- Jul 12, 2018
- 9,805
Shortly after 3PM, blaring police sirens could be heard as the King's motorcade made the short drive from the palace to Oslo Central Station. Crowds were gathered outside to watch as the King and his son walked from the street and into the station. The King's vehicle, as always, was positioned so that the press and onlookers wouldn't be able to see him exit. His incredible height of 8 feet made it awkward for him to enter, ride in, and exit vehicles to say the least. The process was somewhat less complicated for the Crown Prince who, unlike his father, didn't need the aide of a cane and was also only about seven feet tall. After both exited the limousine, they walked together at the King's pace and waved to the crowds which had gathered outside. Following behind them were a few royal officials, and also a young Norwegian aristocrat who was garnering the reputation of possibly being the Crown Prince's girlfriend, Sophia Anker - or Lady Sophia Anker, as the Royal Court and even members of the government often called her. King Oskar was wearing a dark three-piece suit and red tie, while Enoch was wearing a dark Norwegian-blue tie with his two-piece suit. Sophia's blue winter dress was conservative in covering almost her entire body, but outlined her feminine features quite well. She was unmistakable because, like the two royals walking ahead of her, she was tall, standing a little over six feet tall. Her long, styled blonde hair bounced as she walked towards the station and occasionally grew the confidence to look up at the crowds of thousands of people gathered around to cheer for them.
Two Royal Police Officers pulled open the doors to allow the royal entourage into the Central Station. "Odin and Thor are in the building," one of the officers discretely said. He was using the royals' codenames. Oskar and Enoch both stepped up onto the stage while Sophia and the rest of the royal entourage took up a side row of seats in the front left of the small stage. King Oskar put on his reading glasses, and rested his cane against the pulpit which he was about to speak from. Enoch stood confidently beside his father and smiled at Sophia. Cameras started flashing and several news outlets interrupted regularly scheduled broadcasts to bring the King's words live to the rest of the Norwegian Realm. It seemed like it was just before King Oskar was about to begin speaking, one of the new high-speed trains briefly let loose its horn and rolled down the tracks to stop directly next to their platform. The timing was so perfect it was practically poetic - Oskar was known for making a good show whenever he came out in public. This was something that his son, the Prince, was catching on to quite well.
"The capital of this kingdom is known in some ways for its isolation," Oskar began. "Oslo is located within the safety of a fjord, and is surrounded by rocky terrain. This was not a problem for the masses, until the modern wonder of commercial aviation came to be. Oslo has an exceptional international airport for a city its size, but it has lacked a quick and efficient way to get from that airport to the capital itself. Today, that issue has been resolved. The Crown Prince and I are here to be among the first passengers of The Capital Line which starts here at Oslo Central Station and goes to Oslo International Airport. Magnificent high-speed trains such as this one," he said, gently gesturing with one hand towards the impressive locomotive to his left, "will be able to bring visitors from the airport to Oslo Central Station in only twenty-five minutes! It is estimated that over five-million people will ride his line every year in either direction, and that it will not only save the Norwegian economy millions of kroner, but make the kingdom millions more in ticket-fairs. Foreign leaders, businessmen, and tourists alike will be able to sit in comfort as they are whisked along the tracks at high speed to and from our capital. On this short journey they will see fjords, the mountains, woods, rivers, and the longest railroad tunnel in Norway all in the same ride. May our kingdom's prosperity continue so that we can see more necessary and incredible infrastructure projects such as this one."
Oskar folded his speech and put it back into the breast pocket of his jacket. From that same pocket, he then removed two gold tickets, one of which he handed to his son. Oskar and Enoch both held up the tickets for the press, who ate it up, snapping hundreds of pictures as they posed. A conductor in a new, dark-blue uniform emerged from the locomotive and opened the first passenger car. "ALLL ABOARD!" he yelled in Norwegian. Several people, including the King, chuckled. The royal entourage boarded the train along with Royal Police Officers who had checked the train beforehand. The press were allowed into a separate car, along with some members of the Storting and government officials. The Royal Police were also already stationed at Oslo International Airport to take similar safety measures as Oslo Central Station. Once the train made it the airport, the royal entourage departed out to the airport to take some more pictures and make a brief, unofficial statement there, before returning back to Oslo via the same train and back to the palace. From then on, trains would run the run every hour on the hour at least, and sometimes every thirty minutes during peak hours.
