The Land of Flora

by Marie Springberry

  He soon fell asleep.

  He had a dream, a very strange dream.

  He was flying over a field, a field filled with withered flowers.

  He was alone in the middle of the field.

  He landed and looked around.

  There was nobody. The air was hot, and there was no wind.

  He waited, and waited because he knew he was waiting for something.

  Suddenly, he saw a fair maiden dressed in white.

  She was approaching. She had something round in her hands.

  She dropped it in the field.

  Suddenly, the air cooled down, and Ken started to feel breeze.

  The withered flowers regained life and he started to hear birds tweeting.

  The maiden looked at him.

  It was Meg.

  “Meg?” he tried to say, but his voice did not come out.

  The maiden did not notice him.

  Ken felt somebody approaching, a tall figure.

  It was Prince Prligion.

  Meg waved at the prince, and so did the prince.

  The prince approached her, and took her hands.

  Then, they disappeared.

  Ken felt his body was burning with rage.

  He tried to scream, but again, he could not.

  He felt his body melting into the air.

  Then, he heard a voice,

  “Oozorani Sobiyutaiboku Chikarazuyoshi Konohachiredomo Inochiwahatezu”

  “This is your True Song, a new and temporal member of the Union. A tall tree was growing toward the sky. Even when the tree loses all its leaves, the strong life of the tree remains,” said the voice.

  Ken thought the voice was familiar to him, but he couldn’t remember.

  He felt the fragrance of cherry blossoms fill the air, and the voice said, “Believe yourself, and find your way. You have come here to find who you truly are.”

  Then the voice disappeared.

  Ken felt a strong smell of peppermint.

  He woke up with a jolt. He felt somebody looking at him in the dark from the window. He went to the window, but only saw the bright moon.

  ***

  In her bed, Meg was also having a strange dream.

  She was looking down a battlefield from a castle.

  The battlefield was filled with red roses and tulips.

  She was looking for somebody in the battle field.

  She was not sure who she was looking for, but she was worried.

  That person promised that he would protect her.

  She wanted to go out, but she was confined in a room.

  She could do nothing but to look down the battlefield helplessly.

  The roses were pushing tulips back, and the triumph of roses was at hand.

  Then, she spotted a man in gold armor running into the middle of roses.

  She tried to scream, but she couldn’t.

  She felt a slight smell of peppermint, but it soon disappeared.

  Suddenly, there was an explosion, and everything went white.

  Then she heard a voice.

  “Kooritoke Mizuotokikoyu Tanoshikuni Sakurakaguwashi Harunosoyokaze”

  “This is your True Song, a new and eternal member of the Union. The cold winter will end and joy of spring will fill the land. The air will be filled with the sweet fragrance of cherry blossoms.”

  Meg felt the air around her now filled with the fragrance of cherry blossoms.

  The voice continued, “be true to your heart. You will find who you truly are here in the Land of Flora.” Meg knew she had heard the voice somewhere before, but she could not remember.

  She woke up. It was already morning

  The castle was ringing with alarms of emergency.

  Chapter 8: Acceptance of Fate

  “The Tulittalians have crossed the borders!” someone was screaming.

  “The Fountain has dried up completely!” another person was screaming. Meg woke up, and quickly dressed herself.

  The door of Meg’s room opened and Ken jumped in, accompanied by Mothy.

  “Sis? Are you up? We are summoned by the king.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know. The castle is in turmoil.”

  “Please follow us!” said Mothy and Tithy, jumping out of the room.

  They were taken along the busy corridor to the King’s Court. The alarm stopped while they were running down the corridor. King Raligion, Prince Prligion, and Captain Curlipian were already in the room. The two professors were there too.

  “Good morning Ken, good morning Meg,” greeted the prince. “The peril came to us faster than we expected.”

  “What’s going on?” Ken asked.

  “This morning, we received a report from one of the pigeons that there was a fight at the west borders last night. Right, Captain Curlipian?”

