Transcendence?

by Andur

  Several hours later I discovered Ascathon's chair for myself. It's really comfortable with thin elastic steel bars. The normal chairs in this world are big, massive, unmoving hulks and made of wood.

  This comfy armchair stands in a real contradiction to that. I could get used to this. While I read one of Ascathon's reports I start to seesaw.

  At that moment the door opens and Ascathon enters. He looks into my direction and spots me in his chair, at his desk. Hopefully soon to be my chair and my desk.

  He points a scroll towards me. “My chair! Get Out!”

  “Why? I did all the office work today! I don't see a reason why I shouldn't be allowed to use it too!” I smile at him.

  “The chair is where I draw the line! Out, or I will rip this!” He threatens to rip the scroll? Don't tell me those are the marriage documents and the adoption form! Noo! My principality!

  I jump out of the chair and take the scrolls. Ascathon looses no time to reclaim his position with a grumpy expression.

  Meanwhile I start reading the scrolls. Everything seems to be in order and as agreed upon.

  Ascathon already signed the magical document and infused his mana into it. Almost all documents of value in this world work like that. It's impossible to fake such a signature.

  Eeeh... how lazy.... if I would give this to someone else I could marry the hermit to ~anyone~. If that wouldn't be fun! Should I trick Sarah into signing it? Or Den! ~Yes~! Den and the hermit are a perfect match!

  I should found a marriage-bureau. Maybe I will do that in my next life.....

  Aaahhh.... But if I do this there will be no principality for me. Sometimes you have to bite into something sour to appreciate your life.

  I sign the document and smile at Ascathon. “Dear husband! Have you already thought about a place to hold a proper ceremony and spend our honeymoon?” Ah, it's so fun to tease peo....

  Ascathon draws two other papers out of his pocket and slams them on the table. “One week on an abandoned island in the Nation of Mist. A ship captain whom I know will hold the ceremony.”

  Eh!? Why would he think of something like that under these circumstances? Is he the romantic type? Why would he?

  “Don't get the wrong idea! I did it just for Liandra and Violetta. Do you have anyone you would want to invite.” He looks at me with a questioning gaze.

  Eh? Ehm? “Let's see... most of the people I know are affiliated to Mislow and Jamaian. So, no? Unless they open the borders all of a sudden.”

  Ascathon shakes his head. “Won't happen. That means I will just invite Kane and his girlfriend, Den, Sarah and Stefan. There is no need for our staff to sit around on their asses while the mansion is empty.”

  “Kane? Where did I hear that name before?” I mumble to myself while I think hard.

  “A little smaller than me. Brown hair, rich merchant....” Ascathon starts to explain when I remember the person who was always hanging out with him in school.

  “Ah! I know! The creepy guy whose family is involved in all sorts of dubious trading actions and businesses which are very close to being illegal!” I snap my fingers as I remember the rumours about that guy.

  Both Ascathon and Kane were loners. They never tried to associate themselves with anyone else.

  “Even if a trade is close to being illegal, it doesn't mean that it is illegal.” Ascathon defends the honour of his friend.

  “Who would have thought that you two are close enough to keep contact even after your graduation.” I smile at the hermit.

  The hermit sighs. “Well, you should thank him for being such a creepy fellow. It's thanks to him that I was at that slave auction to walk into my own doom.”

  “Ah... now a lot of things become clear to me. I asked myself for quite a while why you were there! Let me guess. He was the other masked fellow. I ask myself if he knew beforehand that I was there.” I tap my chin while speaking loud.

  Ascathon's expression turns dark and he starts to mumble.

  “I will have little private talk with him when I see him again.”

  16 - Shipboard?

  Nation of Mist, Great Sea

  “This is blackmail! Blackmail I say! Who in the whole world gets the idea to have a marriage on board one of my ships! Having me as the pastor!” The Great-Sky-General of the Nation of Mist is going on a rampage in front of us.

