The Land of Flora

by Marie Springberry

  “We are almost there,” said Mothy. “Please forgive me for what I did to you. I’ve given you all the information I have. I trust you, Ken.” He then touched Ken’s nose with his soft and round nose.

  Ken couldn’t help smiling, and said, “It’s all right. I like adventures after all.”

  ***

  In an hour or so, the carriage reached the castle. He noticed that its gardens only had tulips. Ken was welcomed into the castle politely, and the guards in gold armor took him and Mothy to the king’s court. In the room, King Sadaharion himself was waiting for Ken. King Sadaharion was a tall man who looked like in his 50’s. He had a short black hair. He was wearing a yellow kimono with the embroidery of tulips. His crown was in gold, and silver tulips decorated it. A lady was also with him. She had a long black hair, and was wearing a kimono of light green color.

  When Ken and Mothy entered the room, the king greeted.

  “Welcome to Tulitta. I am King Sadaharion, the king of Tulitta. This is Marilia, my daughter.” The lady smiled at Ken.

  “We apologize that we took you by force from Rosetta,” said the king. Then he addressed to Mothy.

  “Did you have any trouble crossing the borders?”

  “No, your Majesty. Because you have sent force across the borders, Rosettalians were busy checking carriages coming into Rosetta. They did not bother to check the carriage going out of Rosetta.”

  “That’s good.” The king said. “It was to enable you to travel smoothly.”

  “Really?” said Ken, surprised. “Rosettalians said Tulitta invaded Rosetta.”

  “We never have unnecessary fights,” said Marilia. Ken thought her voice was very beautiful. The king smiled at her.

  “Yes, Marilia is right. We never fight a war of invasion. That’s Rosetta’s job. Ken, how much do you know about Flora?”

  “He heard the Story, Sir!” Mothy answered instead. “The Torn version apparently. I also told him about Violetta and about the water drought in Rosetta.”

  “Thank you Mothy. That makes the explanation easier.”

  Then he looked at Ken, and started,

  “Ken, I will tell you directly. King Raligion of Rosetta is trying to conquer all the Kingdoms.”

  “That’s what Rosettalians told me about you,” interrupted Ken.

  “I know,”said the king, sighing, “that they treat me as evil.”

  “Then how can I believe you?”

  “That is for you to decide. I am trying to overwhelm King Raligion so that peace will be on Flora again.”

  “Yes, peace,” said Marilia, looking straight at Ken’s eyes. Ken felt his face slightly blush and hastily asked another question to the king.

  “Has he done any other evil?”

  “Yes he has. Rosettalian people have been exploited by that despot since he took the throne.” And King Sadaharion started to tell the stories of King Raligion’s evil deeds. While he spoke, Marilia was softly mumbling something to herself. Ken did not notice this. However, when King Sadaharion finished speaking, Ken’s heart was with Tulitta, though he somehow could not recall the details of the stories King Sadaharion had told him. His mind was filled with rage toward King Raligion, and he felt he wanted to destroy the king.

  “I hope you understand why we need to overwhelm Raligion,” emphasized King Sadaharion. “If you have any questions, please ask. We want to make sure you are not puzzled.”

  Ken did not have any questions but decided to ask something so that he would not be considered as stupid. He decided to ask,

  “But if you attack Rosetta, isn’t it invation?”

  King Sadaharion’s answer was unexpected. He said,

  “Well, for one thing, Rosetta has been looking for a good chance to attack us. But I know that is not an adequate reason. Actually, we will pretend to attack the Kingdom so that the prediction in the Story will be achieved. To tell you the truth, the final part of the Story, which Rosetta says is missing, is well preserved in Tulitta. I believe that part of the Story is common to all the Kingdoms, and I think Rosetta did not preserve the document very well. The Story bestowed on Tulitta is kept well without any pages missing.”

  Mothy looked at Ken with a look of I-told-you-so, and Ken couldn’t help smirking despite the serious situation.

  “Well,” the king continued, “we need to create a situation which will enable us to overwhelm Raligion.”