  “Yes, Sir,” said the captain. “Tulittalians crossed the borders. Our soldiers tried to defend, but we were outnumbered. I don’t have the accurate information, but Tulittalians did not pursue further. I believe it was just provocation to us, but they have started to move. We need to deploy our guards and soldiers. The borders need reinforcement, and five Groups are about to leave the castle for the borders.”

  “Thank you for the quick arrangement,” said the prince.

  “The shortage of water cannot wait either.” The king remarked.

  “That is very true, father. The Fountain of Bara stopped providing water early this morning. We still have enough water to survive a month or so, but then our lives will be in danger. We haven’t told the people of Rosetta about this peril yet. Internal conflict is what we least want now.”

  “There is only one solution, you know. Command her,” said the king irritatively. The prince looked at him and said, “I was about to ask her.” He looked at Meg and said,

  “Do you remember the Story we shared with you last night?”

  “Yes,” said Meg.

  “It talks about the Fortune gaining power and so will the Fountain. We believe the Fortune refers to you, Meg.”

  “No, I won’t let you!” Ken interrupted, sensing what was coming.

  “I order you, Meg, to go to Sakuratta and find an alternative Stone” said the king in a commanding tone. “If you reject, I’ll have your brother’s life.”

  “What?” said Ken.

  “Wait father, that is not fair to them,” said the prince. “Let them consider the issue.”

  “Son, we don’t have time.”

  “I’ll accept your order, Prince Prligion,” said Meg, looking at the blue eyes of the prince. And both Prince Prligion and Meg felt that something transmitted between them. “But please remember that I choose to go on this adventure out of my own will, not under the command of anybody.”

  “Sis, no! It’s too dangerous!” said Ken. “I won’t let you go to this adventure.” He turned to Prligion and Raligion and said,

  “If Meg’s going, then I’m going with her!”

  “Thank you, Ken. But you can’t come with me. I feel this adventure is what I’m destined for” said Meg.

  “But… Meg, you didn’t like adventures, did you?”

  “No, I didn’t. But I’m living my dream here. This is what I always wanted to do. Please, Ken. Let me have my chance to prove myself.” She turned to the prince again, and said,

  “You need to give me every information you have about Sakuratta.”

  “Yes, we will. Thank you so much, Meg. Our fate is on your shoulders.” Prince Prligion paused, and then added, “But please come back safely. I wish we had more time to talk before your departure. You have come, and you are going away this soon.”

  “I’ll come back,” said Meg. “Are we going to have time to talk then?”

  “I promise to take you to the most beautiful place in Rosetta,” said the prince, smiling at Meg.

  Ken decided to interrupt, and asked,“When are you planning to send her to Sakuratta if that’s what Meg really wants to do?”

 
; “As soon as the ship is ready, but you have to go to the temple of Fair Lady to receive your True Song before departure,” said King Raligion.

  “Actually, I received my True Song in my dream last night,” said Meg.

  “Did you?” Prince Prligion exclaimed. “That is unusual. How about you, Ken?”

  “Same with me,” answered Ken, determined not to share the dream with anybody. “But why does it even matter?”

  “Ah,” said Professor Mistel. “True Song not only describes who you really are but also gives you strength in times of danger. Also, I’m sorry it seems the tour of the city has to wait until we see each other again,” she added with an audible sigh.

  “Because it’s time for a council” said the king.

  ***

  Two hours later, Ken and Meg were back in Meg’s room. Meg was preparing for her departure.

  “Sis, are you sure you want to do this adventure?” asked Ken.

  “Yes, I’m determined to. You can’t change my mind now.”

  “I see,” sighed Ken.

  “The voyage should not take very long,” said Meg. “The prince told me that the approximate location of Sakuratta is known to Rosettalians. Ocean is the only thing that is between Sakuratta and Rosetta. We are going to sail through the ocean to find Sakuratta.”

  “We?”

  “Yes. Tithy’s coming with me. There will be some sailors to move and navigate the ship too.”

  “You talk of the adventure lightly. But remember, Professor Sherikian told us Sakuratta is a mythical and magical place. You might face danger.”

