"Jansen, have you delivered that message to Chairman Roxian yet?" Master Gongora asks me.
"Yes sir." I mumble
"Did he give you an answer?" He asks.
"Yes sir. He said he shall call the council together to discuss it in three days."
"Good. . ."
Keeping my head low, I lie down on the couch. Master looks at me strangely, I think he can see my distress.
"Boy, what is troubling you?" He asks. But I don't answer. He is too busy for my nontrivial problems. "Answer me, Boy. You've not been this reclusive since you'd first started working for me."
"I. . . I failed at learning that spell. It-"
Don't talk to it.
What was that? It. . . It sounded like me. But why? What. . .
"Boy?" Master says.
"Sir, I-"
He's dead. This isn't real.
I suddenly find myself standing in front of Master Gongora. But how? I was on the couch just a second ago. My body starts to feel a bit heavier, and I find myself becoming on-level with Gongora as I grow taller. The room grows darker and metallic-looking. Sort of like. . . like the inside of Sed's ship.
I frown. "I see. It's just another dream."
"What do you mean, boy?"
Before Jansen can answer his former employer, his eyes shoot open to see the cold, metal ceiling of the Nautilus. He lies there, still, for a very long time. "It's been over five years Jansen, pull yourself together." He whispers to himself.
Eventually, the king rises from his bed and rubs away the sleep from his face. At that moment, the door slides open to reveal Kaim. He remains silent for a moment to give Jansen a chance to fully awaken. When the mage finally let's out an overly-dramatic sigh after tying up his hair, Kaim says, "We've arrived."
Jansen let's out a "Hm?" in slight confusion. Then he remembered, 'Right, Terrace Cave.' He adjusts his robes a bit before following Kaim out into the cockpit. The crew members are loitering about while everyone else waits at the exit to the ship.
"Alright everyone," Kaim says as he addresses the group of friends, "You all remember how we do this: five at a time. Who wants to be the first one to stay behind?"
"The first one?" One of Sed's crew asks. Jansen remembers him as the pirate they found while they were at the Kelolon forest. "If we were doin' only five at time, there'd be like-"
"You guys are staying on the ship." The captain says nonchalantly.
His entire crew seems to be taken aback by this previously-unknown information. 'What, they actually thought they'd fight monsters with us?' Jansen thought, 'I mean, I know they're pirates, I know they've traveled to all kinds of dangerous places, but just look at them! They're a bunch of bumbling idiots! They'll just get in our way!'
"B-But captain! I thought all that practicin' we been doin' was so we could go into the cave wit'cha!" The same pirate says.
"No, it was so you guys could be prepared if the ship got attacked while we're gone. Besides, Orly, you couldn't even handle a couple of Kelolons on your own!" The crewman in question hangs his head down and leans against a wall in embarrassment. "And on top of that, whichever one of us who decides to stay back is gonna be in charge. Got it?" His underlings are completely dumbstruck. Out of all of the things that could've happened during the trip, getting left behind to guard the ride - while being overseen by someone who wasn't even part of the crew, nonetheless - was the very last thing they thought they'd end up doing! Especially since it was their captain who was leading the exploration!
. . . At least, that's what they thought. . .
"I suppose I could stay back first." Says Tolten.
"Alright then, let's go." Kaim says as he takes a step out of the opening of the ship.
"W-Wait a minute!" Cooke calls out to her grandfather. He stops mid-stride and glances back at her. "Um, can we have something to eat first please?" At that moment, everyone else on the ship realizes the emptiness in their stomachs.
"I guess it would be a little wiser to eat before we leave." Kaim says with a smirk.
In no time at all, Sed passes out some of the travel rations to everyone and they all settle themselves comfortably around the deck. Kaim, Tolten and Jansen sit together at the overseeing platform quietly.
". . . Hey, Tolten," Jansen says when the silence finally becomes unbearable for him, "How did you get to come on this trip? I mean, the monarchy is still in place, right?" He asks.
"Ah, yes, sort of. I've made an agreement with the council that was in place from before the. . ." He trails off as discomfort rises in the pit of his stomach. "Anyway, the agreement states that they'll be in control whenever I'm away from Uhra or out of commission."
