A Classical Story: Journey To Dragon Mountain
Chapter one
Visiting the emperor
The continent of Europa is divided into five countries. Britannia is in the center ruled by a king named Art-hur with Napaj to the east ruled by an emperor named Jeff, Levahegan to the north ruled by a king named Rel-hok (Maimed King), Cinotuet to the northeast is ruled by a president named Warton (Fisher King), and Naitamras to the southwest is ruled by a governor named Wenceslas. A fourteen-year war broke out between Britannia and Levahegan because King Rel-hok wanted revenge against his cousin, King Art-hur for killing his father, King Cole. Which would be called the Britannia-Levahegan War. Britannia won the war but at the loss of heavy casualties dropping their population from sixty-five million one hundred ninety-one thousand sixty to fifty-five million while Levahegan's population down from three hundred twenty-four million five hundred seventy-seven thousand six hundred forty to one hundred million eight hundred eighty-nine thousand. After the war, Britannia signed the Treaty of Guilt with Levahegan at Abimoloc, Levahegan, the country's capital and it stated that Levahegan has to pay Britannia $510,000,000 bits, which is this world's currency and that they still are not allowed to teach magic due to the Bloody Treaty. A treaty signed between the two countries after the Bloody War, a conflict that happened between them thirty-six years ago.
Two years later. On Auyova (August) 32, 825, King Art-hur set out to Oykot, Napaj, the country's capital while he set out with four of his bodyguards and three members of his royal court which consist of a knight, a thief, and a Grey Mage. While they set out to visit Emperor Jeff and to check on Fort Rising Sun, the military base that Britannia has there.
He wore a royal blue robe along with a red mantle with a blue underside and a gold crown adored with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. He has a snow-white leather sheath tied around the right side of his waist which has a titanium sword named Ex-Calibur in it and has a snow-white leather sheath tied around his right leg under his robe that has a titanium dagger named Carnwennan in it. He also has a round Oricem shield, which is the strongest metal on the planet tied to his ash grey, steel saddle. Which is on top of his white horse named Llamrei that has a white mane and tail.
A squire named Kyle wore charcoal grey iron armor with a blood red cape with a hunter green underside. He has a caramel brown sheath tired around the right side of his waist with a steel sword called Mincemeat in it. He has a basswood shield with a copper frame that has his family's crest on it strapped to his left arm. Which is a picture of two heads of two black horses that face in the opposite direction from each other as a sword separated them and stabbed a piece of a cream white ribbon that has Ure meum et cinis (burn me and cast my ashes) on it.
He rode on a manure brown leather saddle on top of a copper horse named Bobby that has a gold mane and tail while he rode behind King Art-hur.
A thief named Marc wore jet black leather armor with a jet-black cowl. He has an iron dagger in a chocolate brown sheath tired around on the right side of his waist.
He rode on a jet grey leather saddle on top of a timber wolf grey horse named Slate as he rode on Kyle's left.
A grey mage named Ryan wore a black robe with white trim which included a black hat with white trim. He has an oak staff almost has tall as him tied to the side of his battleship grey saddle which is on top of his gun metal grey horse named Lilly as he rode on Kyle's right.
A guard named Brad wore a wood brown leather vest. He has a cocoa brown sheath tied around the right side of his waist which has a steel sword in it. He also has a steel shield strapped to his back.
He rode on a chestnut brown leather saddle on top of his eerie black horse named Helga while he rode in front of King Art-hur.
A guard named Maxwell wore nickel grey, steel armor. He has a trombone yellow sheath tired around the right side of his waist which has a steel sword in it. He also has a steel shield strapped to his back.
He rode on a teal leather saddle on top of his sandy brown horse with ivory white spots named Wilbur while he rode on King Art-hur's left.
A guard named Kevin wore flax white steel armor. He also wore a navy-blue cape along with an imperial red sheath that has a steel sword in it tied around the left side of his waist and has a steel shield strapped on his right arm.
He rode on a lemon-yellow leather saddle on top of his russet brown horse with bone white spots named Misty while he rode on King Art-hur's right.
A guard named Henry wore almond brown armor. He also wore an alabaster cape with an acajou sheath.
He rode on an antique brass horse named Ao.