  “Don’t worry. My flower is sakura, or cherry blossoms, remember? I should be fine.”

  “OK. But please, if you feel any danger, don’t pursue the adventure further. Just come back.”

  “I will. Ken, please train hard and become a good soldier by the time I come back.”

  Ken made a groan. Captain Curlipian had invited him to join roseknights for training, but he did not fancy the idea. “There’s no way I’ll fight, especially with swords,” he was thinking.

  “I remember you said that you were destined to be a swordsman,” remarked Meg.

  “I didn’t intend to. The words just came out. I was just trying to show off so that others wouldn’t attack.”

  “I see, I see.”

  There was a knock, and the door opened. Tithy and Mothy came in, each with two drinks. The drinks were dandelion juice. “The ship is ready. Let’s drink for Meg” said Mothy. He gave Ken a glass. The juice was bitter.

  When they finished drinking, Tithy said, “Meg, shall we leave?”

  “Yes, let’s.”

  “I’ll see you off to the port, Sis.” Ken said.

  “No, Ken. You can’t come to the port. We don’t want the departure to be conspicuous.” It was Mothy who answered.

  “But…”

  “It’s all right, Ken. Wish me luck.” Meg said, and kissed Ken on the cheek. She then waved good-bye to Mothy, and left the room with Tithy.

  Ken saw her off until she turned the corner, and went into his room. He was determined to refuse the sword training.

  Then everything started to sway, and he fell down on the floor. He heard Mothy saying to somebody, “Ready!”

  Everything went dark.

  ***

  A few hours later, one of the roseknights came to Ken’s room. The roseknights had been waiting for Ken’s arrival at the training field, but as Ken did not show up, one of them had decided to come check if he was awake. The roseknight knocked the door, but no answer came. Then he casually pressed the door, and was surprised to find the door unlocked. He peeked in, and found that nobody was in the room.

  “This is strange…,” said the roseknight to himself, and started running back to the training field to inform Captain Curlipian of Ken’s absence.

  Chapter 9: Tulitta

  Ken found himself lying on a bed. The bed was moving. He assumed he was in a carriage. He opened his eyes and saw Mothy’s round eyes looking at him.

  “Are you feeling all right?” Mothy asked.

  “Mothy! What did you do?”

  “I’m sorry, that drink I gave you was sleeping potion,” apologized Mothy.

  “Why did you do such a thing? How long have I been sleeping?” Ken reprimanded.

  “I had to take you out of Rosetta secretly. You have been sleeping for almost two days. We crossed the borders of Rosetta and Tulitta safely about 10 hours ago.”

  “Is Meg safe?”

  “Of course she is. I didn’t drug her. Tithy and Meg should be safely on the ship.”

  “That’s a relief. Now, why have you taken me out of Rosetta?”

  “I’m actually a secret agent working for Tulitta.”

  “What?” Ken sat up on the bed, and reached for Mothy. Mothy jumped away.

  “Please forgive me. I don’t mean any harm on you. I sent a pigeon to Tulitta to inform King Sadaharion of your arrival, and he ordered me to bring you to Tulitta.”

  “Do you know why?

  “No. I only follow the king’s order. King Sadaharion, the king of Tulitta, is the only person I serve.”

  “But didn’t you have to take an oath to be loyal to your master?”

  “That oath can be interpreted in many ways. I just interpret it to mean that I should be loyal to my master only. I am loyal to you, Ken, though I am not loyal to Rosetta.”

  “Why?”

  “I was born in Rosetta, near the borders of Violetta.”

  “Violetta?”

  “Yes. Violetta was a peaceful Kingdom lying between Rosetta and Tulitta. As Violetta was a very small Kingdom, Tulitta was protecting it. But Rosetta invaded and conquered the Kingdom last year.”

  “I assumed so. What happened to the king of Violetta?”

  “Actually, Violetta had a queen. The attack by the Rosettalians was swift, and Tulittalians could not help her fight back. Tulittan Court offered her to stay with them, but the queen chose to stay with her people.”

