I do not own Chaotic nor anything related to it. It belongs to TCDigital.

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Act II: Ascension

The Empty Chair

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My name is Michael. I am from the Human tribe, and I am a member of the species with the same name. My forty-seventh solan was two days ago.

Humans do not have a claim to any location in Perim. Instead, we live within the lands of the four native tribes of Perim. I live with the Mipedians at Al Mipedim, a city surrounding an oasis. Our leader is King Theb-sarr, an intimidating but goodhearted Mipedian royal.

Tonight the city is holding a celebration to welcome back the king's son, Crown Prince Iflar. He'd been on campaign since long before Humans appeared in Perim. The entire city is preparing for the celebration, minus a few people whose occupations don't fit in nicely with party prepping. One such person is a Mipedian named Sett, my boss and my friend. We have a lot of talking to do.

"I'd always known that death scared Rasha," Sett says as another friend of ours, Shasta, pours him a glass of fresh jaimlo juice. "She wasn't afraid to admit it. Nobody ever thought she was weak for feeling that way, either."

Shasta grins as he pours me a glass. "Because a scared soldier who still keeps fighting is one of the most powerful forces in Perim. That's my sister."

"I wish I met her," I muse as I pick up my glass.

Sett looks back down at the letters Rasha had written to Shasta a long time ago. "I didn't know why she was so afraid until now, though." He picks up one of the letters. "She was afraid of leaving people behind, not of dying itself. Leaving me behind... or even losing me."

Neither Shasta nor I say anything while Sett stares at the page. Sett eventually puts the letter down. "I knew she took risks to save me while we were in combat, just like I did for her. These letters, though..." Sett stares at Shasta. "She says that if one of us had to die and she had to choose, she would choose herself... Gah, I'm not doing her writing any justice."

I set down my empty glass. "Then don't try to do them justice. We've already read them."

"I know..." Sett sighs, "I just... Shasta, I'm sorry I never let you talk to me about this..."

"You know now," Shasta says. "That's what matters."

Sett picks up the last letter in the stack, the last one that had been written. "She wanted me to move on with my life if she died. She was going to tell me that before the attack interrupted. She sent you what she was planning on saying in case she didn't get to tell me..." Sett places the page down and rests his head on the table. "I should have just let you talk to me..."

Shasta and I are silent again. Sett eventually sits up and reaches for his glass. He hesitates. "There's no alcohol in here, right?"

"It's fresh," Shasta says. "Your addiction recovery starts now."

"This should be fun," I mutter as Sett drains the glass.

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Mipedians throw the best celebratory parties, I bet. Any party where the entire city is invited has to be the most amazing thing ever.

I'm not disappointed when I see it. The center of the party may be the palace grounds, but there's so much stuff that it's spilling into the main roads. There are performers everywhere, refreshment stands at every corner, and music everywhere.

I head for the palace courtyard. There's a Mipedian here doing a fire show, dancing around while accompanied by a magical construct made of flames. Not far away is a sword-fighting "contest," though it's a little obvious that it's staged. Across the plaza is a Mipedian selling tiny vials of fluid, though the way she keeps glancing around makes me think her wares are not entirely legal.

There's children running in the streets! Laughing and playing and looking at everything! Human and Mipedian! This is the cutest thing ever! And now various adults are running around in a panic, trying to keep their eyes on the kids. It's unlikely the Human children are living with their actual parents, so I'm glad someone is caring for them.

Sett, Shasta and I are moving as a group. We're making sure Sett doesn't slip up. Shasta steers Sett away from a drink stand. "Nope, not that one."

Sett grits his teeth and clenches a fist. Then he relaxes. "Sorry, I caught a whiff and..."

"We know," I say as I guide him to a different stand. "How about here?"

"How may I help you?" asks the Mipedian at the stand as we approach. He glances at me, and I see his lips press together.

Shasta and Sett place their orders, and the Mipedian turns to fill their glasses. I clear my throat, but there's no response. I say a less subtle, "Excuse me?"

The Mipedian turns around and hands Shasta and Sett their drinks. "Eight palms, please."

Sett folds his arms over his chest, while Shasta rests his arms on the table. "I take it you're only aiming for a two-thirds satisfaction rating?" Shasta says with a grin.

The other Mipedian glances at me. "I don't serve non-Mipedians."

Shasta half-closes his eyes. "I see... hm..." He picks up his drink and takes a sip. "Ah, the Black Oasis blend. Three parts kainekot fruit juice, one part lapta soda powder, one part parfkew for the bitter kick, and one part water for dilution, to combat the gag reflex brought on by the parfkew."

Shasta sets the glass down. "Your water jars in the back all have the same identifying marks, meaning that you specifically stock water from the same set of dew farms."

The Mipedian looks a little lost. "Yes. And?"

Shasta taps his glass. "There's a trace taste of copper in this drink, no doubt for the sting it adds to it. Unless the cup itself is copper, which it's clearly not, then that means your supply of water comes from the southeast dew farm wells."

"It does," the Mipedian says in an annoyed tone. "Your point is?"

Shasta gestures to me. "Meet Michael, the foreman in charge of all those wells."

The Mipedian's eyes widen ever the slightest bit. He very quickly takes my order.

"Wow," I breathe as we leave the stand. "No wonder you're a bartender."

Shasta looks very pleased with himself. "I've always wanted to show off like that."

"By the way," I add, "I'm not the only one in charge of the southeastern wells."