Jansen raises a brow at this. From his experience, every one of the members of the council seemed to hold a great vendetta against the monarchy that stood before the republic that they'd believed was working so well. And personally, from what he could remember about the monarchy, Jansen somewhat agreed with the council. But he supposes that Tolten has been doing pretty well so far, considering the time in which he was tricked into reestablishing the monarchy. Although, it still seems a bit risky to give the councilmen such a high degree of trust, in Jansen's opinion.
"Anyway, enough of that." He continues, "I have a question for you."
"Hmm?" Jansen raises an eyebrow.
The next few moments are filled with silence as the mage waits for the younger king to continue. Tolten seems to be choked-up on his words, debating on how and if he should say what he's thinking. Would Jansen take offense to the sudden interrogation? Would he get upset or uncomfortable? Would even say anything at all?
A sigh is released from behind the two and Kaim rests a hand on Tolten's shoulder. "We both have a question for you, actually." He says.
At this, Jansen starts to become uneasy. What exactly are these two up to?
"We were just wondering. . ." Tolten finally says, "What did you do before we met you. . .?"
Confusion crosses the mage's face, "Oh. . . Is, uh, that all? Well, I could've sworn you guys already knew this, but I was just an errand-boy for Gongora."
"We know that," Kaim says with a grumble in his voice, "But what did you do before that?"
The mage goes stiff. He clenches his jaw, his eyes become icy and distant, and his mouth forms a perfect line of distraught. 'Where did this come from?!' He thinks as panic begins to take over his body. No one in their troupe had ever shown interest in his past before! Well, Ming did, but she didn't ask about it until after they got married. And even then, she was very lenient in her persistence when it became evident that he wasn't comfortable speaking about his past.
Not wanting to cause concern in his comrades, he swallows the lump forming in his throat and opens his mouth to speak, "W-Why do you ask?" He mumbles lowly.
"We just want to know." Tolten says, "You're the only one in our group whose life we know practically nothing about!"
"We're all friends here, Jansen," Kaim adds, "We should be able to know as much about you as you do us, don't you think?"
'Really Kaim?! You're gonna pull that card on me?!' Jansen thinks. "I-I guess that's fair. . ." He starts, "But it's just. . . I mean, I didn't really ever do much, you know? There isn't much to me!" The other two men only stare at him, obviously not accepting his attempt at making them lose interest. "Come on guys! What do you want me to say?! I was a really simple kind of guy, just like I am now!"
"Well, do you have any family?" Tolten asks.
"Y-Yeah. . .?"
"You don't sound sure." Kaim says, his features softening as he begins to analyze his friend's behavior more thoroughly, "Have you not heard from them lately?"
"Yeah, that's it."
"Why not?" Tolten chimes in again, "Are you having some sort of dispute with them? Are they missing. . .?" His eyes suddenly become sad and hollow, "Do you. . . Do you even know who they are. . .?"
Jansen is very tempted to roll his eyes at the last question. Honestly, orphans are the second to most common in Uhra out of all of the nations, yet the blonde king was on the verge of tearing up at the thought of his friend being one of them! "Yeah, yeah, I know who my parents are! Relax!" He says, giving the boy a reassuring pat on the back.
"Then what's the problem?" Kaim asks.
An exasperated groan escapes the mage's mouth. The immortal's bullheadedness can be a real pain sometimes. "We just haven't talked much for a while!"
"For how long, exactly? Was it because of what happened five years ago, or did something else happen since then?"
"No, no! It has nothing to do with five years ago! I stopped talking to them long before that!"
"But why?" Tolten asks.
"Ugh!" Jansen groans. He's had it with all of this prodding! And if he hears one more question out of the two, he's going to have to let loose a few Levelers! "Are guys done eating yet?! I'm ready to go! Is it time to go?! I'm ready to go!"
Tolten frowns. "But Jansen-"
"No." Kaim says curtly, cutting off the blonde king. "Jansen's right, we should get going." As much as Kaim wants to get to know Jansen, he also doesn't want his friend to become uncomfortable around them any more than he already has. Kim had noticed how disgruntled the mage had gotten the moment he'd asked about what he'd done before meeting Gongora, but he'd continued to question him in hopes that the other would loosen-up. But, as he can now see, that's not happening. 'No,' He thought, 'The best thing to do is wait a while. Maybe we came on a bit too strong? We'll have to do better the next time we get the chance.'