  “So where is she?”

  “She lives as a farmer with her people under the rule of Rosetta. If Rosettalian Court knew of her identity, they’d kill her.”

  Ken looked out of the window. The carriage was running through bushes.

  “So Prince Prligion was lying?” asked Ken.

  “Well, I believe it’s a matter of perspective. Let me continue with my story. Most of my friends were Violettalians. But because they lived near the borders, most of them were killed by Rosettalians on the day of the attack to clear their way.”

  “I feel sorry for you.”

  “I was so sad, and cursed Rosetta. At that time, I was scouted by a Tulittalian spy. He brought me to King Sadaharion. The king told me the evil plan King Raligion was up to, and asked me to help foil his plan. I agreed. I was trained in Tulitta for several months, and was sent back to Rosetta. I went to the castle, and received training to become a servant. As you see, I’m still very young.”

  “Did anybody know of your true identity?”

  “Nobody in Rosetta has suspected me before. Rosettalians only treat us rabimous as servants and don’t cast any suspicion over us. That is a strange tradition of the Rosettalian court to keep rabimous as servants. They think we are fluffy and cute animals.”

  Mothy stretched and Ken could not help feeling that he was really cute. He wanted to say that it was impossible not to treat rabimous as fluffy and cute animals. Instead he asked,

  “So Tulitta knows everything going on in Rosetta?”

  “Well, I try to send as much information as possible. I believe there are several more Tulittalian agents or spies among Rosettalians. There should be some spies in disguise of Rosettalian soldiers. I don’t know for sure because we don’t contact each other in order to avoid detection.”

  “So Tulitta knows of the story we heard at the feast? Didn’t they say the story is enchanted?”

  “They say so,” Mothy sniffed. “That’s their arrogance. They think they are s
elected people.”

  “So what?” Ken could not see where the story was going.

  “Rosetta is not the only possessor of the Story. Tulitta also has a similar story, though obviously it is about Tulitta, not Rosetta. They say the Story was given to each Kingdom by Fair Lady a long time ago.”

  “Is it also torn?”

  “I don’t know for sure. I’ve never heard the full Story before.”

  “Do I appear in the Story?” asked Ken, suddenly feeling curious.

  “I assume that’s why you’re needed.”

  “Why only me? How about Meg?”

  “As I told you, I don’t know. I only execute orders from the king. I don’t ask for explanation.”

  “Why didn’t you ask me beforehand?”

  “I’m sorry. I couldn’t take the risk of revealing my plan. King Raligion of Rosetta is a despot. Rosettalians are suffering.”

  “Rosettalians?”

  “Yes. As you know, the water of the Fountain started to dry up. Prince Prligion I believe does not know this, but King Raligion shut off water conduits of Outer City a half year ago.”

  “Outer City?”

  “The area outside of the city walls.”

  “How did you know about that?”

  “I happened to be receiving my training nearby.”

  “So people in Outer City do not have water now?”

  “I guess they rely on their reservoir.”

  Mothy stretched again. Ken still could not believe that Mothy was a secret agent of Tulitta. Mothy was too cute. As to shake off his thoughts, Ken asked again,

  “You said King Raligion is evil, but what about Prince Prligion?”

  “I don’t know. King Sadaharion never talks of Prince Prligion as evil. I believe the prince is innocent and only executing King Raligion’s orders. King Raligion does not share all the secrets with the prince as with the case of water conduits.”

  “But isn’t it strange? The prince seemed to be in command. He was the one who was doing most of the talk at the feast.”

  “Raligion is cunning. I don’t know why but King Sadaharion says Prince Prligion is not evil. I have to trust his judgment.”

  Mothy looked out of the window. Ken followed his gaze and saw a castle approaching. The castle was different from the castle of Rosetta. The castle of Rose City had tall towers. This castle did not have towers. It looked like a tall pyramid without the top part. The pyramid was divided by pillars into several floors. It reminded of Ken the castle he saw in a guidebook on Japan.