Fable III: Retold Chapter 24

Weight of the World
339 Days to go
"It warms my heart to see the treasury still so full, my retirement plans are looking better already, now our very first order of business the time has come to decide the annual town guard budget as you can imagine, the people like to complain about crime and lack of safety on our streets, and are calling for more guards than your brother was ever willing to pay for, you have three choices, you majesty, leave the budget as it is- -after all the people have grown accustomed to murder, theft, and contraband, increase the budget and fill the streets with soldiers keeping the peace, a rather costly solution or take a more considered approach by lowering the budget, for what is the point of a safe, well-policed kingdom when it is too poor to protect itself from certain annihilation?" Hobson said.
"I remember a good friend of mine complaining about the pay and I agree with him, as you can tell we are far from poor and I want my people safe so we will raise the guard budget" Adam said.
"Very wise you majesty, better to have a city with people to protect than without, let us now turn our attention to the rest of today's business, here is the royal schedule I have prepared" Hobson said.
~The King's Schedule~
Decide on the castle's decoration
Rule on the status of Aurora
Embark on a journey of adventure and exploration
"As you can see, you have a busy day in the court, but a tremendous enjoyable one, decoration is a passion of mine, and I simply cannot wait to see your choice the interior designers await you in the throne room" Hobson said.
Adam then made his way to the throne room where he was welcome with more cheers as he headed towards the throne.
"All stand for the king" Walter said as Anna stood by Walter and petting Xander head.
"Today you decide on the décor of the castle two of Albion's greatest interior designers have come to present their suggestions" Walter said.
"You may speak" Adam said.
"Your majesty, I am Herman Worthy and I have a design in mind that will blow your little royal socks off imagine a celestial scheme capable of lifting the shadows that haunt these halls a fabulous balance of serene hues that announce 'I am a strong, virtuous leader, hear me roar, but also look how pretty my home is' you are an enlightened king, let the heart of your castle be enlightened too" Herman said.
"Celestial? Serene? Pretty? Do you wish to be known as a ruler or as a fool? I purpose that we flood the rooms and corridors with blood, or at least a suitable paint substitute let all those who look upon this palace know terror, whether they be your subjects or your enemies" Sybil the Designer said.
"It may seem trivial, but appearances can affect the opinion of the entire kingdom, the choice is yours, your majesty" Walter said.
"Why do I get the feeling that woman did design homes with actual blood?" Anna whispered.
"I wish this to be an enlightened castle" Adam said as the people behind the rope cheered.
"On fabulous your majesty! Fabuolus! Your castle will be a vision of purity" Herman said.
"And once more, fashion and good taste must choke down their nausea" Sybil said.
"Excellent choice your majesty, you avoided having blood painted on these walls, ugh! Who hired that woman in the past?" Anna said as Kalin and Reaver entered the room.
"Kalin!" Anna said.
"Today you decide on the future of Aurora, your majesty" Walter said.
"Kalin will speak for her people, Reaver with dispute her cause" Walter said."You may speak" Adam said.
"I am here to seek the protection you promised, it is too long since my people felt safe, or knew of life without suffering we were honored to join your fight to claim Albion, now it is time we joined your kingdom, do what your brother failed to do, help rebuild Aurora, and protect it as you would your own land" Kalin said.
"There is nothing so noble as embracing other cultures, and I for once, could not be happier to count Aurora as part of Albion but surly they must work for that privilege, and I happen to know just how to put them to good service there is an abandon mine in the Auroran desert that holds enough materials to benefit the whole kingdom let us employ Kalin and her people to gather what resources there may be, that can be their payment" Reaver said.
"You're talking about forced labor!" Kalin said growled pointing at Reaver.
"Well, let's not get bogged in semantics, it's a fair transaction" Reaver said.
"I know you will not break your oath, you understand what we have been through" Kalin said to Adam.
"The choice is yours, your majesty" Walter said.
"I will keep my promise, Aurora will become part of Albion, and its people will be our equals in every way" Adam said as the Auroran people in the throne room cheered.
"The King has spoken, Aurora shall be rebuilt as part of Albion, and equal to every other part of the kingdom" Walter said.
"Thank you majesty, you have proven to be a man of honor, Aurora is proud to stand at your side" Kalin said.
"Reaver had some nerve suggesting such a thing! Thank you your majesty Kalin and her people really needed this" Anna said.
"I am a man of my word and I keep my promises" Adam said.
Sometime later The City of Aurora was rebuilt as Reaver once again made a speech.
"Welcome to the new and improved Aurora, an oasis of friendship, camaraderie, and many other lovely things visit the city that Reaver Industries rebuilt from sand, stone and corpses, enjoy the sunshine, the odd local customs and the heavy soldier presences, Aurora, a light blooming in the darkness."
Later that day Adam met back with Hobson in the treasury still high as ever.
"Excellent choice your majesty Aurora would have filled the treasury greatly but I guess we can find other ways to fill it some more, as a matter of fact we could already have stumbled upon such an opportunity, Aurora may not turn out to be a waster after all it seems that a group of Albion explores visiting Aurora have discovered a rare diamond in the desert they heard the legend of this extraordinary gem from the locals an, understandably set out to find it without a moment's regard for their own lives which may go some way to explaining why only one of the explores returned in on piece, he came back empty-handed, speaking of the hideous desert beings protecting the treasure, think of the glory, your majesty, the adventure! The romance!" Hobson said.
"Romance?" Adam said.
"Of course, you will of course bring Lady Annabel with you on your quest since you are so close, most of the kingdom assume you're her suitor" Hobson said.
"Were not like that, she my friend" Adam said.
"Of course your majesty, the diamond is located in one of the caves beneath the Auroran wasteland, reportedly the site of an ancient abandon temple, you need only to take it" Hobson said.
The Desert Star
"Whew! It is hot out here!" Anna said as they reached the Shifting Sands.
"The Desert Star is in a nearby abandon temple" Adam said.
"Shouldn't be too hard to find" Anna said.
"Now there is supposed to be some kind of beast protecting it" Adam said.
"What is it?" Anna asked as they stepped onto the sand as Sand Furies ambushed them.
"So this is where these things are from" Adam said as he and Anna quickly dispatched the creatures and entered a cave.
"Ugh! Being in a cave like this brings back memories of that place!" Anna shivered.
"I know, the Crawler is on his way to Albion in a year we must prepare for that attack" Adam said as they found an oasis.
"This looks promising" Anna said as they crossed the bridge and went up some stairs into some ruins.
"So far I've seen nothing but those Sand Furies" Adam said as they entered a large room.
"Maybe that legend was a lie?" Anna said as they spotted a large diamond at the end of the room.
"That's it!" Adam said.
"That thing is bigger than my fist" Anna said as Adam picked it up and Sand Furies began to ambush them.
"Vortex-Blade!" Adam yelled making all the Sand Furies spin in a tornado as swords stabbed into each one.
"You've really mastered those spells" Anna said.
"Come let's go" Adam said.
Later that day Adam handed Hobson the massive diamond as Hobson eyes widen.
"It's...it's more beautiful than I dared to imagine and heavy too! Our estimate it's worth a small fortune of course now the question becomes...what do you wish to do with this fine stone? Shall I deposit the money from the sale into the treasury or perhaps[s you would prefer the funds were channeled into, let us say, a more personal account?" Hobson asked.
"I have no need more it, place it in the treasury" Adam said.
"A truly selfless act, I am constantly awe of your generous and noble spirit putting the safety of your people before your own reward, bravo, your majesty, bravo" Hobson said.