With everyone's hunger satiated, Kaim gathers together the first team of their expedition: Mack, Cooke, Sed, Jansen and himself. It's almost laughable how Sed's crew is glaring at Tolten as they leavethe Nautilus. Honestly, Kaim wonders how in the world these pirates ever survived such a dangerous life with their childish behavior. No time to ponder it now though, it's time to explore this damp, dark cave. Strangely enough, however, Terrace Cave appears to be a bit darker than they'd remembered. . .
Hopefully those damn silver Kelolons have moved out. . .
Ming sighs for the tenth time this morning as she sullenly picks at her breakfast. No matter how hard she tries, she can't help but worry over her husband's well being. She has to constantly remind herself that, once again, Jansen is a full-grown-man, and has been for a while. Remind herself that he was doing just fine before she came along and could do just as well as before, now. At this point, she fears she might stay tense like this for the entirety of her husband's absence.
"My Queen." Says a guard standing in the doorway of the dining hall. "There's a 'Sarah Sisulart' requesting to visit with you. Shall I send her in?"
Ming gasps lightly. Wonderful! Now she has a distraction from her concerns! "Yes, please do that." She says a bit louder than she intended. She welcomes her long-time friend as she enters. "Please, have a seat." She says as Sarah draws near. The other mage smiles thankfully and sits beside the queen after a servant removes her plate from the table.
"Good morning, Ming." Her guest says, offering her a smile.
"Good morning, Sarah." The queen replies, giving a smile of her own. "May I ask, what brings you here so suddenly? And shouldn't you be with everyone else on that expedition?"
Sarah raises a brow, her eyes widening slightly. "Ah, yes," She starts, "That black magic spell. I would have gone, but then I figured it would be much more helpful if I'd stayed behind so I could get a head start on researching more treasures for us to look for." She puts a hand up to her tightened lips, gazing nervously at her hostess. "How did you hear about that?" She whispers.
A small frown crosses Ming's lips. "Jansen left me a note. . ." She clenches her left hand resting upon her lap into a fist, releasing a short, aggravated grunt, "Was I not supposed to know about this?"
Her guest folds her fingers together and looks away shyly. "Dammit Kaim." She whispers.
"Pardon me?" Ming says, her patience growing thin.
"It's just," Sarah starts, ". . . Remember last month? When you told me about how you never have enough time to be with Jansen? How you've been busy with work and how distant Jansen's been acting? How whenever you both get back to the castle, you're too tired to. . .?"
A blush makes its way onto the queen's face. "Yes, I do. . ."
"For that very reason, I specifically told Kaim not to bring Jansen along with them!" Her dainty tone shifts into one of aggravation as she rubs a tense hand across her forehead.
"I-I appreciate the effort," Says Ming as her embarrassment rises a few more notches, "But you really shouldn't have gone through the trouble-"
"Oh, no no! It's my pleasure to help you two out with that. Well, it was my pleasure." Sarah lets out a puff of air and puts her hand back down onto the table. "Remind me to throw a few tomes at Kaim's face when they return, please."
This earns a laugh from her hostess. "You'll have to remind me as well."
The two laugh in unison at their future bout of violence.
As their amusement dies down, a frown resettles itself onto her face. It seems that she just can't escape her worrisome nature."I just wish I could stop worrying about him, just for one minute."
Sarah cocks an eyebrow at this. "Worrying about Jansen?" She asks, "What is there to worry about? I mean, I know he's not as hardened or masculine as the other men, but he's certainly shown that he's able to protect himself."
"I know, I know." Ming says, annoyed with hearing her friend say what she's been telling herself all night and morning. "It's just that," She starts, ". . . Ever since he opened up to me about himself, I've just been so overprotective of him."
The guest tilts her head slightly to the side. Before, Ming had her curiosity, now she has her attention. "Why would you feel that way? Did something terrible happen earlier in his life?"
The queen hangs her head down in guilt for so obviously hinting at something so personal. . . But she needs to vent out this frustration! "It's more like. . ." She gives herself one more mental scolding on how terrible she's being before continuing on, "More like all of his life up until he met Kaim."
"Oh dear." Sarah whispers, "How bad?"
Ming just looks at her, brows furrowed in disappointment of herself.
Sarah's eyes shine with semi-understanding. "Very bad. . .?"
She frowns before opening her mouth and finally, shamefully, relaying the story of her husband to her guest.
"As a boy, he. . ."