They rode down a long dirt road which took them by a forest called Pine Needle Woods. They saw medieval style houses scattered on each side of the road farther ahead. But the farther they got from Tolemac, the less houses they saw. While on the road they fought mosquitos, snakes, Goblins, Ogres, wasps, Bushwhackers (Frutex Rima is the scientific name) which is a type of plant species and Silver Wings (Argentum Cornu is their scientific name) which is a bird species.
"It is hotter than the inside of a blacksmith's shop." Marc said as he wiped his forehead with the back of his right arm.
"You would not be saying that if you did not wear black." Kyle replied, "besides, it looks like a nice day for a white wedding."
"I think they would have to be crazy to have a wedding out in this heat." Marc replied.
"Where is Doyle (one of King Art-hur's bodyguard) and Worf (King Art-hur's head bodyguard)?" Kyle asked King Art-hur.
"Doyle had the measles and Worf had the flu." King Art-hur said as he patted the back of Llamrei's head.
"Did you hear about the hero in Landon (city located in Britannia) calling himself Spring Heel Jack has he fights crime?" Kevin asked everyone. "No but I would like to meet him." Kyle said.
"They even say that he wears a costume and looks like a bat." Kevin said. "Cool." Kyle responded.
"There are too many famous people with the name Jack." Brad complained as he pulled a cocoa brown leather flask from his left saddle bag, opened it, and took a sip from it.
"We only got three. Jack, the leader of Jack's Union, Jack the Giant Slayer, and "Jumping" Jack." Maxwell said.
"There is also the toy called Jack In The Box. Then there is the only two Jacks that have last names. Jack Sprat and Jack Horner." Marc said, "also, Levahegan has the heroes, Black Jack and "Diamond" Jack."
"Yeah true but one of those is a toy." Maxwell said as he rubbed the back of his head.
They stopped in Hinotama Village (which is located fifteen miles west of Oykot) for the night on their way to the capital.
They arrived in the city (which looks like something out of Feudal Japan). They rode through a reddish-brown gate with gold embroidered on it in the shape of a dragon. The gates opened and they rode onto a stone road with a pinewood sign on the right side that has Dragontail Street written on it in squid ink and with the name written in Kanji under it. They saw people who shopped at market tents on both sides of the road and people gathered around them while they cheered.
They spot a man who wore an emerald green robe with a diamond pattern of jade green pushing through the crowd as he yelled, "excuse me! Coming through! Make way for the emperor's retainer!"
The man stopped in front of them to catch his breath while he was bent over forward. Then he looked up at them and started to speak.
"Greetings! My name is Yasuke. I was sent here by the emperor to escort you to the palace." Yasuke said. "That is very kind of Emperor Jeff." King Art-hur said. "He would have done it himself but he had other business to attend to." Yasuke said, "anyways, let's getting going. The emperor has had his chefs prepare a feast in your honor."
They start walking again. When they get closer to the markets, King Art-hur asked, "what's with all the tents?" "It is Ichiba Day also known as Market Day." Yasuke said. "I do not remember it happening last year's summer when I visited here." King Art-hur said. "That is because it was too hot to have it." Yasuke said.
As they rode along, soon the tents turned into buildings dictating a social class difference amongst the people. While they walked through the next part of the city, the people seemed friendlier and brighter. In addition, many of the buildings were made of a brick like material. The road turned into a black stone path. They saw two pinewood signs, one on top of another. The top sign has Dragontail and it is pointed the same way they are headed. The other sign has Phoenix Alley written in squid ink on it and the name also written in Kanji under it, pointed in the opposite direction.
They reached the center of the city. They saw that lush bamboo and cherry blossom trees littered the area with a group of large mansions sat behind them scattered around the circle. The houses are shoin-zukuri in style and have irimoya (hip and gable) roofs with cherry tree mail boxes out front. While a few of the houses have a crimson red, pine picket fence in front of them.
A gold-plated rail surrounded an enormous statue of a jade elephant that stood on a large slab of jade with its left leg up in the air, and its trunk curled back so far that it touched its forehead while the tip of the trunk pointed straight up.
"The famous Kurimuzonsākuru (Crimson Circle). I never get tired of seeing it." King Art-hur said. "It was built over the final battleground of the Ichizoku War (Clans War)." Yasuke said, "now it is home to Napaj's national heroes. While the elephant is a symbol of our country and emperor's strength."
