How “15″ Saved Axe-onville’s King!
Once upon a time, in a land known as Axe-onville there lived an elder King, King W. King W ruled over the land. He had a Prince whom he entrusted with promoting the King’s once-exciting games held at the local stadium that long ago saw fans from across the land pack the stadium for week after exciting week. The King also had a trusted advisor who was the best looking man of the town.
But alas, the advisor was in charge of the stadium and the stadium had become boring and stale. The team that performed in the stadium had become boring under the advisor’s care. The advisor, who wielded a mighty blue axe, had promised lots of exciting plays and championships when he rode in on horseback, but it had been many years since this were true. Instead, 3-yards and a cloud of manure was what the vassals of the land were used to seeing, if they saw anything at all. And the handsome advisor only knew to rid the kingdom of those who had trusted him so and performed inside the stadium doing only what the advisor commanded.
The King noticed that fewer and fewer vassals came to the stadium. The excitement was gone. The once promised championships were more than a decade’s memory away. The advisor’s advice was not helping put people into the stadium, but it was causing them to leave. So much so that the kingdom was visited by an evil Black(out) Warlock from the north who descended upon the Kingdom. The Warlock did not want to see the small Kingdom to be successful and said “Your tired old King and his advisor have done all they can for you pathetic people. We shall move your stadium to Kalifornia if you will not fill it! It is your fault, poor vassals, for all the Kingdom’s failures. You should all be ashamed! Your King deserves better than you people of the southern swamps and sticks.”
And then one day a local boy, a vassal himself, had developed great magical powers in the swampland on the edge of the Kingdom’s grounds! He had developed a fallowing in the swamp. The people of the land all cried out: “This is the child who will fill the stadium and bring us a championship once and for all!” The wise old King saw the special child known only as “15” and he sought to bring him home to the kingdom of Axe-onville from his 4-year journey away developing his magic.
But King W’s advisor recommended against it. He said the people would come only if they did not bring the magical boy to the stadium. That other vassal groups were going to bring in more people. The Prince of Marketing said nothing for he knew not what to say. The people of the land hid from the site of the advisor, for they feared that he would have his way and the Kingdom would slide further into darkness. The wise old King knew that his kingdom would be finished without some magic in the land. His grey eyes had not seen a championship since long before the advisor had come to town, but he knew of another left handed, speedy magician with special powers of leadership had helped the kingdom to fill the stadium and bring happiness to all. That magician had gone off and become famous and was bestowed a mighty ring. “Oh, how I long for a ring like that of one of my former head magicians!” thought the King.
The King had a choice to make: rid his kingdom of the advisor who had fed most of his staff to the dragons and bring in the special young magician known only as “15”, or keep his advisor and be stuck with whatever his poor Prince of Marketing could deliver to his aging stadium.
The wise King arose and delivered a proclamation to be read to the vassals of the land, whom had grown quite disinterested in their King and his stadium over the many, many years. “From this day forth, a magical mist shall descend upon this stadium, as I am going to bring the magician know as “15”, who was once a vassal, to be my most wonderful apprentice and he shall have all the keys to the kingdom! And he shall keep the new name “15” and he shall wear this name upon his chest! Let us rejoice that the chosen one will bring fullness to our stadium and potential for something better to our future!” “And I shall remove my advisor at once! I shall entrust my loyalties to another advisor whom I shall bring to the kingdom with the magical “15”. This advisor is one of the most positive and energy filled advisors I have ever seen and he wants to make sure that every vassal is a part of our new magician’s magic in the stadium! Gone are the empty promises of the past, and all hail to the amazing potential of the future!”
Within moments, something amazing happened! The sun shown on the stadium brightly, and vassals from far away and near to the stadium lined up to get an opportunity to see the young magician and the new splendid advisor. The days of horrific local news cast proclamations about four people inside the stadium inspecting their potential seats were over!
The young magician was generous and handsome and made everyone feel like they were a part of the magic themselves. Vassals lined up just to catch a glimpse of him. They all could feel the magic too even before a game was played. And huge pots of gold descended upon the stadium. So much gold that the vassals received a fair portion of it themselves from their King, whose coffers were filling up thanks to the promise of new magic in the land. Apparently the thought of a full stadium inspired people from other kingdoms who wanted to promote their lands within King W’s flock of vassals. “It is from you I come my fellow vassals and from the creator of kings that I receive my magic!” cried out the young magician, “15”.
“We love you, “15”! You are who we are! We love you king! Long Live the King!” shouted the vassals, who happily lined up until every last seat was taken in the stadium. Even the ones that had long been forgotten. The new advisor prepared and mentored the magical child until he was ready. He knew that there was something special about the magical boy.
He had seen other magicians who had great powers of will, like Sir Joe and the amazing Favvray. He knew about the Amazing Mark who had once led the kingdom to amazing heights. Great competitiors all. Upon first site of the amazing “15” at a game, the entire stadium arose, 75,000 strong,. They were silent until time great “15” took the orb into his possession, everyone hoping and praying for the magic to continue. No one sat down for if they did, they would be crowded out of their chance to see the great “15”. And the people were amazed and they returned year after year for chances to be a part of the magical kingdom and it’s growing magician, who soon became a great Wizard. No one had never seen anything quite like “15”.
The vassals all had a special cloak made for their personal use, just like the one “15” wore at every game. People from far away lands bought the cloak and wore it. They wanted to join the Kingdome of W and move to Laxonville because of the great Wizard. Children from across the Kingdom dreamed of one day being just like “15”. And that is important, because “15” loved children and always put responsibility on helping children to be special with their own magic. King W was happy!
The stadium was full for years to come, never to be visited or spoken of derisively by the Black(out) Warlock of the north. There was a great bounty of gold that enriched the Kingdom. And finally the king was able to purchase speakers for both ends of the stadium so the vassals could actually hear what was going on. He purchased an amazingly massive wall of video, so the vassals could re-watch the magic of the stadium. This made the vassals want to come to the magical stadium even more!
King W grew old watching his Kingdom thrive under the vision of the new advisor, and the promise of the young magician who was once one of his own vassals. His son the prince learned more from the experience of seeing what had happened under his father’s fateful decision that he too grew wise as the kingdom thrived. He learned that sometimes crusty, stale advisors should be traded in for new energy and youthful magic.
The old advisor moved to the faraway land of Kalifornia. And the King’s Kingdom became known Jacksonville and grew happier ever after with full stadium after full stadium, and the amazing magic from the hope displayed daily by “15”.
**Wouldn’t that have been a wonderful story!? The best way to sell tickets, sell the stadium’s naming rights for much more, change the area’s identity, and keep the team in town? Fiction could have been an amazing truth.