Sett smirks. "Let's not tell him that."

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It's a while later into the night, and the feast is being brought out. Long tables stretch across the courtyard, some trailing down to the roads. The seats are quickly being filled. The three of us may need to search a bit to find a-

"Hey! Michael! We saved you a spot!"

...Okay then. We follow the voice to a table with many of the palace guard sitting around it. Maliph is waving his arm at me. There's an empty spot between him and Malvadine.

I head over. "Hey guys. Any chance you can fit two more besides me?"

Malvadive looks pasts me. "Ah, there's Sett and Shasta. Come along!"

It's a little crowded, but we all fit. "Thanks," I say.

"No problem at all," Maliph says.

We;re all immediately distracted by the food being brought out. There's... quite a bit of meat being brought out. When the serving dishes are set out, I fill my plate with a few pieces of meat that don't still have their faces attached.

I've never been able to handle meat that still looks somewhat like it's still alive. Those big luau pigs with apples in their mouths are an obvious example, but even something as small as shrimp makes me queasy. Fortunately, there's enough already sliced meat that I can ignore the whole-cooked meats.

We can see the royal's table from here. I see four Mipedians and an empty chair. I nudge Maliph and ask. "Who's that over there?"

Maliph raises an eye ridge for a moment. "...Oh! Right, you haven't met the entire royal family. Obviously you know our King and Prince Mudeenu, and you saw Prince Iflar yesterday. The woman beside Iflar is Princess Isis."

"His wife?" I guess.

Malvadine chokes on a piece of meat for a moment. He hits his chest and says, "His sister, not his wife. Why would you think that?"

I roll my eyes. "Royal marriages in Earth's past. Lots of inbreeding."

Sett puts down the meat he was about to put in his mouth. "Thanks, Michael, for that lovely thought."

I shrug. "Sorry." I tilt my head to the royal's table. "And the empty chair?"

Maliph chews on his lower lip a moment. "Well, it's a custom for the leader of a visiting tribe to have a seat at the king's table. If the tribe leader isn't present, then the chair is left empty. Seeing as how Humans don't have a leader here..."

"Ah." I turn back to my food. "I guess it's supposed to be a sign of respect, but some Humans are going to get the wrong idea."

Shasta nods. "I've overheard some customers. Many humans assume that King Theb-sarr considers himself their king, and they don't like it. They might think that this custom is really a way to emphasize how they don't have a leader."

Malvadine shakes his head. "I'm sure His Majesty is figuring something out."

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Many minutes, maybe an hour into the meal, King Theb-sarr stands up and raises his arms. All sound dies as everyone's attention turns to him. "To my fellow Mipedians, and to our guests the Human tribe-"

There's the sound of someone snorting in the crowd. Theb-sarr pauses, then continues. "As many of you have no doubt guessed, this celebration is about more than the safe return of Iflar."

I raise my eyebrows. I hadn't guessed anything like that. Then again, he might be specifically talking to the Mipedians right now.

Theb-sarr steps to the side until he's standing behind Iflar, and he puts his hands on his son's shoulders. "Indeed. I am pleased to officially declare my son, Prince Iflar, to be the successor to the throne."

A cheer goes through the crowd. Iflar uncomfortably stands and bows.

I lean towards Malvadine and whisper, "Is this a coronation?"

Malvadine shakes his head. "It's just ceremony. Prince Iflar had to go on campaign before he could officially be named the Crown Prince. His Majesty is simply catching up."

As the cheer continues, another sound gets mixed in. It's the sound of... oh come on!

The cheering dies as everyone turns to look at a group of booing Humans. They become very quiet as they realize everyone knows who they are.

King Theb-sarr stares at the group, then steps around the table. He slowly walks up to the Humans, who start to cower as he gets closer. Theb-sarr stands at his full height in front of them, staring down. "...Is there a problem?"

There's a small squeak saying, "No."

Theb-sarr folds his arms. "It's one thing to disapprove of my decisions, but that is understandable. It isn't possible to please everyone. However, it's another thing entirely to disapprove of my decisions and then lie to my face about it afterwords."

Someone in the group is whimpering.

King Theb-sarr leans forward. "Please, tell me your concern."

Nobody can hear the group clearly, but they are whispering something. Theb-saar tilts his head, then stands.

"You misunderstand, Humans," he says with a frown. "I am not mocking your tribe with an empty seat."

"Called it," I whisper.

Theb-sarr spreads his arms. "I am merely recognizing your decision to count yourselves separately from the Mipedian tribe. As your own tribe, any Human who represents you has as seat at events like this."

More muttering. Theb-sarr raises an eye ridge. "Because one hasn't been selected." He smirks. "Don't tell me that you want me to choose your leader."

Whatever the Humans say surprises Theb-saar. He straightens up with a faraway look in his eyes. He slowly turns around, his eyes darting through the crowd, His eyes turn towards me, and his pace quickens.

Wait, what? Don't tell me that-

King Theb-sarr comes to a stop in front of me. "Michael of the Human tribe. Your fellow humans wish that the seat be filled."

Holy freaking crap. This isn't happening, is it? I look around. My companions look as shocked as me.

Theb-sarr speaks again, "I am not asking you to lead your tribe, I am only asking you to appease their desire for a symbol of leadership."

I take a breath to steady my nerves. Then I stand up. "Then I will do so." I hope I know what I'm getting into.

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Up next: The View from the Top

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Like I said before, Chaotic belongs to TCDigital.

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