They rode around the statue and head straight to the palace's gates that look the same as the city's gates. The gates opened up as they got closer to them. They got off their horses and they walked into a hall with mahogany brown walls that were lined with extravagant paintings of past emperors while the floor is made with slate grey titles that were embroidered with thick lines of copper.
They walked into the throne pass the opened mahogany doors. As they entered the room they saw Emperor Jeff with a bittersweet orange sheath that has an Oricem sword called Ame no Murakumo no Tsurugi (Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven) in it as it sat on his lap along with a tea rose orange sheath which has an Oricem sword called Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi (Grass Cutting Sword) in it.
He wore fancy, burnt orange robes with a dandelion yellow trim and carmine pink cherry blossom pattern covered his robes. He also wore the Yasakani no Magatama around his neck. He smoked a cigarette and sat in his big, shiny dogwood chair that has white jade toad statues on both sides in front of his chair. The Kyushu Clan's symbol which is the Kanji for toad painted in gold on the wall behind him.
Also, in the room is his council which consist of Milan (Mulan Hua), one of Napaj's five army generals. She wore an ocean blue robe with light, onyx black armor. She has a Yumi (bow) over her left shoulder and a dirt brown quiver of arrows strapped straight up on her back.
Along with Pohe Shepado, Emperor Jeff's right hand man and a member of the Shepado Clan. He wore reddish brown samurai armor with gold paint that made an outline of a standing dog on the front of his armor. While he has the Kanji of dog painted in gold on his left shoulder. He has a brick red bo stick in an olive-green sheath strapped on his back.
Then Lei Lei Segeler, Emperor Jeff's bodyguard wore a van dyke brown ninja outfit that has a horseshoe pattern on it. Which she also wore a van dyke brown headband with the Kanji for horse painted with ghost white on it. She has a midnight black whip wrapped around her waist.
"Aisatsu furuku kara no yūjin. Genkideshita ka?" (Speaking Japanese) (Greetings old friend. How have you been?) King Art-hur asked. "Yoi. Anata wa yūrei ya goburin anata wa kishidatta toki ni anata ga yatta yō ni, madadesu ka?" (Good. Do you still kill ghosts and goblins like you did when you were a knight?) Emperor Jeff asked. "Mō chigaimasu. Tokorode, dono yō ni watashi no shefu, jakku shite iru nodesu ka?" (Not any more. By the way, how is my chef, Jacques doing?). King Art-hur asked. "Yoi. Kare wa ō no shefu to yoba reru resutoran, ō no shefu." (Good. He opened a restaurant called The King's Chef.) Emperor Jeff said. "Sore wa kiite yoi kotoda. Anata no kyōdai wa, torēsu dono yō ni shite iru nodesu ka?" (That is good to hear. How is your brother, Trace doing?) King Art-hur asked. "Shirimasen. Kare wa watashi no tanjōbi ni, sakunen kureijī hāto konsāto ga attanode, watashi wa kare o mite imasen." (I do not know. I have not seen him since he had the Crazy Heart Concert last year on my birthday.)
Yasuke walked into the room through some doors on the side and said, "tabemono ga okonawa remasu." (The food is done). "Yoi." (Good). Emperor Jeff said as he got up with his swords in his right hand.
Yasuke led them down a hall after Emperor Jeff got out of his chair. They pass by white jade statues of a rooster, pig, monkey, pray mantis, horse, panda, and slug that are sitting on both sides of the hall and on each side of the windows. They also passed another hallway.
Yasuke opened the door and they walked into the dining room with pearl white walls and a pearl white floor. While a knee-high table made out of bamboo wood is in the middle of the floor and that has a black cloth with white trim over it. Also, there are ten violet pillows around it. The windows are covered by a curtain with the same look as the table cover and have bonsai trees on both sides of them while there is a doorway to left side of the table with bonsai trees on both sides of it.
A man named Ming Tsai, the emperor's head chef wore a marshmallow white chef outfit with a navy-blue outline walked through the doorway while carried a tray full of food.
A woman named Christine Ha, the sous chef wore a pearl white chef outfit as she followed Ming. Along with three other men named Ramu Nomimasu, the alcohol chef, wore a ginger chef outfit, Shiama Banira, the desert chef wore a vanilla chef outfit, and Kemuri Hinotama, the meat chef wore a cherry red chef outfit with white smoke pin strips and small piggy pink polka dots between each of the pin stripes walked through the doorway. They also carried trays with food on them in each hand except for Kemuri. Then they set them on the table as Emperor Jeff sat down at the head of the table and King Art-hur sat down at the other end.
