The Worlds Greatest Gamblers

I wanted the post the first couple pages of a completed project in hopes to receive some feedback.
The story is going to follow multiple characters but the plot is a Wizard disguised as a human has recruited a teenage orphan to help overthrow a King that he feels is unfit to rule. I wanted to post the first 3 chapters but its too many words and would get removed by the mods.
A stone. “All this for a damn stone, Link.” Max said with a laugh as he looked over toward his hound. Link’s mouth was wide open, and his tongue was flapping around like the tail on a horse. The tips of his razor-sharp teeth peaked from behind his fur. They were just about finished making his way across the desert. He hadn’t seen rain in almost a week and was just about out of food and water. The rays from the sun were taking their toll.
Max was about six and a half feet tall. He was also blunt compared to most. He was thick like a tree, but it was all muscle. Max felt his exposed skin beginning to burn. He was no stranger to the sun, but his skin was much lighter than the Yarudos that lived here. He wore a straw hat to keep his head cool and to hide his blonde hair. He felt the beads of sweat racing down his back and all he could think of was his next glass of water. His Minling fed mostly on insects and could easily hunt for itself, even while crossing the wastelands. That didn’t matter though, because they were less than a half hour from the city of Nan.
Their journey thus far had been pretty uneventful, just the way Max liked it. Along the way he passed a few buggies and carriages, which was nothing out of the ordinary on a trip like this. In fact, he thought he would have come across more strange people. Once he got to the desert plains of Yarudo he knew he would be on his own. If the Yarudo army found a foreigner wandering through their desert, then that foreigner would be as good as dead. Luckily for Max he was no ordinary foreigner.
Max was certain he could’ve reached his destination by now if he didn’t fool around before getting to the desert. Procrastination was his worst enemy. More daunting than the demons he’s faced before. He stopped in just about every saloon in each town he passed through to try out their best ale. He was no better than a wild dog chasing anything that moved. He was very fond of ale and had a knack for drinking too many of them. Back home he was known as the town Alcoholic.
In the distance, over the blanket of dirt covering the ground, Max could see his destination. The silhouette was almost as refreshing as the ice-cold water he planned to drink when he got there. Being sandwiched between the sun and the dessert was an unwelcoming feeling. If he had a tub filled with water, he wouldn’t hesitate to jump in face first, submerging himself for as long as his lungs would let him.
Up ahead, the ground had drawn its own line. Beyond the line sat invigorating green grass that stretched miles to meet the richest and most beautiful city suspended from the mountain tops. It was a place of dreams, everything about the city felt so advanced. On the other side of that line was an old sign. It was short, the wood was old and almost rotted. The writing was worn, and Max could only make out half of it. “Nan Station This Way” it said with an arrow.
An elder Ranger once told Max that this city was built for people like them. A place of pure entertainment to ease the mind from real world issues. “The problem was that you always have to return to the real world, your concerns may not follow you in, but they will be waiting at the gate when you leave.” His voice still echoed through Max’s thoughts.
As he approached the city, Max saw a small hut attached to a row of stables that lined the mountain's base. He tied his Horse, TK Horse Name, to a post and marched on a small hut attached to a long line of stables sat at the bottom of the mountain where Max would keep his horse for the time being. There it would be fed and taken care of until he returned for it.
Darkness would soon fall and Max knew the plains couldn’t protect what the darkness might bring. He gripped the reigns and kicked Thunder with both heels urging him to pick up the pace for time’s sake. The destrier made a nicker before his trot turned into a jog. Link noticed this and began keeping pace with the horse. Kicking up dust each time it’s paws fiercely met the ground. The Minling flew overhead. Making a screeching sound like a fierce eagle and casting its shadow on the ground below.
​
***
The man working the way station at the base of the mountain had done so on and off for a short time. He made a living in his earlier life up in the city, but his time was running short and his luck was gone. He now took a position checking people in and out of the station that lead to the city. The station gave a means of transportation from the bottom of the mountain to the gates of the city, it also was used as an equine station to keep traveller’s horses well maintained in the meantime.
Max pulled his horse up to the front of the stables and whistled at one of the little boys that was working at the equine station. There was a wooden shack next to a pulley system that sent travellers up the mountain side. A ski lift of sorts. The wooden shack had three full walls and a fourth that was a half wall. A wooden counter topped the half wall. This was where customers would come to make payments for transportation up the mountain. On the other side of the counter from Max was a little old man who was in charge of it all. His upper body was thin. His shirt was loose fitting and dirty. He was bald on the top of his head but had long dark hair on the sides that covered his ears. His face was round and shiny, like the top of his head.
