The Land of Flora

by Marie Springberry

  King Raligion had come to the throne at the age of 29, taking after his father at a fairy young age. The truth was that Rosetta and Tulitta had been experiencing tension over Violetta for many years. Violetta was a fertile agricultural Kingdom, and both Rosetta and Tulitta wanted to have Violetta as part of their Kingdom. Violetta did not possess strong armed forces, but the then Queen of Violetta, Viola, was a strategist. At one point, Viola had secretly chosen to conclude a peace treaty with Tulitta, and had been under the protection of Tulitta without the knowledge of Rosetta. King Raligion still did not know for sure why Violetta had chosen Tulitta over Rosetta, but he suspected that Tulitta had offered gold in return.

  So it came as a shock when the combined forces of Tulitta and Violetta suddenly attacked Rosetta on the night of his father’s funeral. Tulitta and Rosetta had had a small conflict or two before, but it was the first time Tulitta did actually send its armed forces onto the land of Rosetta. They destroyed the border fences between Violetta and Rosetta, but somehow did not pursue further. However, one mysterious event happened. He went back to his room to find his girlfriend, who happened to be staying at his place that night, stabbed to death by a dagger he had never seen before. There was a carving of a petal of tulip on the dagger, and the room was filled with the scent of violet. As such, he suspected the deed of an assassin from either Violetta or Tulitta, who probably thought it was King Raligion who was sleeping in the bed. Although Rosetta failed to capture the assassin, he had ever since been determined to retaliate for the loss.

  After the incident, King Raligion reinforced the borders and the protection of the castle. He developed a very suspicious mind due to the grief of losing his father and his girlfriend. Before the incident, he was a cheerful prince who loved nature. He used to sneak out of the castle at night, spending a night in the moonlit garden. That man was no more. He started to believe that he should become the ruler of the entire Land of Flora so that Rosetta would not be attacked by outside forces ever after. He did not think or care about the consequences his decision might bring. He just wanted to retaliate. He wanted to attack back as soon as possible. However, he was not a foolish man. He was cunning, and he was smart. He was not someone who would fight a losing war. He knew Rosettalian army was just strong enough to prevent Violetta and Tulitta from attacking Rosetta, but not strong enough to win over their combined forces. He pretended that Rosetta had chosen not to open any wars, and waited, and waited for the best opportunity to attack back. Violetta and Tulitta did not attack openly either. He did not understand this as he had come to believe that then King Akiharion of Tulitta was trying to conquer Rosetta. He also believed that Tulitta would destroy Violetta once it succeeded in conquering Rosetta. He knew they were still trying to assassinate him, but the roseknights had so far succeeded in foiling all the plots against him. His concern was not merely a product of imagination as then King Akiharion of Tulitta indeed was a king who favored wars.

  King Raligion adopted a baby as his successor when he turned 35. His lost girlfriend was the only person he ever loved, so he did not wish to marry any other lady. However, he realized he needed a successor, and looked for the most beautiful baby in the Kingdom. In the end, he adopted a baby from a farmer who lived near the borders when he went to inspect the area. He became such fond of the baby, whom he named Prligion, and personally taught him everything about ruling a kingdom. It was quite unexpected when Prligion turned to be taller than all Rosettalians he knew, but he decided to turn blind eyes to the possibility that he might not be a native Rosettalian.

  As years passed by, King Raligion grew older, and Prince Prligion started to help his father rule the Kingdom. King Raligion assigned Prince Prligion as the commander of the entire army, and he himself retired from the position. However, all these years, King Raligion never forgot the outrage against Violetta and Tulitta, and continued to seek the best opportunity to attack Violetta and Tulitta. King Raligion had also convinced Prince Prligion that Violetta and Tulitta were evil Kingdoms which threaten Rosetta. He finally found the opportunity to seize Violetta when Queen Viola passed away a half year ago. He learned from the spies he had sent to Violetta and Tulitta that there was disagreement as in who should take over the throne, and took advantage of the confusion. The raid went smoothly, and it only took a night to conquer Violetta. Tulitta did not aid Violetta, and King Raligion suspected Tulitta had betrayed Violetta.