"We have orange chicken, General Tsou's chicken, Chirashi-zushi, saluted white gold fin carp, and narutomaki." Ming said. "We also have yakitori, octopus, squid, and egg rolls." Christine said. "We even have mizuame, sea salt ice cream, salt water taffy, and fortune cookies for dessert." Shiama said. "I brought a bottle of Wasabi Sunset (happoshu or low-malt beer) since I thought that you might want something else to drink besides sake." Ramu said. "That will be all." Emperor Jeff said. "Tane boba o hai. (Yes sire)." The chefs said as they left the room.
"Yasuke wa, ofisu raiburari no heya ni sorera o goei shi, sore wa karera ga taberu tame no jikanda made sorera ga matte imasu. Karera wa tabetaato, Tamae wa jibun no heya ni sorera o shimeshite imasu. (Yasuke, escort them to the study and have them wait there until it is time for them to eat. After they eat, have Tamae show them to their rooms. Emperor Jeff said. "Tane boba o hai." Yasuke said as he bowed.
"You guys will follow me to the ofisu raiburari room while the emperor and the king eat their meal." "Okay." The people said as they followed him out of the room.
They walked down the hall (which looks the same as the other halls they walked through) and turned down the other hall. They turned down a hallway on their left. Then Yasuke stopped in front of a cherry wood door and he opened it.
"You guys can wait right in here while I go check on the emperor and the king. I will send someone down for you when it is time for you to eat." Yasuke said as he walked back the way he came.
"I will go with you. I have to check on security for the festival tomorrow." Lei Lei said as she started to follow him. "Hey Lei Lei. I need to talk to you." Pohe said as he walked over to her.
"Are you going to stay with us, Milan?" Kyle asked. "I would like to stick around with you guys but I have to go visit my sister, Ming-Na Wen and her family. Afterwards, King Art-hur's troops at Fort Rising Sun." Milan said. "Tell your niece, Skye that I said hello." Kyle said, "also tell Jemma that I said hello. I do not want her to get jealous of Skye." "I will." Milan said chuckling as she walked down the hall.
"I think I will go turn in." Brad said. "Me too." Maxwell said. "I will see if I can find someone that can escort us to our rooms." Kevin said. "There is no need for that. I will summon one of the housemaids for you." Pohe said as he whistled.
A few seconds later a girl named Tamae appeared in front of them. She wore a Lolita kimono. Which the upper half is black with the rest of it being pink and having a flower pattern on the sleeves. While the lower half that is above her knees included a bow in the middle of it with a bell attached by a red ribbon.
"Anata wa masutā to yoba reru Pohe (You called Master Pohe)." Tamae asked as she bowed. "Hai. Jibun no heya ni korera no shinshi o goeinode, karera wa karera no nokori no bubun o shutoku suru koto ga dekimasu shite kudasai. (Yes. Please escort these gentlemen to their rooms so they can get their rest)." Pohe said as he pointed at Brad and the other two. "Hai masutā Pohe (Yes Master Pohe)." Tamae said as she bowed again.
"Follow me if you will please." Tamae said as she turned around. Then turned left down the hall. They walked toward the stairs that are connected to the right-hand wall of the study. Then they climbed the stairs.
Pohe and the others walked into the room and saw that the bookshelves are made out of cypress wood while the chairs were made out of cedar wood. They also saw a big, rectangle table made out of Douglas fir wood sit in the middle of the room and that the floor is made out of ash wood. Which they also saw that there is a desk made out basswood in the upper left corner of the room and hanging from the ceiling is a purple umbrella lamp.
Marc sat down in a chair in the bottom left corner of the room while Pohe, Ryan, and Kyle walked over to the bookshelves to pull off some books to read.
Pohe sat down in a chair in the upper right corner of the room while Ryan sat down in a chair in the lower right corner of the room and Kyle sat down and slouched in a chair near the door after he shut the door.
"What book did you pick?" Kyle asked Ryan. "Ōshan ni Kikimasu by Sando Fumiaki. (Listening to the Ocean)." Ryan said.
"What book are you reading?" Pohe asked Kyle. "Kaze no Kame by Date Sozen- Sheru. (Tortoise of the Wind)." Kyle said.
