Prince Joseph weighed his mind upon the castle of PNC Bank on College Avenue before him, atop this gnarled hill which towered even above the forest surrounding it. The satchel upon his shoulder bore the scroll requiring affixation of the mighty Medallion seal in order to effect the desires of his mother the queen, to add prince John as rightful joint owner of the royal fortune guarded by T. Rowe Price from lands far away.
The legend attached to the court of PNC Bank was of great notoriety. It indeed held great power and wealth, rooted in ages of once proud and judicious prosperity, with castles all across mother Earth. It had afforded a Medallion seal unmatched in ability by any other castle in the village, the only one with sufficient might to satisfy a task of such great inheritance as the five hundred chests of gold bullion prince Joseph's father the king had left to his queen and his heirs. Still, the castles of PNC Bank were ruled by a lord from behind some of the tallest walls on Earth, and the people regarded that the abundant strength over the course of generations had come to gradually harden its heart, as evidenced by the dismal wilderness of brambles, shadows and wolves in which he presently stood.
Prince Joseph was nonetheless emboldened. Befitting the talents bestowed upon him by the lineage of his parents, he served the Commonwealth of Vernon Krossing Condominiums as its treasurer, and had engaged in plentiful encounters with the maidens who joyfully received deposits to its account there. To secure the Medallion seal beneath his signature, tho, would require more bravery, and dealings with the knight within, Todd.
"I come with but a simple request," began the prince. "My mother the queen has set upon her heart a vision of joint ownership of the family fortune with my brother. The guardians of T. Rowe Price demand a Medallion seal to certify the truthfulness of my signature for all who see it, in the interest that thieves may not steal off with the riches through plots of deceit. Will you help me?"
Todd regarded the scroll laid before him with the sharpened eyebrow of reluctance, as if dealing with black magic and pondering a means to slay the sorcerer before him. When he spoke, it was with the loftiness of one descended from angels, or perhaps griffins.
"I see here blank swaths of parchment with room for three signatures. Yet I see only one of you," he said with eyes twinkling like ice. "Might your queen and her other prince be shrouded in my presence with cloaks of invisibility?"
"By no means dear Todd," replied prince Joseph. "The guardians of T. Rowe Price require but a single signature in this vast space, that of my own. Likewise the queen's Harris Bank of Bloomingdale has affixed its seal properly in that fashion, and I humbly entreat you to do the same."
A grin of bedeviled satisfaction spread across Todd's countenance. "Dear, dear, dear prince," he deigned. "These are darkened times in which we live. The threat of those who would tarry off with the rightful riches of innocent villagers has put upon us all a rule of security. Surely you understand the perils that would befall PNC Bank if we were to affix the Medallion seal upon your name, and later you were to inscribe the signatures of those less worthy in the remaining space?"
"Yes, rightly so, I understand the necessity of law to protect our brethren and your own good name," the prince retorted, "But suppose that I were to obscure the space which remains with an expanse of inky blackness from my quill in your presence? Would not that defeat the evil that threatens our mutual quest?"
Todd retreated, his eyes slits of partial vanquishment. "Perhaps," he said with a voice worthy of a snake's enchantment. "Tho I should consult the Book of Decrees from the lord of the castles of PNC Bank for such a case."
A moment of gray inspiration crossed his face. "You do, of course, have account with us here?"
"'Tis true enough. It pleases me to share you with you any manner of tales from my encounters as treasurer of the Commonwealth with your fair maidens."
The wicked grin returned, and tones thick with the cunning of the netherworld.
"Oh sir, this simply cannot do," said Todd. "The quest is ended here, and must fail, since you bear no account with us of your own person. The Book requires it so."
Prince Joseph steeled himself. "Then I shall return, with shillings in hand, open account with you, and succeed."
"We shall see," Todd sneered.
Prince Joseph rode Saturn home with determined spirit, filling several bags plentifully with farthings and shillings, silver and gold. Frankincense and myrrh. And before the sun had moved with much import across the sky, he returned to the castle holding the treasure aloft before a merry maiden at the gate.
"I am here to form account with you," said the prince, "and come bearing more than enough to prove my honorable intent."
"The pleasure is ours, my liege," said the maiden, snatching the bags instantly and tossing them into the abyss of reserve. "We are a full service bank, ready to meet your every need. Perhaps you would like counsel with Patrick, our oracle of financial planning?"
"Your words are valiant, if they are true, my lady," declared the prince. "But my quest is clear and simple, with no need of such wizardry. I request audience with your knight Todd, keeper of the Medallion seal."
Todd emerged from the shadows. "So you have returned," he said.
"On my honor, I have done just that," replied Joseph.
"And you have, of course, secured from T. Rowe Price a scroll which contains space for but a single signature?"
"Fair sir, most certainly not! Your Book had established no such demand, in your words."
"Words not upon my lips, yet appearing in the Book, are words nonetheless, are they not?" said Todd with bleak mirth, his head cocked with satisfaction to a side, his gaze fixed upon the helplessness of the prince triumphantly. Then, in a moment, he vanished.
The empty chamber cast no pall upon the prince's resolve, as he whirled to leave. "I shall not fail," he said, "There is a path, and by heaven I shall find it."
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