A small crowd began to gather in the plaza out in front of the Rhy'din Town Hall as Ebon Ilnaren stood upon the steps as various microphones, cameras, and recorders pointed at him. "Thank you, thank you. I'll be brief."
"For the past two years, it has been my honor and, most of the time, my pleasure to serve Rhy'din as your Governor. I first ran....more or less on a whim, really, but as I began campaigning and talking with friends, I came to realize that the Governor's office is an excellent tool for bringing us all closer together. I admit that I was fortunate enough not to have to deal with plagues or massively destructive storms, as some of my predecessors faced....although I did get a rash of fires across the city last year, so maybe I should leave well enough alone." He chuckled, and it spread through the plaza.
"No, my tenure as Governor has been marked more by celebrations and community than anything else, and for that I want to thank you, all of you." Beat. "Yes, even you. We're a city of diversity, and there are those who say we shouldn't mix. To that, I call shenanigans!" A thoughtful expression came over Ebon's face. "My wife is a jeweler, and a talented one if I do say so myself. One day I was watching her at her craft, and a gemstone rolled off her worktable, onto the floor. It was a star sapphire—not overly large, she was planning to put it into a pendant for a friend—and Phen had carefully cut it so that, as I held it up, the myriad facets reflected the sunlight from the window. Each facet by itself was dazzling, but the whole stone, with all of them flashing in their turn, was truly glorious."
"As I handed the stone back to Phen, it occurred to me that it represented the city of Rhy'din in miniature. Every one of us—every individual, or family, or neighborhood—shines in our own right, and we are all right to revel in what makes us unique. Yet at the same time, the many facets of Rhy'din complement each other in fascinating ways, so that the whole is a place of wonder."
Pausing for a moment, Ebon let out a short, huffy laugh. "I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to wax poetic, or perhaps it's pretentious to think that I was even doing that. I have been manning the Governor's office for two years, and now it's someone else's turn. I have every faith that she will serve with dignity and respect as I have, and I congratulate her on her victory in the election."
He stepped away from the press for a moment, then back again. "Thank you all, once again. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a lunch date with my wife and a vacation to plan!" Making his way down the steps, Ebon declined all questions from the press, but did take time to shake many a hand in the crowd before joining Phen and heading off.
"For the past two years, it has been my honor and, most of the time, my pleasure to serve Rhy'din as your Governor. I first ran....more or less on a whim, really, but as I began campaigning and talking with friends, I came to realize that the Governor's office is an excellent tool for bringing us all closer together. I admit that I was fortunate enough not to have to deal with plagues or massively destructive storms, as some of my predecessors faced....although I did get a rash of fires across the city last year, so maybe I should leave well enough alone." He chuckled, and it spread through the plaza.
"No, my tenure as Governor has been marked more by celebrations and community than anything else, and for that I want to thank you, all of you." Beat. "Yes, even you. We're a city of diversity, and there are those who say we shouldn't mix. To that, I call shenanigans!" A thoughtful expression came over Ebon's face. "My wife is a jeweler, and a talented one if I do say so myself. One day I was watching her at her craft, and a gemstone rolled off her worktable, onto the floor. It was a star sapphire—not overly large, she was planning to put it into a pendant for a friend—and Phen had carefully cut it so that, as I held it up, the myriad facets reflected the sunlight from the window. Each facet by itself was dazzling, but the whole stone, with all of them flashing in their turn, was truly glorious."
"As I handed the stone back to Phen, it occurred to me that it represented the city of Rhy'din in miniature. Every one of us—every individual, or family, or neighborhood—shines in our own right, and we are all right to revel in what makes us unique. Yet at the same time, the many facets of Rhy'din complement each other in fascinating ways, so that the whole is a place of wonder."
Pausing for a moment, Ebon let out a short, huffy laugh. "I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to wax poetic, or perhaps it's pretentious to think that I was even doing that. I have been manning the Governor's office for two years, and now it's someone else's turn. I have every faith that she will serve with dignity and respect as I have, and I congratulate her on her victory in the election."
He stepped away from the press for a moment, then back again. "Thank you all, once again. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a lunch date with my wife and a vacation to plan!" Making his way down the steps, Ebon declined all questions from the press, but did take time to shake many a hand in the crowd before joining Phen and heading off.