  We are on one of his ships. Our staff is already safely on board. Just Kane is a little late. He is the only one who had to travel here from somewhere else. There are twenty sailors besides us on board to control the ship.

  “Calm down Fingulf. I just ached to see you again! You look good by the way. The years aren't seen on your face at all.” I smile at the Great-Whatever and grab his hand to shake it.

  “Hah, we from the Nation of Mist live much longer than you guys from the main continent. I will not look much different when you die in your beds of old age.” Fingulf snorts and holds his nose high in the air.

  “You have some funny friends, dear.” Celestial smirks at the general.

  “I am no friend of this weapons trader! If he wouldn't threaten me to sell military spells to other nations I wouldn't even be here!” Fingulf continues his rant.

  “Yet you eagerly bought my products.” I grin at the angry man.

  “That was before I knew that you could shake those spells out of your pockets like candies for kids! I thought I would be safe if I forbade you to sell that spell to anyone else!” Fingulf shakes a fist at me.

  “Ahahaha.... don't be so hard on me old man. I am just trying to survive like everyone else.” I start to laugh a little.

  “Yeah. I saw that when you graduated. You tried really hard to give an opening to everyone who has the slightest reason to harm you.” Fingulf shakes his head.

  “Heyhooo. I hope the ship won't sail without us!? I beg for permission to board the ship.”

  I hear a voice from the pier and take a look over the guardrail. Kane is standing down there with a familiar woman at his side. “Sure come on board!”

  The merchant whom he bought at the slave market is also present.

  “Hey! This is my ship!” Fingulf jumps to my side but his sailors already started to lower a small stairway to the pier. They already noticed that everything I wanted would happen anyway.

  Kane climbs the stairway with the woman right behind him. “You lucky bastard! I would have never thought that you would find someone who is willing to take you.”

  I force a smile onto my lips while Kane grabs my shoulders and hugs me.

  “Where is your future wife!” Kane looks around while ignoring Celestial at my side.

  Ah, that's right. I didn't tell him the name at all. Probably I wanted to suppress reality. “Hrm.. Kane. This is my wife, Celestial Asceron.” I put my arm around Celestial's back and on her shoulder from the side.

  Kane just stands there for a second with his mouth with open. “C...C.... HER!?” He points at Celestial while looking at me like a mad man.

  “~YES!~ Me!” Celestial hugs me from the side while faking her perfect smile.

  “Yes. It's a long story with you at it's very beginning.” I smile at Kane who takes a step backwards.

  “Yeahahahaha.... I see! We have to talk about many things..... But First! This is my girlfriend! Her name is Tanith and I simply love her. Do you remember the silent girl in our class who always had her hair hanging into her face? Colour me surprised when I met her with her hair... ugh...”

  Tanith elbowed Kane without any reservation and an aura of doom around her. “Shut up or you will be thrown to the fishes.”

  Then she turns towards us. “My congratulations. From what I saw and heard about you two on the campus I would have never imagined that you two would end up marrying. But I guess the quarrel of lovers is the renewal of love.”

  “Thanks.” Celestial answers with a chipped voice.

  “Oh! That reminds me! Have you heard the latest news about Jamaian?” Kane starts to rummage around in his pocke
ts. “Where do I have it. It has been even in the newspaper of the Jamaian capital.”

  Then the pulls a carelessly ripped piece of paper from his pocket and waves it in front of me. I just read the headlines.

  -Prime minister's son murdered during rescue of Mislow-prisoners!-

  -Jailhouse bombed by foreigners! Big fire lays waste to the entire building. Culprits are still on the run.-

  “Colour me surprised. I have no idea what that means.” I shrug my shoulders and look at Kane who turns the paper around to read for himself.

  “Oh. I guess you don't know. Prisoner is the nice Jamaian word for slave. And Jailhouse is obviously used for the slave market! Does it get clearer now!?” He waves the paper at me with an angry expression. “I asked myself why we had to leave so fast after you bought those three!”

  I look up into the sky while I think hard. “Ah. Now I remember!”