"I saw that you have Loveless by Unknown, and No Kyodai Bukku Kaiju (The Giant Book of Giant Monsters), and Gazu Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro (The Illustrated Bag of One Hundred Random Demons) by Toriyama Sekien. Then I also see that you have A Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi, The Art of War by Sun Tzu, Bansenshukai (Sea of Myriad Rivers Merging) by Iga Kōga and many others." Kyle said. "Yeah, Emperor Jeff likes to read rare and classical books." Pohe said.
"So, what book are you reading?" Kyle asked Pohe. "Ō to Pairētsu by Shimada Toyoaki. (Kings and Pirates)." Pohe said. "Cool." Kyle said.
"I heard that Emperor Jeff had a noodle incident." Kyle said. "Yes, but he does not want us to tell anyone about it." Pohe said.
"Has anything new been going on?" Ryan asked. "Yeah. We are working on a bridge that will connect Port Opa to Kirigakure (an island located thirty-five miles southwest of Port Opa). We're going to call it Jeff's Bridge." Pohe said. "Cool." Kyle said. "Yeah. We are also going to be having a festival tomorrow in honor of it being the year of the rat." Pohe said. "I hope that we get to go." Kyle said. "Maybe. It is up to the king." Ryan said. "Yeah." Kyle said.
"I have heard rumors that you and Lei Lei have been hooking up." Kyle said.
"So Marc, "I heard that rogues do it from behind." Pohe said, "Marc would not know anything about that because he is a thief." Kyle asked. "How would you know?" Marc asked sarcastically. "Your weakness is that you are afraid of women." Kyle said.
"Have you heard any other rumors?" Ryan asked. "Yes. I heard that King Rel-hok is having soldiers patrolling the Britannia-Levahegan border to keep out Britons." Pohe said.
The door opened. Yasuke walked in and said, "the emperor and the king are done with their meal. You can eat now. Follow me." "Yay." Kyle said as he got up. "I can not wait to see what we're going to be eating." Pohe said as he got up. "Save some for the rest of us." Marc said as he got up.
"Wait. Where are the others?" Yasuke asked as he started to turn around. "They went to their rooms." Pohe said. "I see. I will have Miliko (one of Emperor Jeff's other housemaids) go get them and bring them to the dining room." Yasuke said as he turned around and walked out of the room.
They walked into the dining room. Pohe sat down in the cushion in the upper right of the table. Marc sat down in the cushion in the middle on the other side of the table. Kyle sat down in the cushion next to Pohe. Ryan sat down on a cushion in the bottom left of the table.
"We have orange chicken, General Tsou's chicken, Chirashi-zushi, saluted white gold fin carp, and narutomaki." Ming said. "We also have anpan, onigiri, fortune cookies, yakitori, octopus, squid, egg rolls, and potstickers." Christine said. "I brought sushi, donburi, yakitori, tonkatsu, miso soup, nikujaga, and hiyayakko." Ramu said. "I brought a bottle of Wasabi Sunset since I thought that you might want something else to drink besides sake." Ramu said. "We even have mizuame, sea salt ice cream, and salt water taffy for dessert." Shiama said.
Ming, Christine, Ramu, Shiama, and Kemuri brought out the food and they sat it down onto the table. Then they started to walk back into the kitchen when Kyle asked, "would you like to join us?" "Just for a few minutes." Ming said. "Great." Kyle said. "It is not every day we get to eat with other people then us." Ramu said as he sat down next to Ryan. "That means to save some food for the rest of us, Kyle." Marc said. "Hee!" Pohe laughed. "The same goes for you too, Pohe." Shiama said as he sat down next to Marc.
Ming sat down at the head of the table and Christine sat down next to Kyle. Kemuri sat down at the end of the table.
"I do not mean to be nosey but this is my and my brother's first time here. What are your names?" Ryan asked as he put some orange chicken onto his plate.
"My name is Ramu Nomimasu. I am the alcohol chef." Ramu said as he put some onigiri onto his plate.
"My name is Shiama Banira. I am the desert chef." Shiama said as he put some yakitori onto his plate.
"My name is Christine Ha. I am the sous chef." Christine said as she put some Chirashi-zushi onto her plate. "You're that blind chef that I have heard so much about." Ryan said. "Yes." Christine said.