A little boy came sprinting from the stables, half naked and missing some teeth. “What I do for ya, mistah?” he asked with a high-pitched voice. Max felt sorry for the young boy. So much out there in the world to explore and here was a child, probably not even ten, stuck here for the rest of his life. Maybe he’d make enough one day to get out. Even then, he would have no real direction or sense of what to do. This was all he would know.
“I’ll tell you what, kid. You bring this special horse of mine a good breakfast every morning and there will be two more of these when I get back.” Max said as he flashed the two brightest coins the little boy had ever seen. Max flipped him one. “Two more when I return, you got it?” he asked politely.
The boy’s eyes grew as wide as hard boiled eggs. “Is this from Motral?” he said as he waved the coin up at the tall, strong man. The coin had the word ‘Mortral’ engraved in it. It was silver and shining like the stars in the night.
“You betcha.” Max replied. He tapped at the bag on his waistline to ensure the boy he had plenty more.
The boy grabbed the horse by its reigns and rubbed it’s long main the way a sailor would rub a patch of dirt after a year at sea. “What’s her name?” the little boy asked as his cheek was pressed against the horse’s nose while looking up at Max.
“I call him Thunder.” The boy perked up.
“I’m sorry, I thought you was a lady.” He said looking at the beautiful horse. “I’ll take good care of you, Thunda’. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe while ya masta’ is gone.” The boy started leading the horse to it’s stable.
The old man behind the counter had seen all kinds of people come and go from this city, but none dressed like the man in front of him. His arrangement of suede and blue garments was of the nicest known to man. He just knew if he could reach out and touch it that it would feel like the comforting touch of a woman, nothing was more comforting than the smooth palms of a woman. Or maybe a freshly made bed after nights of absence. The light brown boots looked almost brand new despite the dust stains, which matched the stains on his dark colored pants, which gave away that he came from the wastelands. What kind of moron would travel through there alone? Or better yet, what type of man could survive it? The old man thought to himself. The blonde-haired man was thicker than a tree but moved nimbly.
The old man noticed a large steel-made bow strapped to Max’s back. A bow nothing like any he’d seen before, this bow wasn’t for game or for hunting. This bow meant business; it’s golden handle gleamed like it was handed down from the Gods. His sheath and shield were in pristine condition. The shield had a dark blue and gold design on it and in the center was a large golden triangle and three blue trimmed triangles.
His canine was half the size of the horse; an obedient beast. He sat patiently waiting for his owner to call or command him. The heat damn near should’ve killed that poor hound.
The Minling was propped on the back of the hound staring at the old man. Minlings were once used for scouting in wars, now they were mainly a symbol of wealth. The more frequent wars became the higher Minlings would climb the extinction ladder. Their ability to fly and resilient skin made them great for scouting areas and were almost immune to arrows from long range.
All four claws of the Minling were gripping the poor hound’s skin. All Minlings look similar. Reptile like creatures with wings on their backs. Their heads were shaped like the head of an iguana with little black horns curling backwards. Their skin came in all shades of green. This one’s skin matched the outside of a cucumber. Their eyes were as purple as a fresh bruise. They were the size of a wolf pup. No more than twenty-five pounds at most, although there had been stories of some getting to the size of a horse. They all had long, but rail thing tails with a spade on the end. This one in particular had pudgy features. It was a well-fed animal, maybe a little too well fed as Max would admit. There was an eerie feeling of making eye contact with a Minling. The old man had heard stories about Minlings but never seen one in person.
Jeffrey felt his knees wobble a bit and his right hand started to shake slightly so he leaned against the counter and continued to watch Max. He looked back up toward the majestic Minling. He felt an uneasy again, almost nauseas. He tried to shake it by not looking directly at the Minling. He tried to focus on something in the background.
It wasn’t long until Jeffrey caved in and looked at it again. Its dark purple eyes didn’t blink at the Jeffrey as he stared intently at him. There were not white eyeballs. Just dark pupils that made Jeffrey feel as if the Minling was staring into his soul. Its claws were large compared to its spindle like limbs.
This was no random traveller, Jeffrey thought to himself. Some sort of war hero or something the God’s themselves pissed out into humanity to kill or save us all. Either way there was no stopping this man from his intentions.
Max turned on his heel and walked towards the man flipping him a large golden coin. “I haven’t seen anything like this in years.” Jeffrey said as he felt his expression draw blank. He held the coin up high twisting it and turning it. He pulled his ocular out to give it a better examination. “This must be worth a fortune around here now, I don’t know where you got this or when but it’s something you might want to hold onto. I don’t know if I can break it”. The man put his ocular back in his breast pocket.