  Now that Violetta was no more, his main goal was to attack and conquer Tulitta so that he would finally be able to revenge for the loss of his girlfriend more than 30 years ago. He was also concerned about the drought that was upon Rosetta, but for him, this concern meant that Rosetta should attack Tulitta before it was too late. He insisted on attacking Tulitta as soon as possible, but Prince Prligion and Prince Curlipius have so far stopped him. They said the Rosettalian army was not strong enough for that especially with the lack of pure water.

  The arrival of Ken and Meg was unexpected, but that meant hope for Rosetta. The fact that siblings were bestowed upon the true song without visiting the Temple of Fair Lady also seemed to suggest they indeed were the siblings in the Story. He was concerned at the same time. The Story is Torn, and he was not yet sure how the Story is going to develop from now on.

  “Meiooi Umareshimonoyo Kenwotore Tatakainukan Tadakuni no tame” was his true song. “You are born with a destiny, fight for your country with your sword,” King Raligion thought. “But I am getting old.”

  He eventually fell asleep, knowing that Rithy was there to protect him from any evil.

  ***

  Marilia entered the room, ready to throw the dagger at the king.

  She thought she stepped on something warm and fluffy.

  It jumped, and it bit her arm badly.

  She dropped her dagger out of pain.

  She managed to shake away the thing that was biting her arm, and kicked it away hard. The alarm bell started to ring, and she heard many soldiers running toward the room. She tried to retrieve the dagger, but she somehow was not able to find it. She reached for her backup dagger, but someone seized her from the behind at that moment. She shove off the attacker, turned and ran, cursing that there was something that the other ninjas had not told her about the protection of the king. She found a window, and jumped. She knew the moment she jumped that she jumped off from too high, but luckily, she had time to reach for the parachute she had brought just in case.

  She sensed arrows rushing by her side, but she managed to run away from the castle with only minor cuts and injuries.

  Chapter 12: Sakuratta

  “Wow!” Meg exclaimed. In front of her eyes were beautiful cherry blossoms at full bloom.

  The Spring Rose had finally come out of the ocean of nothingness an hour ago, guided by the petal of the cherry blossom Meg had spotted. Once the ship cleared the ocean of nothingness, the petal disappeared into nowhere. Meg did not have time to wonder where it had gone because all the crew members including Tithy suddenly woke up, and started to fire questions at Meg and Captain Relosa. They finally saw land ahead of them, and even from some distance, they could see that the entire island was covered by cherry trees.

  They found a quiet cove, and decided to dock the ship there. They were ready to be interfered or attacked as Sakuratta had been known for a mythical place, yet they were able to dock the ship without any interference.

  “We made it!” said Tithy, jumping up and down to get a better view of the land.

  “It might only be the beginning,” cautioned Captain Relosa.

  “Thank you Captain Relosa for navigating us to Sakuratta,” said Meg.

  “We wouldn’t have been able to arrive here without your guidance,” said Captain Relosa.

  “It was the petal that guided us, but I wonder where it was from,” wondered Meg aloud, and then remembered what Professor Sherikson had said about Sakuratta. “Are there fairies here?” she asked.

  “People say there are. But I don’t know for sure,” repl
ied the captain. “Shall we land?”

  “Why not?” said Meg, and she stepped on the land with Tithy following her. When her foot touched the land, she suddenly felt warmth rushing through her body. She thought she had experienced the sensation somewhere before, but she couldn’t recall where or when it was. One of the crew members followed her. However, as soon as his foot touched the land, he screamed, and ran back into the ship.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Meg, but she knew the answer even as she asked.

  The man’s foot was turning into green. He was turning into a rose. In less than a minute, the man disappeared, and a blue rose was blooming where the man had stood.

  Captain Relosa sighed, and carefully picked up the rose, placing it in a vase.

  “Has he...” Meg was not sure how to formulate the question.

  “Don’t worry,” answered the captain. “I don’t think he is dead. He would turn into a white or red rose if the worst had happened.”

