the art is not cheap - but make a long story short, the damage is only ten billion for the necessary upgrades." Ambassador Kotai added. Marty nodded. The number sounded right. | |||||||
| "You got us a better deal than last time. Keep up the good work. Next?" Marty stated. Over the course of the next hour and a half, business matters as local as new streetlights and global as International World Trade were addressed. Once that was dealt with, the group of people sat down and got ready to watch the show. | |||||||
| "To the game my friends..." Marty introduced. The monitor showed where the black warriors were and where the white soldiers were. As usual, the white soldiers had taken a forward position first, but the game was far from over. | |||||||
| To Be Continued... | |||||||