"What made you decide to become a chef?" Ryan asked. "I always wanted to become a chef ever since I was a little girl and spent time cooking with my mother." Christine said, "then she died when I was fourteen from tuberculosis. I went to live with my aunt until she died from the same disease and I begin to start losing my eyesight. Therefore, I had to learn how to cook for myself by using my other senses."
"That must have been tough." Ryan said. "It was. But I have learned to live with it." Christine said. "I am happy to hear that. It has been a privilege to get to meet you for the first time." Ryan said. "Thank you." Christine said.
"Can I get a copy of your cookbook, Recipes from My Home Kitchen?" Kyle asked. "Sure. Would you like me to sign it for you?" Christine asked. "That would be great!" Kyle said.
"My name is Ming Tsai. I am the head chef." Ming said as he put octopus onto his plate. "I have heard a lot about you from Rick." Kyle said as he put some of General Tsou's chicken on his plate. "You know Rick?" Ming asked. "Yeah. I lived in Sandlot, Britannia with my godparents and they introduced me to him" Kyle said, "he also told me that you own two restaurants and were one of the founders for the Ryōri Institute (a cooking school located in Hebnouruna, Napaj)." "I own two restaurants called Blue Ginger and Blue Dragon. I also founded the school with two of my closest friends, Soma and Sanji." Ming said as he put some saluted white gold fin carp onto his plate.
"I also heard that you won the Magic Wok in a cooking contest." Kyle said as he put some narutomaki onto his plate. "I did." Ming said.
"Rumor has it that there was a huge argument with the owner of Mahō no Nabe (Magic Wok) and a disgruntle chef. The chef was angry because the owner replaced him with someone else and fired him. So I guess the chef cursed the wok to make only bad food to force the owner out of business." Ming explained. "That is messed up." Kyle replied.
"My name is Kemuri Hinotama. I am the meat chef." Kemuri said as he put some anpan onto his plate.
"Did you say Hinotama?" Marc asked as he put some egg rolls onto his plate. "Yes." Kemuri responded.
"We passed through Hinotama Village on our way here." Ryan said as he put some hiyayakko onto his plate. "How is everyone there? I have been too busy with the festival to stop by to see them." Kemuri said. "They are doing good." Ryan said.
"I thought all male members of the Hinotama Clan were supposed to become blacksmiths or ninjas." Kyle said. "That is true but I felt inspired to become a chef from helping my mother out in the kitchen. Also, I did not want to be like the rest of the men from the Hinotama Clan." Kemuri explained. "I see." Kyle replied.
"Is it time for dessert yet?" Pohe asked as he set down his eighteenth empty plate. "Yeah!" Kyle said as he sat down his twentieth empty plate.
"You went through twenty plates of food!" Christine said shockingly. "He beat Pohe by two." Ramu added.
"I guess that I better get the dessert for our two big eaters here." Shiama announced as he got up and walked into the kitchen. A few minutes later, he came out with a tray that carried two bowls of mizuame, sea salt ice cream, and salt water taffy.
"Kansha (thanks)." Pohe and Kyle said as they grabbed a bowl and spoon at the same time. Then they started to dig into the ice cream.
"Ow! Brain freeze." Pohe and Kyle said at the same time. "That is what you get for eating ice cream so fast." Christine said.
"Did you save us any food?" Kevin asked as he walked into the room, followed by Brad and Maxwell.
"We tried but you know how Kyle is." Ryan said as he pointed to him with his chopsticks. "Yeah." Maxwell said as he sat down on one of the empty pillows. "I am not the only one! Pohe has been eating all the food too!" Kyle said. "We know. You guys are bottomless pits." Marc said as he looked at the empty bowls on the table.
"We can not help it." Pohe said as he broke open his fortune cookie and pulled out a small piece of paper.
"What does your fortune say?" Shiama asked. "It says an agreeable romance might begin to take on the appearance." Pohe said.
"Pohe and Lei Lei sitting in a tree, kissing. First comes love. Then comes-" Kyle said. "Cut that out!" Pohe said while his face blushed as he interrupted him.
"Just tell us what your fortune says." Pohe said. "Mine says balance your life with a little sweet and sour." Kyle said, "I would if I had some sweet and sour chicken to eat." "Well. We will make you some for supper tonight." Ming said. "Ok." Kyle said.