  “They didn’t tell me anything about blue roses,” remembering Meg that she had only heard about red, white, yellow, and pink roses.

  “A blue rose means that the person has fainted. If we take good care of the blue rose, it will revive soon enough.”

  “I see… I hope he will be all right. I don’t understand what has happened.”

  “I think the land is enchanted.”

  “What shall we do then?”

  Captain Relosa looked at Meg, and Meg knew the answer.

  “That means I have to go on my own from here, right?” asked Meg.

  “Unfortunately, it seems we can’t follow you,” said Captain Relosa, “Although…”

  “I can follow,” said Tithy, finishing the sentence for the captain.

  “Then, why are we waiting?” said Meg. “But first, I need all the information you have about the stone we are looking for.”

  ***

  Two hours later, Meg and Tithy were walking around the forest, enjoying the magnificent view of cherry blossoms. Captain Relosa would not let them go unarmed, and Meg was carrying a dagger for the first time in her life. She had refused to wear an armor, but Tithy was wearing one. Captain Relosa had convinced her by saying that there might be a big animal that likes to eat Rabimous. Meg did not miss Captain Relosa winking to another crew member when Tithy agreed to wear an armor made for a Rabimou.

  The only thing Meg had been informed of was that the legend told that the stones to revive water were hidden in a cave near a waterfall. So far, they had not seen any water in the forest, but they had started to hear the sound of a stream. As Tithy’s hearing was better than Meg’s, Tithy was leading the way. As nothing had interfered with their stroll so far, Meg was thinking that they might be able to find the stone in no time.

  Tithy suddenly came to a halt, and Meg almost stepped on her.

  “What…” started Meg, but Tithy hushed her and pointed toward the upper left.

  There on top of a nearby cherry blossom perched the largest butterfly Meg had ever seen, and it looked poisonous. Meg instinctively knew that they were in danger, and she grabbed the hilt of the dagger hard.

  The butterfly swooped down, firing needles from its body to attack. Tithy jumped at it to protect Meg. It got off balance at the sudden movement of Tithy, and the needles all missed. It cried. Before Meg thought it was unusual for a butterfly to cry, Meg and Tithy were surrounded by more than 20 butterflies of the giant size.

  “Run, Tithy!” shouted Meg, and together they tried to run away from the army of butterflies. But Meg knew they wouldn’t make it. The butterflies were too fast. Tithy must have thought of the same thing as she shouted at Meg, “We need to find cover!”

  “Where?” shouted back Meg.

  “There!” Tithy was pointing to a small hut under a cherry tree in front of them.

  They rushed to the hut, but the door was closed. Desperation engulfed their heart as they heard the sounds of butterflies closing by.

  Suddenly, an old man appeared from nowhere, and opened the door for them.

  “Enter, and close the door,” he said.

  Meg and Tithy didn’t have time to wonder if the old man was a friend or a foe, but they followed his instruction.

  They heard the old man shout something at the butterflies. Meg thought the language was vaguely familiar, but could not make out what the old man said. They heard the butterflies screech, and the area suddenly became quiet again.

  The door opened, and the old man entered.

  “Welcome to Sakuratta,” he said.

  “Thank you for helping us, but would you mind if we ask who you are, sir?” asked Meg.

  “Ah, that,” smiled the old man, and Meg noticed that some teeth were missing. He must be a very old man, thought Meg. “I am known as the guardian of Sakuratta, and I forgot my name many years ago. But I know who you are, Meg and Tithy.”

  “Why do you know our names?” asked Tithy.

  “I am always well informed,” said the old man, winking at Meg. “I travel around the Land of Flora to keep an eye on what is going on in the Land of our Fair Lady.”

  Meg sensed Tithy tense.

  “I think you appear in the legends,” said Tithy.

  “Ha, ha, ha,” laughed the old man. “I sure do. Although I forgot my true name, I am aware I am known as the Fierce Wizard in the Kingdoms.”

  “The Fierce Wizard?” repeated Meg, thinking that the man might not be a safe person if he had such a title.