  The slave-merchant behind Kane starts to giggle and shakes his head. “He is really like Fingulf described.”

  “Well. I was a little mad at that auction house. So I left a little timed spell in that water bowl when I washed my hands. I guess starting a level seven fire tornado inside a dry desert city got a little out of hand, hahahaha....” I laugh while Kane smacks his forehead.

  *smack*

  Celes gave me a light smack on the back of my hand. “What would you have done if it became a big fire! Thousands of innocent people could have died!”

  “I guess I didn't think that far at the moment, sugar cat.” I fight for control while I try to imagine the consequences of a big fire in that city. “But to think that golden-mask was the son of the prime minister?”

  “Haah. Another faction which wants to see your blood doesn't matter I guess.” Kane folds the paper into a plane and throws it into the sea.

  “Why is that other slave with you by the way?” Celestial throws a curious look at the slave-merchant behind Kane.

  “H...Ho....How can you call our prince a slave!!!” Fingulf explodes.

  “Prince!?” I furrow my eyebrows at the guy behind Kane who starts to scratch his cheek.

  “Well. I guess I have to introduce myself. Raegnir, the first prince. I was on a journey to see the world when bad circumstances threw me into that horrible situation as a Jamaian slave. Luckily I was bought by Kane and could convince him to check on my identity with the Nation of Mist. I just came here to pay a short visit to my rescuer.” Raegnir smiles at us.

  I shake my head. “I am sure that Kane got at least his money back?”

  Kane gives me a thumbs up. “Like I said! You just have to find the right person to buy. Those auctions can get you really big money.”

  Fingulf draws our attention by gesturing towards something like an altar.

  “Can we hold the marriage now? I have to sail my fleet into a big fight next week and there is some logistic planning to do.”

  17 - Yes!

  Nation of Mist, Great Sea

  Fingulf starts pushing us into the direction of the altar and I get a dreadful feeling that I experienced this once before. Is this what people call a deja vu?

  Raegnir leaves the ship in a haste as the seamen start to launch the ship. We will head towards a small island on the horizon. Celestial links arms with me and starts to smile.

  “Fingulf. Are you sure it's okay to hold the wedding now? Isn't this a little abrupt?” I try to stall the inevitable but Fingulf doesn't care.

  “It's better to do it now while I can still jump into the sea and swim back!” Fingulf steps behind the altar and grabs an old book.

  “The others are still under deck!” I smile at my perfect counter argument.

  “No worries, we are all here.”

  I turn around and see Den with the other coming from below. Damn. Someone must have called them.

  “We gathered here on this day to celebrate the marriage of Ascathon Asceron and Celestial Jasmine. May they be happy together and blessed with luck by the gods. Is there anyone here who wants to object this bond.” Fingulf takes a look around but everybody is silent.

  Then he starts to speak again. “Well, I have to warn the bride in that case. Do you know the personality of this guy? Are you aware of wha.......”

  Somehow Celestial's grab tightens down on me and I feel a really dangerous aura at my side. “Mr. Fingulf. I ~am~ aware. So please continue.”

  “.... ah... sure. So may you be blessed by the gods. May you love and treasure each other in times of pain as much as in times of pleasure. So do you take this worthless guy as your husband, miss Celestial?” Fingulf looks towards Celestial.

  Hey!? Did he just call me worthless?

  “~Sure!~”

  Then he looks towards me. “And do you take this woman as your wife?”

  Actually I have to think about this for a little longer. It could be that I am getting cold feet? What if I happen to meet her in another life? Will she hold me responsible for this one?

  Then I feel my arm being twisted onto my back. Aaaahh! “It will break!” *snap* Graah! Forget that! It's dislocated!

  “YES!”

  “Then I declare both of you as husband and wife until death may part you. You may kiss each other now.” Fingulf closes the book and runs towards the rail-guard to make a perfect jump into the sea. He actually looked a little frightened? I wonder what Celestial's face looked like?