  “That doesn’t justify the attack, does it?” pursued Ken.

  “Well, we are trying to save every Kingdom on Flora so that the five Kingdoms will form a Union again. Prince Prligion will be a wise ruler.”

  “What do you mean? Isn’t Prince Prligion part of the current regime?”

  King Sadaharion sighed. There was a long pause. Then he said,

  “I believe King Raligion uses him as his puppet. I’m sure Prince Prligion will choose peace if we overwhelm Raligion.”

  “Why?”

  “It’s because I believe that,” the king continued, “Prince Prligion is my son.”

  “What?” Ken couldn’t believe his ears. “But he is the prince of Rosetta!”

  “Sadly, he is. He was kidnapped by a Rosettalian when he was a baby. That Rosettalian was just a kidnapper and did not recognize him as my son. I don’t know what happened after he was taken to Rosetta, but I believe my son was raised by Rosettalians. Raligion must have spotted him somewhere and adopted him without realizing him having the royal blood of Tulitta. I learned of this a few years ago from one of the Tulittalian spies.”

  “Yes, I thought the prince looked very different from other Rosettalians,” said Ken. “But how can you be sure that he is your son, not other Tulittalians? Don’t you people in general look alike to each other?”

  “It is because Prince Prligion bears a royal mark that only the royal family of Tulitta bears,” answered the king. “He doesn’t know of his identity, and I’m not going to let him know this. He should be a Rosettalian, and lead the Kingdom wisely as a Rosettalian King. Peace will come back to Flora if tension between Rosetta and Tulitta disappears.”

  “Wait a moment. Didn’t you invade Daffolitta?” Ken interrupted again.

  “That’s not true. Daffolitta once chose the wrong way, but it was meant to be. Daffolitta now is a peaceful Kingdom to our west. But let’s go back to the Rosettalian issue. All we need to do is to overthrow the current regime, King Raligion’s regime. We don’t want to make Rosettalians suffer. That’s why we didn’t stop Meg from going to find the Stone.”

  “So the stone part of the story is true?”

  “We believe so. Unlike Rosetta, Tulitta has a record of renewing the Stone twice before, though there is a possibility that the Stone might not be an actual stone.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “The historical documents only identify them as the Stone and do not give us any details. It might be a different object happened to be called the Stone.”

  “But is Meg all right? Will she come back safely? What does the Story tell about her?”

  “I assure you her safety.”

  Ken was relieved to hear that although King Sadaharion did not tell him the reason why he believed Meg to be safe.

  “Could anybody let Meg know that I’m here?”

  “Marilia will take care of that, won’t you?” asked King Sadaharion to Marilia.

  “Of course, father.”

  “However,” the king continued, “we don’t believe the whole Story.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “There are parts that were not realized in the past. The Story guides us, but determining what to do and how to make it come true is up to us.”

  “What about my part? Can you tell me what the story says about me?”

  There was a silence for a while. King Sadaharion seemed to be thinking over the issue. He then said,

  “No, I won’t. It is yours to find your way. The Story should not decide your way, you should. I follow the Story because it matches my will. You
can consult the Story later if you’d like to. But trust your decision, and act wisely, Ken.”

  “That’s my King!” said Mothy, jumping up and down.

  And everybody in the room chuckled merrily.

  ***

  After Ken left the court with Mothy for his guest room, King Sadaharion said to Marilia,

  “Well, that was surprisingly easy.”

  “I didn’t expect him to believe our story that easily, my lord,” replied Marilia.

  “Your enchantment also helped, Marilia.”

  “It’s my pleasure,” said Marilia bowing. Apparently, she was not Sadaharion’s daughter.

  “Are you going to carry out the plan tonight?” asked the king.

  “Yes, I am. Ken is here, and Meg is away. This must be a good timing,” said Marilia. “Could you train Ken in case I fail?”

  “Certainly,” assured the king.

  Marilia turned on the spot. Surprisingly, her light green kimono changed color into black.

  “Then go, and come back safely. I’m wishing you the best, my favorite ninja,” said the king.

