From: intraphase@gmail.com

"The Blue Prince has won the choice"

The Blue Prince looked across at his twin brother who was blind and thought to offer the choice to him but knew the level of scorn he would receive from the Blind Prince and simply took the top story and pushed the bottom story the few inches across the table where it was caught by the waiting hand of the Blind Prince. Both young boys placed the new stories under their beggars cloakings next to the empty case that was now refilled with empty sheaths awaiting the resumption of the Sacred Battle of The Two Princes.

The Grey Rider had snatched the golden coin and was staring at the
table fingering it a short distance from his eyes while both boys made sure the full and empty cases each boy carried were secured properly in the fold of their under clothings. Satisfied that they would be safe for the journey up the opposite mountain the boys stood back from the table.

"Exchange"

The Blind Prince pulled up on a golden chain that drew a large pink diamond surrounded by rubies and placed it on his side of the table while his brother pulled up on a golden chain which withdrew a large pink diamond surrounded by the rare blue onyx and placed it on his side of the table.
Both boys stepped back and the Grey Rider stepped forward switching
the gemstone pendants, both boys stepped forward and watched by the Grey Rider placed the still warm exchanged pendants around their necks and fluffed their clothings letting it fall to the level of the heart. The Grey Rider stepped backwards and allowed the young princes to move in a clockwise direction assuming the others place where they paused.
Picking up the small table he pushed open the trap door above as the sound of a great coach passing overhead on the bridge plankings was heard.

"Too The Black Castles and Begin The Battle"

The Grey Rider ascended the eight steps of the ladder and disappeared into the still circling dust that had risen upwards when he jumped and closed the trap door with a reassuring thwack and closed its tiny hasp with an audible click. The young princes eager to read their own private story and begin the intricate transfers involved in reading the other princes story quickly embraced and then spit in each other’s right hand and shook swearing eternal vengeance against the other.
Evil Tolltaker Y-Clang was out of the greycoat and black boots long before the princes were through with their embraces and had the satchel and clothings back at the bottom of the triple locked box below the secret panel long before they had continued in opposite directions to cross the bridge.
Opening the door of the tollbooth and unlocking its windows he pretended to release the dregs of an empty tea pot over the side of the bridge while observing the Lady Dark Eyes without disguises step into the waiting carriage of the Dark Society reclusive Leper Woman which had recrossed during the exchange and parked two blocks up the hill from the bridge on the side of the Great City. The small beautiful ivory skinned Lady Small Feat was already on the river bank and walking towards the catwalk underbridge to lead the dusty blind beggar boy who seemed to be lost and waiting under the Bridge of Silence. In the waiting carriage Lady Dark Eyes watched the very tiny petite Lady Small Feat lead the dusty beggar boy from under the bridge and politely walk him the two blocks up the hill where he was offered a ride by the waiting carriage which discreetly disappeared moving higher and higher into the soaring mountainside of the Great City.

Evil Tolltaker Y-Clang stood petulantly at the bridges railing cursing the teapot and shaking it gently about trying to get the stuck leaves off of the bottom of the narrow mouthed teapot and saw Bhagda Duder prepare to cross
the Bridge of Silence again for the third time that day having leapt from his perch on the rear of the speeding great coach that had back tracked and recrossed the Raging River.
Suddenly reaching into his pocket as if he had forgotten the fare for the tolltaker he turned around dejectedly and slowly walked away from the bridge striking up a conversation with a dusty beggar who asked for directions and was lead high into the mountains by Bhagda Duder who was no longer wearing the black silk jacket with the double golden dragon but a simple temple tunic.
As they wound their way ever higher under the watchful eyes of the temples Golden Dragons and their commanders in the secret Golden Leafs the beggar boy pulled out a dusty hand cloth and asked if the temple keeper would dispose of it where it dirts and grimey diseases would cause no harm.
The Double Golden Dragon secret temple warrior marveled that the new Red Prince had been able to get the first segment out of the case read and memorize it and then fold it into his Gold Leafed Jade Pendant so quickly while his feet were occupied and busy navigating the short catwalk of the underbridge. Bhagda was relieved when the young prince said to take his time throwing it away because it was riddled with disease and had been worn by an evil river spirit who slunk into the Countryside at night consuming children who were unwanted by their parents and it had great evils attached so it
must be disposed of in a most proper and permanent way.
The dusty beggar had inquired if there were any frothing volcanoes where the evil handcloth could be destroyed in the fiery raging infernos of the inner earths hellish bowels. Bhagda had said he would ask all about and see if this was possible but in either case he would see to the destruction of the diseased cloth and looked into the hooded grey beggars cloaking as the boy turned and grinned a wide friendly smile.
Bhagda whimsically mused that maybe the Blind Princes twin brother was
not as evil as had been rumored.