  *snap* Ooohh... thank you! She set my shoulder right again. That bitch! I turn towards her to say something not very nice. But my face is grabbed and pulled down towards hers.

  “Mmmm?”

  Hah? What's wrong with her? What's she doing with her tongue in my mouth!? Ah, that actually feels nice.

  I am pushed away again and Celes smiles at our guests. “~So shall we eat now?~”

  A small storm of applause and clapping is heard from everyone and we head under deck where the best cook I could find made some nice food for us.

  Celestial's POV

  It's mine! My own principality! I had to convince him in the end but everything went according to plan. What did he even hesitate for? Stupid hermit! Right now we are standing on the deck and are looking at the approximating island

  God, he is still rubbing his shoulder even after we have eaten. “Dear, how is your shoulder?”

  “You dislocated it!” He gives me a scornful expression.

  “I am so sorry, but it took you so long to answer. I feared that you might have gotten cold feet. Do you want me to give you a massage when we arrive at the island?” I take another bite from the fish-sticks in my hand.

  They are very good and I reserved an entire plate of them just for myself.

  “No.”

  “Aw. Come on. You don't have to be grumpy. Even if it is a marriage of convenience we will have to deal with each other somehow.” That's right. We have clean up many things between us.

  “Haah. Fine. Then tell me how you wish to redeem yourself.” Ascathon looks into the sky while the seamen are anchoring the ship. There is no pier and we will have to go on land with a small boat.

  “Even if you say it like that I wouldn't know? I guess you will simply have to tell me your wishes. Mine should be obvious since I already forced you into that marriage.” I smile at Ascathon while I take another bite from the fish-stick.

  “You want money and power to protect your little sister and search for your parents.” He sighs. “I just want to do what I want in this world. Nobody should be allowed to tell me what I have to do.”

  I take another bite and look into the sky myself. “You will have to rule the world in order to do that. Otherwise there will always be someone who is able to cause problems to you.”

  “Oh. I never would have thought about that.” Ascathon claps his hands together with an astounded expression.

  “......fine... Then we will take over the world. Just for the fun of it. Should be an interesting game. Especially with the Immortal Empress on the other side of the table.” I shrug my shoulders and grab for the last fish-sti
ck on my plate.

  But my fingers just scratch over an empty plate.

  “mmm..mm... Those are really good.” I look to my side and see that Ascathon is chewing with full cheeks while giving me a satisfied grin.

  “Th... That was mine!” I feel a vein popping on my head.

  He gulps and my last fish-stick is gone. “You will turn fat if you eat too much of those anyway.”

  “You will compensate me for that fish stick.” I stab my plate at his chest while I am talking to underline my words.

  “Fine. Fine. Whatever. Look. They are done. We can go to the shore.” he points at a few small boats which are close to the ship.

  Some minutes later we are at the shore and can inspect the small villa which is located on this island. From what I heard it belongs to Fingulf.

  It's a nice little house with just enough room for everyone. After I am done with inspecting our accommodation I realize that everyone else is gone.

  Some minutes later I find them on the beach in various states of relaxing. Kane and Tanith are taking a sunbath together while Den and Sarah are playing with a ball. Stefan is reading a book.

  Liandra and Violetta are building a castle of sand and Ascathon is sitting a few meters from them while doing something like a meditation exercise.

  I join Liandra and Violetta with their sand-castle. It got already an impressive size. “Wow. You are already pretty far. How about me helping you two? I am am actually a master of building sand castles!”

  Both of them look at me. “That would be pretty nice! Actually we decided to have a match against Ascathon.” Liandra pats the ground beside her and I join them.

  “A match? What are the rules?” I look at Ascathon who is just sitting there.

  “Both sides have an hour to build a sand-castle. When the time is up we start the fight. Each side has to destroy the other side's castle. Allowed are just fist-sized water ball-spells.” Violetta gives me a short explanation of the rules.

  I wince at the last rule. I am no good at spells any more since I started my new training. “We will win! I may not be able to cast spells with you, but we will build the strongest castle ever!”