Perfidy?

Seashore of Celestine

"First answer me, who controls a nation?" Orin looked at Brynn and Rhea.

"I guess the King, maybe his ministers?" Brynn couldn't find more specific answers.

"I think you are wrong...if a King lost all his money and became poor...will you still regard him as a King?" Orin's voice sounded calm.

"Maybe not...but that makes no sense. Why would the King lose all his money in the first place?" Brynn looked at Rhea and found she had no idea as well.

"That's not my point. I am saying that people's respect, people's power, people's reputation are all linked to one thing and that is money...if power is everything then the Commander and the soldiers would rule the kingdom." Orin lit a cigar from his pockets and started smoking.

Both Brynn and Rhea were silent. They were not thinking that in such depth.

"A King with very little physical strength and intellect rules the whole kingdom on the basis of money. Then why we businessmen, having that much money can't do the same thing as well? We, people can be manipulated so easily....isn't it? It's simply a shadow on the great wall. During noon, a large object casts a very small shadow, but during sunset, a very small object can cast a very large shadow as well. Money...if no such thing exists then we won't be here becoming billionaire businessmen....imagine if tomorrow something like "Money" will be removed and all memories and existence regarding it will also be removed...then we will be no better than a street dog. All sorrows, distress, losses, wars,mayhem, separations, all were because the thing 'Money' exists." Orin sat on the sand and started watching waves of the sea.

The words of Orin were way too complex for Brynn and Rhea to absorb the whole. They remained silent and sat beside Orin.

"Oh, I forgot the main thing. I have spoken to the owner of the ship and they will take the goods there. We will carry not only weapons but also large quantities of food. They are all bluffing. Our real objective will be to claim and rule there. We did not meet the owner of the ship directly. So he sent it to me by tearing off half a dollar. There he has the other half. Who will match it with him if we go. This will be the identity of the real us. But before that there is another job left." After saying so much at once, he stopped to catch his breath.

"It's a big tour, so we will need a lot of money. I thought we would create a bank account that would be for trading. We will all save money together. And we can withdraw money together. There will be a password for this that the three of us will only know. We will use it to withdraw or deposit money. I already made the account, now I am going to share the passwords." He wrote the password in three papers, kept one of them with him, and gave the others to them.

Scadrial, Ambrosia (2 days after)

It was the biggest city and a great wonder of Ambrosia. It was way ahead of its time. The things that people dreamed of back then were in that city.

Orin, Brynn and Rhea came to the city on a ship to visit the bank.

Brynn asked,"Wait a minute! We are going to a place which is completely isolated from the outer world....so why the hell are we keeping our money here? How will we get the money if no such banks exist there?"

"If we rule there, we have to establish a bank there too...building a bank is nothing compared to what I have planned there. Just wait and watch" Orin took out three suitcases and gave one to Brynn. They started looking out for the well-designed city. The city seemed to never be asleep. They entered a bank named 'Bank of Prosperity'. They showed their business cards to the security guard and he showed them the way to deposit money to Trading Accounts.

"It's a matter of security...so we have to enter one by one...in our group there is only a girl...so Rhea you enter first." Orin showed his hand towards the deposit section of the bank.

Rhea entered the room. There was a big machine, from where a green light was blinking continuously. She took out her card and put it where it was shown 'Insert your card to proceed.' After inserting, the screen changed. Then it showed,'Enter the amount of money you want to enter in your bank account.' There was a keyboard on the bottom. She entered : $5000000 and selected the confirm option. Then it was shown 'Enter the password.' She entered the password. Then she opened her suitcase, inserted all the money into the machine. After 5 minutes, she returned back.

At this time, Orin and Brynn were exploring the bank. They saw not only the city, but the bank was also very much ahead of time. These types of machines weren't available in most other countries during that time. The workers there seemed to be super-humans. They were no longer humans. No human could work that fast.

They were exploring, then they saw a girl wearing black suit, white shirt and black trousers. It was Rhea. They showed their hands if she did it. She showed thumbs to ensure that. Then added,"I am going outside till you both credit money. I want to explore the city so badly."

"Of course, don't worry. If you get lost, just ask anyone where the 'Bank of Prosperity' is." Brynn teased her.

"I won't get lost." Rhea quickly left.

Her quick departure felt different to them.

"Isn't she becoming a bit more aggressive today?" Brynn looked at Orin, then smiled.

"I don't think so, anyways. We should not forget what we have to do." Orin back smiled.

"Alright. I am going to enter first." Brynn took the card out of his pocket.

Rhea came out of the bank and took a carriage and told him to go to Scadrial Port. Sitting inside, she took her face outside and started enjoying the cold breeze outside. Then she took out the paper where the password was written, given by Orin. She twisted, curled the paper, then threw it out.

"How long will it take to reach the destination?" Rhea asked, raising her voice.

"Less than 25 minutes, Madam." The carriage-man answered quickly.

'Fine', Rhea thought in her own mind.

Inside the Bank

Brynn credited his money, came back and was waiting for Orin to return.

'Should I wait or go outside to Rhea. This is a great opportunity to talk to her. It's not bad, is it? Anyways, it's far better than waiting for that brat.' Brynn thought and smiled.

When he was about to leave, Orin returned and told that he did it.

"Should we leave now? Anything else we are forgetting? I don't think so. But let's recall." Orin wanted a double-check because it was some million dollars they were talking about.

"I am thirsty. I need some drinks then I will come to my senses." Brynn wanted to go outside, so he insisted.

"Fine." Orin replied shortly.

After buying two drinks, they both took one of them and started enjoying their drinks.

"Where is Rhea? I searched everywhere but I couldn't find her. I was kidding back then but is she really lost?" Brynn became anxious.

"She isn't a kid that will get lost. She said she wants to travel the city, didn't she? Don't worry, she will be fine and return soon." Orin assured Brynn.

They both became silent enjoying their drinks and observing the city.

"How much money do we have now in our account?" Brynn broke the silence.

"I don't know either." Orin answered in a disinterested voice.

"Let's check it, will you?" Brynn became impatient.

"I understand you are not worried about Rhea now." Orin moved towards the Bank entrance, mocking Brynn.

Orin and Brynn went to the cash withdrawal counter. Besides it, there was a screen where one could check bank balance.

Orin entered his card, then the screen showed 'Enter password to check balance.' Orin quickly entered the password then after pressing confirm, they both were shocked to see the screen. They thought there must be some mistakes. So they tried again and again but there was no change.

"There must be some technical issues. There might be some problems with my card also. Give me your card. We have to check it again." Orin was overwhelmed with anxiety.

Brynn took out his card and gave it to Orin. Orin inserted the card and entered the password, this time looking at the paper so no mistake could occur. His hands were shaking but he carefully entered all the characters and pressed the enter button. But both of them were perplexed to see the screen. It was still the same. In the screen on red fonts, it was showing,'INCORRECT PASSWORD. ACCESS DENIED.'