Sure, he could break it Maximus thought but the old pointy nose beak didn’t want to. “No need. I’ve got more, and they aren’t as valuable as you think in most places.” Maximus grabbed a small straw-woven bag with long black string around the neck from his horse and threw it in his pocket.
“No?” The man questioned.
“More like a target now.” Max said with a laugh.
“You from up there?” The old man asked, a look of concern was on his face, his brows pressed downward and every wrinkle on his forehead came to fruition.
Max shook his head slowly. “Nah, not me. Just visiting an old friend or two. Might try to make my money back. Might visit some of the best saloons the fine country of Jyrill has to offer. You ever been up there?” Max nodded up toward the top of the mountain. “It’s quite the experience.”
“Oh, I’ve been.” Jeffrey said. “And it’s people dressed like you that run that place.”
“Ah” Max knew where this was going now. One of the traveling techniques that the Rangers used when was dressing in the finest clothes and equipment. If they ever got captured, they could prove they were worth a lot of money and their clothes on their back would prove it. This could save their lives in hopes that they could be negotiated for some sort of ransom and with Max coming through the dessert, trying to avoid the Yarudo’s, he was going to need any help he could get if he were to get caught.
“Nope, just visiting, sir. I’ll be back in a day or two, you’ll take good care of him while I’m gone.” Max motioned to the stables where one of the little boys had already began giving Thunder a bath. It felt more like a command than a question and the old man took it that way.
“Well, you best be on your way. I’m sure you’ve got more fun things to do than talk to me.” Jeffrey said as he motioned over to the wooden platform.
Max picked up his large bag and flung it over his shoulder. He stepped onto the wooden platform that had a bench on either side of it, accompanied with a waist high wall and a half door, much like a stable for horses. Link followed closely, and his Minling flew down graciously and perched on his shoulder. He could’ve taken the the paved road if he wanted but he was tired and wanted to rest some. The platform was hooked up to a pulley system and a large cable that climbed the mountains for him. Saving him a few days’ worth of climbing.
Maximus waited patiently for the cables to start moving. Mules were arranged in such way that they walked in a circle, four of them. They each had a harness attached to them and a rope stretching from their harness to the center spool. When they moved the cables started churning with every step, pulling the platform to the top of the mountains.
As the ascension began, Max looked around taking the view in. No matter how many times he’d seen this view it never got old. He turned to peer out over the wastelands he had just travelled through, he was climbing the mountains and a view from the mountaintops is a view everyone should experience at least once in their life he thought. It was breath taking, it almost made him feel as if he were more than human, looking down at everything as it shrunk and exited his view.
Max then turned back and faced the front, his eyes could not turn away from the bright lights and tall buildings. The city he was entering was a city like no other in his world. Filled with promise, regret, sin and joy.
The sun had disappeared as Max reached his destination and the lights illuminated his way from the bench to the opening gates, his hound followed closely, and his Minling stayed on his shoulder, clutching with all 4 claws, ever so slightly digging into his skin. He didn’t mind the pain, he embraced it.
Max entered the city by dealing out a few coins and some extra for bringing his hound with him. Every time he brought Link with him he had to pay a few extra, it wasn’t forbidden for dogs to enter but the dogs needed to be checked for fleas or any sort of illness, this process took way to long for Max’s liking so he offered a few extra shiny things to the person working the gates to skip the process all together. Not once was he turned down for his money.
The gates opened for Max and a familiar feeling engulfed. An endless road was laid out in front of Maximus. Towers and buildings stood miles high on either side of the road. All of the buildings were connected by design to create a tunnel, but the way the sun casted a canopy of orange and yellow light between the towers led max to believe they were held together by the light instead. The road was made of shiny silver brick, causing the lights to reflect as they would off of a well-kept blade. There were no carriages, buggies or horses on this road just the footsteps of those who linger.
People were flooding the streets drunkenly. Max made sure his Minling was tucked away in his bag and his hound stayed close. A few passer byes tried playing with the hound, mainly drunken woman. “What’s his name?” they’d ask, and his reply was always short, “Link.”
Link was named after an old friend of Max’s, he too was a ranger of the darkness, a sworn protector of Jyrill from the hell that sometimes possessed it. Link had since passed on from this world to possibly another or possibly a death. Max tucked that memory deep in his brain, a dark cold corner he never wanted to visit. He knew someday he would once have to revisit again if he were to fulfil the order of the Rangers.