  Marilia bowed and left the room, now completely clad in black. She jumped on the fastest houma in Tulitta in order to reach the Rosettalian castle as fast as she could.

  Chapter 10: Meg’s Voyage

  The Spring Rose was sailing through the quiet ocean. Rosetta had long disappeared from the view. Meg was on the deck, looking at the calm water with small ripples here and there caused by the cheerful breeze of spring. She was contemplating over the events that had happened to her and her brother since yesterday. Tithy was by Meg’s side, taking a nap under the warm sunshine.

  “Meg?” Captain Relosa, the captain of the Spring Rose, came up and asked, “how do you think of this ship?”

  “She is pretty,” answered Meg, “the most beautiful ship I’ve ever seen. I’ve always dreamed of traveling the ocean in a ship like this,” said Meg from her heart.

  “Thank you. The Spring Rose indeed is one of the finest ships in Rosetta, and I’m honored to be her captain,” said the captain. Then he said,

  “I have something that I need to discuss with you, Meg.”

  “What is it?” replied Meg.

  “As you have been told, only the general location of Sakuratta is known to Rosettalians.”

  “Yes, Prince Prligion told me so.”

  “Well, sailors believe that the exact location of Sakuratta is not known because there is this magical ocean around Sakuratta that conceals the location of the Kingdom.”

  “What do you mean by the magical ocean?”

  “Sailors call the area the ocean of nothingness and fear the area. In fact, nobody dares to approach the ocean unless it is out of utmost necessity.”

  “The ocean of nothingness?”

  “Some people see illusion, and other people temporarily lose all their five senses. At least that’s what the people who have sailed and come back to Rosetta say.”

  “Have you ever sailed the ocean before?”

  “I’ve entered the ocean once before. My ship was fishing and was accidentally blown into the ocean by the strong wind. We could come out safely but most of us did not remember what had happened. In fact, I was the only one who could somehow navigate the ship out of the ocean. I saw an illusion but that illusion guided me. I believe it was Fair Lady who helped us” said the captain.

  “So, what is the problem?” asked Meg.

  “The problem is that you can never tell if you are going to reach Sakuratta or come back to Rosetta once you enter the ocean of nothingness,” said the captain. “I know you are determined to continue this journey, but I wanted to give you the last chance to return.”

  “Hmm…,” wondered Meg. “I am determined to go on because I feel that is what I’m destined to do. But how about you, Captain Relosa? And your sailors?”

  “We already made up our mind before leaving Rosetta,” said the captain firmly. “And I think I can navigate the ship through the ocean of nothingness if there ever is an exit from there. I could do so once before, so I hope I can do so again.”

  “Thank you, Captain Relosa,” said Meg, and looked at Tithy, who was now wide awake. Meg asked,

  “Tithy, how about you?”

  “I am going with you wherever you go, Meg,” answered Tithy shortly. “That’s what good rabimous do, and I personally want to see Sakuratta.”

  “Well, then, it’s decided. We go on,” said the captain, and pointed toward the azure part of the ocean that was fast approaching.

  “Can you see that the ocean changes color from there?” asked the captain to Meg. “That is where the ocean of nothingness is said to start.”

  ***

  The Spring Rose was drifting trapped in the ocean of nothingess. The ocean of nothingness on the surface looked pretty much the same as the normal ocean. However, the enchantment that had been cast on the ocean a long time ago was still there, preventing casual intruders from approaching Sakuratta. Captain Relosa had been trying so hard to navigate the ship through the ocean, but he kept seeing an illusion. An illusion of himself turning into a rose, sometimes into a white one, sometimes into a red one. Captain Relosa could keep his consciousness because he was an extremely experienced sailor, but he was feeling that his sanity was about to give away. The other sailors, who had so well navigated the ship until she entered the ocean of nothingness, had lost consciousness affected by the magical power of the ocean. Tithy was also lying on the deck, though Meg was not entirely sure if she had fallen unconscious like the other sailors or she was just asleep as her belly was heaping up and down.

  Meg was not severely affected by its magical power because she was not from Flora, but she was starting to see illusions, or so she thought. She started to hear a voice whispering around her.

