Imperial Cherry Pickers of Tolenestria
The Imperial Cherry Pickers of Tolenestria by decree of His Imperial Highness Torven Kastenett the fourth of his name, have full authority to be any means insure the production of cherries exclusively for the Imperial Table.
The ICP are ruthless when it comes to the cultivation of cherries throughout Tolenestria. By decree all cherries in Tolenestria belong to the Imperial Table. This is for the Emperor's and his family's personal consumption. At each step agents of the ICP have observers and armed agents watching the growth from blossom to fruit, the harvest, and production of food stuffs. Their duty is to ensure that only the Emperor, his family and any guest are allowed to dine upon the sweet succulent fruit.
The ICP has a variety of means to accomplish this. There are foresters making sure no one steals a cherry tree, damages or destroys one. At harvest time should any picker eat so much as a single cherry that person will be flogged and sent to the penal legion. During the production of pies, tarts and other pastries as well as sauces and preserves each and every cherry is counted and none are left to waste. When the cherries are pitted and sliced it is done over a jar to catch any errant juice. Those who pit the cherries are required to soak their fingers in a distilled solution which draws any cherry juice out of their skin. Finger licking is expressly forbidden.
When fresh fruit is served to the Emperor and imperial family there are special young girls who are assigned to pit the cherries. If they are too slow and the Emperor or a family member bites on a pit, they are beaten with truncheons by the ICP in attendance. Finally there is a gnome who is meant to catch any pit that the Emperor, family or guest might have to spit out using a silver bowl. If he misses, he gets an ICP boot to the head.
The ICP is through and efficient when it comes to protecting the Emperor's cherries.
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