A roar came from the left of Max, he noticed a giant gaping hole in the building and peered into it. An arena was built deep into the mountain where fighting took place. Organized circle fighting in which all bystanders placed bets on winners. It was a common thing in Nan. This city made it’s living off of foolish gamblers.
Circle fighting or formally known as Circling was created a long time ago to create entertainment, something for people to take their mind off of the real-world issues. Some people had to spend ten hours a day under the hot baking sun farming crops. Others were stuck shoveling horse shit from stables. You either had to be worth a damn with a weapon or born into royalty to avoid poverty in most capitals. Plenty of people starved because the only food they could afford went to their children. Some of the capitals held their own Circling tournaments and even some villages will breed these fighters and send them to this city to gain some clout and form a following. Other forms of gambling filled the city, card games, eight-sided dies were used to create many games for gambling intentions.
Staying focused Max kept marching forward, he came up on the door he was looking for and found an alley on the left side, there was an old wooden staircase he used to get to where he was headed about four stories high. He made his way up to the fourth floor and quietly moved across a couple of balconies and finally was able to sneak into the window he was looking for. Link followed intently and once inside couldn’t control his excitement.
“Link, hush, good boy, Link, sit boy, DAMNIT, Link, lay down!” Max was trying his best to calm his beast; he didn’t want him to get caught in the Flats because he knew that dogs were forbidden in this area. He rustled through some old cabinets looking for any kind of food, he scrounged up some bread and threw it on the floor for Link. “I’m going to be gone for some time boy, but I’ll be back before you know it. Get some rest I’ll be back before sunrise”.
Max let his Minling out, the Minling purred up next to Max’s calf as he stretched his legs and wings. “I’ll be back for you too, if she comes back before I find her don’t scare her.”
This time instead of climbing out of the window he used the front door and made his way down the main staircase; nobody saw him come in or out and as he poured into the street and blended in with the drunken crowd.

http://www.reddit.com/Economics/comments/h2wkw/as_food_stamp_recipients_hit_new_record_400/c1s7iw1

what the fuck is the relationship between those on government assistance and those making large capital gains?

There's a direct relationship between the top 400 (the wealth keeper) & the worker (wealth creator,) who is now often on food stamps.
This system, in my opinion is rigged (often by the wealthy influencing politics,) & is systematic robbery. For example politicians (funded by the wealthy) have forced the people to compete with third-world sweatshop laborers for wages. This rigs wages.
In contrast, look at American's ten richest people you have 5 Wal-mart heirs, 2 oil heirs, a few stock gamblers, etc. Please do not say these 400 "earned" all this money (like they had something to do with creating wealth.) Usually "stole" is more accurate.
I consider it theft when one class of people, after controlling politics to rig the economy, keeps the wealth that another class of people created.
I admit a few of these billionaires started businesses, like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates. Both have proved to be crooks: Steve Jobs tried to patent point & click, which would give him an absolute monopoly on everything in the computer industry. Bill Gates got a monopoly as a reward for incompetence - arguably from having such crappy code that stopped programs from being universal.
He's from a wealthy /privileged family, & for example (as a very young man) he bought DOS & then licensed it to IBM for $50k. Most youths don't have those type of options. (They're not in right class of people.) Bill Gates & Steve Jobs didn't actually invent anything themselves. (At least Steve Wozniak did.)
But sadly, now even Wozniak gets rich through the systematic-robbery / exploitation of capitalism.
The wealthy (& their politicians) also try to keep society in a class system by keeping inheritance untaxed. It's very clear the wealthy want to run society like royals & serfs. (Just with more propaganda.)
In the end, whether from intellectual work or physical work, it's workers who create all wealth & it's owners / non-workers who keep it. (eg, the Koch brothers, who feel they're so brilliant, based on inheriting so much money, that they're trying to take over the republican party.)
The wealthy choose our politicians, judges, etc & then rig the system. . . And for what? Their goal is a monarchy-style economy where heirs end up in charge of everything. (eg, the 5 Wal-mart heirs & 2 oil heirs in our top 10.) As time goes by, this will only get worse:
Every business you love will eventually be inherited & ruled undemocratically by economic-royalty.
Here's an example, of how wealth got so divided. I remember when off-shoring started & the Gap (or a similar store) was selling a shirt for about $40, which was made by a child making a few pennies a day. The wealthy were not forced to do this by the consumer, but they choose this situation for greed & profits. They profited from the exploitation of children & generally exploited people, & still do. Capitalism has transformed into a parasitic & tyrannical economic system, which (in general) is undemocratically ruled by the worst of humanity.