CHAPTER 3

AZAKURAIN ~Nov 2027

IRIS:

It had been a Miracle!

Iris was channelling The High Kristoph for consultation in the Mystic Circle, from inside her Mark, as per usual. Then the High Kristoph had cleverly figured out how to move from the Mark out into her arm, and her arm had Changed, then a minute later, she'd lost consciousness. Then – the other Enlightened Ones swore it was true! - then her body had Transformed into that of The High Kristoph! It seemed she had inherited the genetic capacity to Transform after all!

Mystic Patricia later explained what had happened. Other people in Azakurain, who had some of the genes from MAI but not enough to do a Kurain-style Transformation Channelling where they forcibly swapped souls, could Transform in the way Iris had after the spirit had already entered the body through their special method with the Mark. Then the spirit could move out into the rest of the body, and if the genetic capacity was in the body, switch on the transformation as per usual! "You see, dear, we think cases like yours don't have those silly extra genes which allow you to drag the spirit directly into your body and swap souls. Some of our Mystics remain conscious even during the Transformation, whilst the spirit is in their body. People like you who fall asleep, I don't know if you just are still there but unconscious, or if you also soul-swap like the pretentious Kurainian practice. Who cares if it gets the job done?"

Iris was a bit petrified in hindsight, but it hadn't been as bad as she expected – if she was unconscious, she didn't know about it to be scared! Besides, this feat had given her a major status promotion – only a select few still alive had Transformed into a god Venerated Ancestor. These individuals had their blessings and destiny discussed far more often during the because they were of such great status. (Iris did NOT stumble on the cynical thought this was because transformation channellings were more interesting a spectacle.) Sure enough, The High Kristoph was declared by one of the higher Enlightened Ones to be consulted in the very next Mystic Circle. Iris was terrified she'd fail this time, but Transforming didn't seem to require much work at all; The High Kristoph seemed well able to handle all of the actual work by himself (Iris silently praised this magnanimous blessing.) She of course fell unconscious, but when she awoke, the place was in utter chaos. It seemed that The High Kristoph had bespake an important Prophecy!

###

The high Enlightened Ones had allowed her to channel The High Kristoph into her hands to hear the words herself.

"The Ancients have foresawn your exalted destiny, Mystic Sister! One will come whose union will produce the Rightful Heir, and reunite the severed children of Master MAI and AMI again under one rightful figurehead. The Great One does not desire her identity severed!"

"S-Servered?" whispered Iris, eyes bowed to the Great One. "But I thought.."

"MAI, AMI, it is of no account. As it is quoted: 'I have many names, but the Eternal Founder, is one and the same. I AM.'" (Kristoph would have smirked if he were more than a spirit. He knew the Azakurainians were still smarting from being excommunicated from association with Kurain by Master Maya and being forced to change their purported founder to MAI to avoid confusion and bad publicity.)

"The next Master of Azakurain, the rightful leader of the Line of AMI MAI, will return the lost children of Kurain under her butterfly wings!"

"W..what about Master Maya?"

Kristoph still smarts with the indignity of evil Master Fey's defeat of him on Earth.

"Eternal Vengeance is Mine, saith the Exalted Ancestral Ones." (One.) "Maya Fey has angered the Ancestral Ones with her disobedience and disregard of destiny."

Anybody who made him – Kristoph – lose face, must be destroyed! This was a nice opener for revenge. As for Wright, bringing him within access of the Butterfly Order associates could only offer opportunities.

"You, Mystic Sister, have pleased the Ancestral Ones with your faith and dedication. Your years of tests, trials and purgatory are now drawing to a close."

"It is the Predestined Will of Master MAI and the Ancestors, which will not be thwarted by the misguided and fallen much longer!"

Then The High Kristoph bespake the most amazing thing Iris had ever heard.

"You will bear the next Heir and Master of Azakurain And Kurain, through your spiritually-destined union with Mystic Phoenix Wright!"

Iris fainted.

When the other Enlightened Ones had finally revived her, she queried The High Kristoph "B-but Mystic Phoenix seems to be with Mystic Maya Fey?"