"What does your fortune say, Ryan?" Ramu asked. "Mine says simplicity of character is the natural result of profound thought." Ryan said. "That sounds just like you." Kevin said.
"Well, mine does not. It says attitudes are the forerunners of conditions." Marc said. "You are right about that. Do you even know what that phrase means?" Maxwell asked. "No. Does it really matter? Most of these fortunes are supposed to be cryptic." Marc said.
"We are done with lunch. What do we do now?" Kyle asked. "We can spend some time in the sauna." Pohe said. "Awesome." Kyle said as he got up and they walked out the room.
"How are they able to walk around after all they ate?" Kemuri asked. "I do not know. It is one of the many mysteries of life." Ryan said as he got up. "We try not to wonder about it." Marc said as he got up.
"We will summon someone to show you the way while we clean up." Christine said as she started to clear off the table along with the others. "Thanks." Ryan said as he moved towards the door.
Christine whistled with her left hand while her right hand held dishes in it. A girl named Miliko wore a mustard yellow kimono with gold trim and which consisted of a white and orange goldfish pattern walked into the room.
"How may I help you?" Miliko asked. "We need you to show us to the sauna." Marc said. "Ok. Follow me." Miliko said as she turned around and walked out the room.
They stopped in front of a door. Ryan and Marc walked into the room. They see bamboo wooden lockers and clothing dividers. They also see that the walls are sunshine yellow and that there is a sliding door in the back.
They walked to the door and they step into the steam room which looks more like an outdoor spa. They saw that Emperor Jeff is seated on a bench with King Art-hur. While the others are seated on small boulders.
"Nice of you to join us." King Art-hur said. "Come sit down. There is some room over here." Emperor Jeff said. "Ok." Marc said as they walked over to them and sat down on a bench facing them.
"How have you been, my sons?" Emperor Jeff asked. "Fine." Ryan and Marc said at the same time.
"Wait! You are the emperor's sons!" Pohe said. "You never knew that." Kyle said. "No." Pohe said. "That is funny even though it is not your fault." Kyle said laughing.
"The reason I did not tell is because I did not want King Rel-hok to get a hold of my wife and sons during the Meian War (Dark War). Which is why I sent them to Danilloh, Britannia." Emperor Jeff explained. "I understand." Pohe said.
"This is a nice place to spend relaxing and training." Kyle said. "I call this the momentai room." Emperor Jeff responded. "Cool." Kyle said.
"What have you been up to Ryan?" Emperor Jeff asked. "Well, I have been helping out Merlin with odd jobs here and there. Along with a few quests. Which I also got to meet Ibis the Invincible and Shazam." Ryan responded.
"I see. What have you been up to Marc?" Emperor Jeff asked. "Not much. I just been gambling at the Taking Chance (casino)." Marc said. "Where is that located? I do not remember seeing it on my last visit to Tolemac." Emperor Jeff said. "It is located in between the Excalibur (casino) and On A Roll (casino) on the corner of Sweetgum Drive and Snapdragon Lane." Marc explained.
"How many bits have you lost?" Kyle asked Marc. "I do not know how much I have lost over the years but I have won over three hundred bits and lost one hundred fifty bits." Marc responded.
"Not bad. How much have you lost Ryan?" Kyle asked.
"I have won five hundred bits but I have lost two hundred twenty bits." Ryan responded. "Damn!" Pohe and Kyle said at the same time. "That is a lot money to win. Do you put it in the bank after you leave the casino?" Emperor Jeff asked. "Yes." Ryan said.
"Hey, Emperor Jeff. I was looking at your library and saw that you do not have Memories of a Geisha and any of the book adaptations of Hayao Miyazaki's plays. What gives?" Kyle asked.
"I have seen the plays and did not think I needed to buy the books. Also, I have not been able to get a copy of Memories of a Geisha since the country of Inahina (located on the continent of Pangea) has decided to ban it and have not had the time to go over there with all the wars we have got involved with." Emperor Jeff explained. "I see." Kyle said, "you do know that Howl's Moving Castle is based on a book of the same name written by Diana of House Jones. It is also part of a trilogy." "No, I did not know that." Emperor Jeff said. "Yeah. It is about a real outside Yggdrasil the World Tree." Kyle said. "Fascinating." Emperor Jeff said.