  “Don’t worry. I can transport myself from one place to another, so that’s why people call me a wizard. I am not aware of the fierce part though. People might have added that title because I tend to appear in places of trouble.”

  “What were those butterflies?”

  “Oh they are just wild giant butterflies. They attack anything that moves around on the ground. Fairies have tried to eradicate them before, but it didn’t really work.”

  “Wait, fairies? Are there really fairies in this place?” asked Meg.

  “Oh, of course. They are good at hiding themselves, so I don’t think you’ll see them. They are harmless, so don’t worry.”

  “I wish I could see one.”

  “You might if you stay in Sakuratta long enough, but I don’t recommend you to do that.”

  “Why not?”

  “The time runs differently in Sakuratta, and a day in Sakuratta counts as two days elsewhere, so you need to be careful.”

  “Then, we need to hurry all the more,” said Meg. “We are looking for a stone to revive the Fountain of Bara in Rosetta.”

  “Yes, I am aware of that,” said the old man. However, I can’t lead you directly to where the stones are. Fair Lady is strict about what I do to help rare visitors to Sakuratta from other Kingdoms. I can give you a good cup of tea and a hint though.”

  “Thank you,” said Meg, wondering if he had ever met the person they call as Fair Lady.

  Tithy asked the question aloud, “Have you met Fair Lady before?”

  “Ah another good question. I’m afraid it’s also a secret.”

  ***

  After a pleasant tea break at the old man’s hut, Meg and Tithy resumed their stroll among the forest. The old man had given them a puzzling hint along with some food to take with them. “What does water require to become a waterfall?” Neither Tithy nor Meg had so far succeeded in deciphering the puzzle. So they were again walking toward the sound of the stream, thinking hard what the old man’s hint meant.

  As the weather had become a bit windier than before, some petals of cherry blossoms were falling. Meg noticed suddenly.

  “Tithy, a waterfall needs to fall,” said Meg.

  “What do you mean Meg?” asked Tithy with a puzzled look on her face.

  “Water cannot fall unless there is difference in the altitude.”

  “Ah! Why didn’t we think of it sooner” said Tithy, and ran up a nearby cherry tree to get a clearer view. “There is a hill!” she shouted from the top of the tree.

  ***
<
br />   Aboard the Spring Rose, Captain Relosa was getting more and more worried. It had only been several hours since the two left, and he knew they would need more time to complete the mission. However, he was wondering if his decision to let Meg and Tithy go was the right decision. He now knew for sure that the crew members including himself would not be able to follow the two. One of the brave crew members had actually tried to follow Meg and Tithy, and had turned into another blue rose. They had succeeded in reviving the first man, and was waiting for the other man to come by.

  “At least the weathers is fine,” thought the captain.

  ***

  It took Meg and Tithy three more hours to reach the hill Tithy had found. Fortunately, they didn’t encounter any more giant butterflies. However, they were exhausted by the time they reached the hill, and the night was closing on. There was a stream by the hill, and they soon found a waterfall by following the stream. However, they didn’t see any cave around or behind the waterfall. After a futile search of the area for an hour, Meg and Tithy decided to call it a day, and rested under a magnificent cherry tree by the stream. The moon and stars soon started to appear in the now darkened sky.

  ***

  Both of them fell so deep asleep that neither of them noticed that a lady clad in white appeared from nowhere and approached them. She whispered to the tree behind Meg and Tithy, and a hollow appeared.

  “Kooritoke Mizuotokikoyu Tanoshikuni Sakurakaguwashi Harunosoyokaze,” whispered the Lady. “Good to see you again, Meg.”

  She then turned to Tithy and whispered, “Airashiki Oofurinagara Kakeyorinu Tadashikikokoro Senriwomoiku. A royal servant, with a cute tail, a perfect true song for this cute rabimou.”

  She then turned on the spot, and disappeared.

  Chapter 13: Difference in Perspectives

  “Your majesty, I have failed you.” Marilia said to King Sadaharion.

  “It’s all right. Don’t apologize. I’m glad you have come back safely. Could you tell me what happened?” asked the king, so Marilia told the king how her attempt of assassinating King Raligion had failed.