"It has been predestined as the will of the Ancestors and AMI MAI herself that this partnership of yourself and Mystic Phoenix is correct. Mystic Maya Fey directly defies the spirits by continually trying to meddle with AMI MAI's decided destiny, with evil spells and amulets and leading him astray. But the Great Ancestor will triumph!"

And in future consultations The High Kristoph outlined more of this atrocity of the evil fallen Fey clan flagrantly defying the will of the spirits and disrupting Mystic Feenie's true MAI-determined destiny. It was essential, he emphasised, that Kurain be rescued from the corrupt, AMI MAI-disregarding leadership of the Feys, and this would occur when the prophesised Heir was born to become the Master of both orders and thus the lost children of Kurain were again saved. Many terrible things were said by both The Great One and the other Enlightened Ones about Mystic Maya, Mystic Misty and Cousin Mia, and their evil and wilful disobedience of the spirits' will of fate, never consulting them to guide their actions. It was only due to their terrible actions, Kristoph explained, that the predestined union with Feenie to produce the Rightful Heir had not occurred yet. She spent a lot of her free time mulling over the Great One's thrilling and chilling words of truth.

###

KURAIN

PHOENIX :

"Nick, you're cold," smiled Maya.

"No I'm not!"

"Are too! You keep on shaking and there are icicles stuck to your hair spikes!" She snapped one off.

"Hey! Leave my hair alone!"

"See!"

"Maya, why are you so happy? You keep grinning like you're about to burst over some secret."

"Stop changing the subject!"

"See!"

"Oh, fine, not much. I managed to get rid of Mystic Miranda for another whole month."

"Oh good.. wait, you're still smirking suspiciously, is there something else?"

"I have a lovely surprise for us! I figured we've done enough freezing and hard training lately, so we're going to a nice, tropical beach getaway! It was supposed to be going to be a surprise," she pouted, "but YOU ruined it!"

Awesome timing when that old hag can't complain!

###

The trip exceeded my wildest expectations.

Maya chose a really great location for once, beautiful gently-warm beaches with dainty tropical palm forests and serene rolling waters.

Then she told me to get down on one knee, and then Maya proposed marriage to me, can you believe it!

I gulped a 'Yes' and Maya flattened me to the ground. Once we'd finally disentangled our lips we both shed a few tears of pure emotion, and I shed a few more noting that Maya had had the forethought to spread the ground with a silk cloth before she proposed so my hair isn't even full of sand. After a very long time clutched together we rise to our feet.

"Thank you, Nick!" Another tear runs from Maya's delirious eye. " Oh, I'm so excited!" She peers at my watch. "Quick, get back in the hut and write your vow, hurry up, the celebrant's in an hour."

"WHAAT?"

"Well, I can't wait a second longer!"

"I-Isn't a bit sudden? People stay engaged for years or months, spend ages planning a huge wedding.."

Maya's eyes droop, but she replasters a smile to her face. "Well okay, if you need time then to get cold feet, Nick. But we've known each other 12? years already, wasn't it long enough?"

"No, it's j-just… won't everybody feel ripped off we don't have some huge celebration?"

"We can have a 'Just Married" party later. Look, let me explain, Nick!"

Maya told me there would be endless stupid rituals to go through, a traditional wedding with all kinds of weird blessings and divinings, and all the silly elders would want to approve it, and pray to the spirits for signs it was properly fated. She didn't say anything, but I know a few of them still don't like me and would probably try to 'curse' the wedding with some superstitious idiocy.

"Then they'll try to set it on some stupid date as far away as possible which is supposed to be lucky or something. And – of course – your name would legally be changed to Phoenix Fey."

"W-wait just a second, I didn't say 'yes' to that too, did I?"

"Well I can't change my surname, it's definitely not ever allowed as I'm Master of the Fey Clan. But I say you can keep your surname if you really want, Nick. Or change it to Fey-Wright or something…"

"But an hour? Maya, I look terrible,"

"I think you look great,"

"…my hair is a mess,"

"There's time to do it!"

"…and I have nothing to wear."

"I already bought you a lovely blue tux."

"I thought tuxes were supposed to be black?"

"Blue is your favourite colour."

"What are you wearing, Maya?"

"Why does it matter? We're just going to take it off after."

Oh right…

###