"When are we going to visit, Fort Rising Sun?" Kyle asked. "After the others are done with their meal." King Art-hur said. "Do I have to go?" Marc asked King Art-hur. "No." King Art-hur said. "Good. I was planning on hitting the casinos." Marc said.
"May Lucia (also known as Lady Luck and the Goddess of Luck) smile down on you." Kyle said. "Thanks." Marc said as he got up and walked out of the room.
Chapter two
Problems
The fort looked like a cross between eastern and western themes. The barracks have an antique bronze saw-tooth roof and the walls are apricot color. Which the main building has an antique brass Karahafu style gable while it also has a hidden roof and the walls are a bistre color. The fort is surrounded by a booger buster painted hemlock fence that is ten feet tall. There are two big larch wood doors.
As they got closer to the doors, they saw two guards that stood on both sides of the doors. "Halt!" One of the guards named Saburo said. "What is the password?" The other guard named Sen (Saburo's brother) said. "Mekajiki." (Swordfish) Emperor Jeff said. "Welcome." Saburo said as they opened the doors. "Thank you." Emperor Jeff said as he and the others walked through the doorway.
"Greetings, emperor and your majesty." A woman named General Tania (one of Britannia's five army generals and the leader of the Counter Strike Division) said as she bowed. "We have been waiting for you." Tania said as she walked up to them as she motioned toward the large group of men and women that stood beside her who wore various types of metal armor while they stood at attention. While Milan and a few others of Britannia and Napaj's military leaders stood a few feet behind her.
"Hello Tania. How have you been?" King Art-hur asked. "Good." Tania said. "How are the kids?" "They are doing great. I do not get to see them that often as I would like." King Art-hur said. "I understand completely." Tania said.
A woman named Tasha who wore a gold kimono with pitch black lines on it walked over to Tania and whispered something in her ear. Then she stepped back.
bounty hunter named Xasha captured a member of Jisatsu (crime gang in Napaj)." Tania said. "Great. Take us to him." Emperor Jeff said. "Right this way." Tania said as she headed to the headquarters.
The walls were painted flamingo pink with the ceiling being made out of a marble title with a lemon-yellow trim under it. The floors are made out of palm wood and the doors are made out of redwood.
They walked to the interrogation room.
As Tania opened the door, Xasha along with one of the fort's head guards named Yenn and two other guards named Gere and Katou Okuda stood around a man tied to chair looked toward her.
"Has he said anything?" Tania asked as she walked closer to Yenn. "No, but he was captured with this pike, a very full coin purse, and a large sack of various items including a map of this fort." Yenn said. "What would a member of Jisatsu be doing with a map of the fort?" Tania asked. "Watashi wa anata ni nani mo iwanai." (I ain't telling you nothing). The man said. "I see." Tania said.
Emperor Jeff and the others returned to the place to relax. Pohe took Kyle, Ryan, and Marc to his room to play games.
"What do you guys want to play?" Pohe asked. "How about some poker." Kyle said. "Too afraid to challenge me to play go." Pohe said. "No because I know I am going to win. Also, poker is something we can all play." Kyle said. "True." Pohe said as he grabbed a deck of cards. "I will deal." Marc said. "Okay." Pohe said as he handed the cards to him. "What are we going to play?" Ryan asked. "Duces and jacks, the man with an ax and a natural pair of sevens take all." Marc said as he sat down at the square table in the center of the room and dealt the cards after he shuffled them.
While they played cards and other card games, they talked about plays like Star Wars: Rouge One along with the Star Wars series which included the inspirations that inspired it and Star Trek. Kyle also told them about how he played strip poker with Lucia, the Goddess of Luck. They also played other card games while some of them drunk alcohol.
The next morning, Ryan woke up and walked to the dining room after he put on his wizard robes. He saw Kyle at the table drinking out of a metal gingerbread man flask.
"Is it not a little early to be day drinking?" Ryan asked. "Not according to the song Day Drinking." Kyle said as he took a sip from the flask "I see. What are you drinking?" Ryan asked. "Cinnamon Slammer. Want some?" Kyle asked. "No." Ryan said. "Okay." Kyle said as he took another sip from the flask.
"Hey guys." Marc said as he walked into the room and stretched his back. While Pohe followed him into the room and yawned.
"Good morning sleepy heads." Kyle said cheerfully. "Good morning." They said.
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