Dallas Introduction

The 9-hour flight from London is rather dull but flying during the day to arrive refreshed by evening does have its perks. I'm glad that jet lag was never a thing for us. The air is warm and sticky unlike the cold crisp air of London. As I deboard, there is a limo waiting for me at Love field private jet entrance. The gentleman tells me it's courtesy of Miss Adrianna. I cheerfully accept and am whisked away to the Adolphis hotel for gathering. As we arrive at the hotel, I gather my gift for his Majesty the prince. I understand that the prince is an Invictus, and boy howdy do I know how they enjoy being reminded of that undying lineage bullshit they so long to cling to. Well he will enjoy this ,master craftsman sword from the 100 year war. It was reportedly used by an English Invictus general named Marcus Pendrum who led an initial charge on the beaches of Pordic to gain the English a foothold in France.
 
Entering the doors of Elysium, Daniel is greeted by the lovely Adrianna. "Good Evening Daniel! How was your flight?" "It was long but gratefully uneventful. I see Henry was to busy to be bothered to attend?" "Well you know your brother and how he feels about anything Invictus" she sighs. Shortly after their exchange of pleasantries, the Prince enters the room. "Good Evening and welcome. I am glad you came and would like to welcome you to Dallas. For those that have business with me, please feel free to meet." The prince glances to Adrianna, then to me " Ahh Priscus I see your guest is here. Shall we meet?" We follow the prince to his meeting room. During our walk I take time to notice his attire. Grey pin stripped suit, dark shirt, and ... there it is, a purple tie. Oh the subtle hints the Invictus like to use to distinguish their clans amongst the First Estate. The man is most likely Ventrue. The Lords of the night, will he be as pompous as most? There is a hitch in his step, a little bow legged walk. Maybe a cowboy? We are in Texas, it is not out of the realm of possibility. Maybe he is more a salt of the Earth kind of man, still he stands tall and walks proud.
 
We are beckoned to take a seat. The prince gestures for another man in the corner of the room to join us at the table. This individual looks like a mix between a thug and a hacker. Baggy pants, hippie hat, and is that mascara? With the dimness of the light it was hard to tell. The man quietly sits down and pulls out a laptop and nods to the prince. his majesty looks to Adrianna " Will you be staying Priscus?" "No your majesty unless I am required" He shakes his head and she takes her leave. " Mr. Daniel Grant? Do you use any other titles or names?" " No your Majesty, Daniel or Mr. Grant is fine" "Mr. Grant what brings you to my city?" "Well your majesty first allow me to present you with a gift as is customary for Fiefdoms of the Invictus. May I present to you this antique sword of General Marcus Pendrum of the Invictus. This is my token to you for hospitality in your city and to acknowledge your great strength and wisdom like that of General Pendrum." (Good job Daniel, lay it on thick, play to that ego of his). The prince takes the sword and gives it a once over glance and places on the floor next to him. ( Wait did he not like the gift? Was a sword the wrong read? He didn't give it any merit, not good) " So Mr. Grant, what brings you to my city?" " "Well your majesty I am looking to expand business operations for universal exports, collecting and cataloging antiques and artifacts. We have looked into expanding into Central and South America, more specifically Maya and Aztec cultures" " I see, are these activities illegal? " no sir not to my knowledge" "Are you intending on staying in the city?" "Yes sir, I would like to seek hospitality in the city if you deem it so" (Wait for it, does he rubber stamp it or does he grill me because I'm Carthian?) As I ponder these thoughts, I notice that the Prince is slightly stalling and looking at the man to his right. The man is typing fervently while pausing with some "uh huh, yup, uh huh". He finally looks up from his screen and gives a nod to the prince " He is clean sir. Nothing outstanding or illegal about him." (That's a relief, I guess this Grant identity created by the CIA really passes the mustard) " Ok then Mr. Grant, just one final piece of business" the Prince pulls out a contract and a ramekin. "I'm going to need you to read and sign this" . Having received an advance copy from Adrianna I was able to read and prep. I reach into my coat pocket and pull out an antique pen, use the sharp end to prick a spot on my wrist to drain enough blood into the ramekin. (Oh these Invictus and their oaths. Always wanting to control what they can't have. how does Henry put up with this?) I dab the pen into the blood ink and sign my name. (Of the oaths that I have seen, this one is very simplistic and to the point, don't do dumb stuff and/or don't get caught. Maybe the reason he overlooked his gift is because he is more laid back than his counterparts in the First Estate? Maybe I'm off my game tonight but this man is a little harder to read."
 
He extends his hand to shake mine. "Welcome to the city Mr. Grant, we look forward to seeing you around. Remember to speak with your Priscus about acquiring a plot to set up your home" " Thank you for your time and hospitality this evening your majesty." I stand up and take my leave. ( I guess he might be more laid back than I initially thought)
 
The night passes and I have an opportunity to catch up with some new folks in the city and a small surprise to see the former hound of London here. I will have to spend more time with him to inquire on the why of his visit.
 
The evening concludes with the Prince sharing a bit of his background. he was once a cowboy, but now a prince. The same prince who stated he is only prince because he was " The last man standing of the exodus of Dallas in 2008. ( I now see him more as a warden and maritally focused. The politics seems to bore him. But why did he snub the sword?)
 
While I try to piece the puzzle together, The Prince talks about a theory problem called the trolley experiment. The discussion was based on who to save if two groups were to be hit by a train. The important lesson to learn, it does not matter race, sex, political or religious stance, all the herd is valuable and need to be protected. With this knowledge, he gave us blessing to begin building a herd.