  “Meg, Meg…,” whispered the voice. Meg thought that she knew the voice but could not remember where she had heard that voice. “Why would you like to come to Sakuratta?” the voice asked.

  “To save Rosettalians,” answered Meg without thinking twice about the question. She was also surprised by the promptness her answer came out of her mouth.

  “Are you ready to accept whatever consequences that result from your action?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Even though your story might not necessarily have a happy ending?” asked the voice. Meg wondered why the voice asked her such a question, but she said,

  “Yes. I came here out of my own will, so I know I am responsible for whatever happens to me here.”

  “You have started to look for your own way,” said the voice mysteriously. “Sakuratta welcomes you.”

  Then Meg thought for a moment that she saw a pale figure of a fair woman clad all in white. She vaguely thought the figure was familiar to her, but she couldn’t see her face. Then a white flower petal suddenly appeared and started to gleam in front of her. She tried to reach for it, but it started to drift away.

  “Captain Relosa,” shouted Meg at the captain. “I think this white flower petal is showing us the way to Sakuratta.”

  “I don’t see it, Meg!” shouted back the captain, who was struggling with the image of his legs turning into rose vine. Meg noticed that the flower petal was only visible to her.

  “I’ll tell you where the petal is,” said Meg.

  “Why can you be so sure that the petal you’re talking about is going to lead us to Sakuratta, Meg?” asked the captain.

  “Because I know this white flower petal,” answered Meg. “is a petal of a cherry blossom. It is called sakura in Japanese. The name Sakuratta comes from cherry blossoms right? I strongly feel that this petal is going to guide us there.”

  In answer, Captain Relosa turned the ship toward the direction Meg was pointing to.

  Chapter 11: Mishap at the Castle

  A dark figure was running along the corridor of the Rose Castle. That figure did not belong to the castle, but all the guards had failed to notice the figure coming into the castle. T
hat figure was looking for someone in order to carry out the mission she was trusted on.

  Marilia was the head ninja of Tulitta. Ninjas were special agents of Tulitta, who carried out secret missions. Unlike the soldiers and guards of the Kingdom, ninjas preferred to use weapons such as daggers and throwing knives rather than swords and long bows. They were also skilled magicians, and they were experts on the spells to bewilder people’s mind. Marilia usually disguised as King Sadaharion’s daughter and followed wherever he went in order to protect him. However, tonight, she was carrying out a secret mission. A mission that King Sadaharion would trust to nobody else. Marilia also had a personal reason to carry out that mission.

  Marilia was a Tulittalian. However, she grew up in Violetta, and she had been serving as the spy for the queen of Violetta before she started to serve King Sadaharion. The queen also called Marilia her best friend. When Violetta was merged into Rosetta, Marilia was the last person to leave the queen’s side. She insisted on staying, but the queen ordered her to go to Tulitta. She said Marilia should go serve King Sadaharion so that she would one day be able to help restore Violetta. Marilia said she would stay with the queen until the end, but the queen persuaded her to go. “Kizunatachi Maiorishihana Utsukushiki Kageniaredomo Hikariwausezu” was her true song. It meant “the beautiful flower came to a new land, severing the bond it had. It is hidden in the shadow, but the light does not extinguish.”

  Marilia found the room she was looking for. She could identify the room because its door was gorgeously decorated by the carvings of gold roses. The door was locked, but with an easy trick with a needle, she could open it easily.

  “Arrogance,” muttered Marilia to herself and quietly pushed the door to enter.

  ***

  King Raligion was lying on his bed. He was thinking how the past few days had been some of the worst days he had ever experienced in his life. The castle had been in turmoil. The fountain had completely dried up, and the entire kingdom was relying on the reservoir for survival. Tulitta had not attacked again, but additional groups of soldiers had to be sent to protect the borders. Ken had disappeared from the castle with Mothy, and a search party had been formed to look for him. The king’s mind was full of worries and concerns, but there was nothing much he or the prince could do. All they could do was to wait for news, especially news from Meg.