Cry-Chang-E Chorus

Such a busy morning on the Bridge of Silence shall the furious pace of activities never slow for the lowly Tolltaker and his friend the
great and Noble Seer to play a game of checkers.



With the sun rising high in the midday sky Evil Tolltaker Y-Clang
unfurled the awning that protected the two small stools and checkers table he and Soothsayer Iguanna used to pass the afternoon shaded from the strong
heat of the sun directly overhead. Seeing the daily unfolding of the awning
El Diablero walked out to the middle of the bridge carrying a tiny
stool to sit upon while he would pass some time placing secret wagers to himself under cups which neither player could see to try and guess the outcome of each game. It pleasantly passed the slowest hours of the transport and carriage shop business while allowing the urchins in his employ time to slow down in the high heat of the midday carriage shop chores.




El Diablero politely inquired:


"Soothsayer Iguanna have you had any visions you would share with we the lowly merchantmen and extortionist of the traveling peoples"

"Yes El Diablero, I saw a time in the distant future in this very
spot and also many far off lands where there were glowing crystals that passed secret messages from seers, merchants, assassins and spies and bankers alike. These crystal were sometimes close and sometimes at great distant places and sites and were of many sizes shapes and powers but were all hooked to great spidery lines of lightening that fired back and forth causing many spirits and entities to linger upon the messages and meanings that these future beings with their magic crystals would exchange. Some of the crystal were driven by waves of dark light that circled in the sky and crossed the mountains like silvery birds bringing rods of lightening that only the crystal could see"


" Iguanna Hagawanna you are the Soothsayer you are not a licensed thief. Assure my wine addled debauched personage that you have not gone into the secret box in the tollbooth and read one of the stories I have most recently written. Swear it upon the damnation casting of your ancestors to Raging River and its many evil spirits"

" I have done no such thing and you should this very moment leap into
the Raging River and allowed yourself to be consumed and purged of these unclean demons by its pure water for daring to suggest such a thing of this humble Noble Prophet"

El Diablero spoke up softly hoping to mediate the dispute and not interrupt the daily pleasure of his wagerings and bettings trying to guess
the outcomes of the checker games and the flexible scoring mechanisms that were used to make the game more interesting.

"That was an amazing vision Iguanna for one who truly knows what the future holds. Yet surely you a man privy to the untold secrets of the many amazing unseen worlds could understand Tolltakers concern for the daily propriety of his position of responsibility and trust as Tolltaker on the Bridge of Silence"


The day wound on and down with many games of checkers and secret wagerings until the time of the bridges closing for the nights resting time and as a citizen protection from the bridges potential flooding or washout caused by the icey glacial packs in the northern mountains that could be loosed by the warm daytime sun and then briefly dammed before the built up water would
break thru and rush like a small tidal wave down the rocky gorge of the swiftly moving Raging River.

Always after a Single Bridge Double Back gambit the Evil Tolltaker
Y-Clang went home very quickly without stopping or allowing a single delay for drinking or gambling and went straight to his small house at the edge of the Great City and hurriedly climbed the five stories to the gardened roof of his small home. Drawing out a spyglass from a copper metal tubing and
placing it on its waiting tripod he sat with spyglass in hand trained upward to both side of the rivers high mountains where he could barely see the twin tea cup shaped rocks above the Black Castles on the Countryside and the Great City side of the river.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: www.darkrealms.ca (1:229/2)