The portal deposited the party on a dusty plane of red dirt and odd looking trees infront of a small town. Trent was looking
around admiring the flawless blue skies when Celia grabbed ahold of his and Matt's arm's and then pointed in fear. There was
an elderly and dignified looking man coming towards them wearing a richly embroidered red cloak of nobility.
"Not another king!" Trent groaned under his breath.
Matt was more sensible this time and chose to bow, a gesture which his companions followed. The man was obviously quite
impressed and smiled in a friendly manner to the three travelers as he spoke in an odd, almost English, accent. This would
have made the party grow even more apprehensive if not for the modern style of the town and the warmth his words held.
"Welcome to the Hutt River Province, I'm Prince Leonard of Hutt. I didn't know there was a tour coming so it's a good thing
I noticed you. What are your names and where do you hail from?" He asked curiously as he looked them over.
"I'm Trent and this is my girlfriend Celia and my friend Matt, we came from outside the country." He said, thinking it
best to avoid mentioning the United States since it might not even exist in whatever strange dimension they'd shown up in,
and was probably outlawed knowing his luck.
Prince Leonard chuckled a bit. "Well of course you came from outside the country, Hutt River Province is only about the
size of Hong Kong really. But come on I can show you more about that inside and we can get out of this sun."
The party unanimously agreed, thinking their current host to be a great deal more personable than Prince John or his sheriff.
They entered a museum like structure and the sovereign pointed out a rather large collection of art work, which was made all
the more impressive by the tiny size of the town they were in.
They were led to a desk where Prince Leonard asked for their passports which, naturally, none of them had. They exibited
some ID and their royal host was kind enough to give them passports issued by his country at a nominal fee charged to Matt's
credit card.
Next they had their photos taken with the ruler just because it seemed like the thing to do. There was a large flag set
up in one room and they posed infront of this with their host holding a large (and they hoped) ornamental sword. They continued
around the buildings, viewing many works of art. At the sight of a portrait of himself and several other people hte prince
stopped to explain.
"These are my wife Shirley and my seven children. The eldest is Crown Prince Ian who will one day succeed me to the throne.
In addition to them I like to think of everyone else living here as my extended family, and I've distributed noble titles
and such to reflect this. I've even got an honor guard of citizens that attends me at state fuctions!" He added proudly.
Throughout the entire tour of the building Prince Leonard seemed to be more a gracious tour guide than a haughty noble,
and the party quickly began to feel at ease in this small kingdom. Prince Leonard was kind enough to explain how the kingdom
seceded from Australia, which not only gave them an idea of what continent they were on, but a fascinating view into the man's
character.
"A lot of people believe that the Hutt River Province seceded over grain quotas. That's partly true. But what it really
comes down to is dignity. People will do things no one else could ever understand and the only reason for it is to keep their
dignity. I'm sure that's the reason for most of the times people quit their jobs. You can pay a bloke to do nearly any task,
but theres no way you can pay him to give upo his dignity.
The government was trying to push me around, and it's when something big and seemingly untouchable is pushing you that
you really have to stand up. That's just the Australian way, and certainly the way of my kingdom." He said with a smile that
gained approving and even rather impressed looks from the assemblage.
By the time they'd had a quick lunch and then been treated to a tour of the town's interdenominational chapel and soemthing
called the gemstone caern they were shown to a campsite where they could rest for the night. They lacked sleeping bags or
tents, but there was running water to drink and wash with and the night was clear. They made a simple dinner with some supplies
they'd bought and then bedded down on the open grass.
Trent had no trouble falling into sleep, he rarely ever did unless he was attempting to avoid it. Tomorrow the portal would
open and he would walk through it as was becoming his usual routine. He would greet what might lie on the other side with
his usual stoicism and fearlessness. His two friends, however, weren't so certain and slept rather fitfully.
Continue to CH 16
