Ch 49 The Past and Future

After Butkis and the siblings left, Arthand took me back to his room to explain some things about what his father told him.

"It turns out, that my father was backed into a corner. My mother was researching a WoM device that could remove slave seals. It was lost several hundred years ago. She was an explorer before she met my father. She was looking for it way back then, too. My father knew about it early on. He never condemned her for it. He had a hidden chamber built for her where she could work in secret."

Arthand looked exceedingly bothered before he continued.

"My brother, who was still very young at the time, followed her to her secret research chamber one day. He overheard her talking out loud to herself. After hearing what she was doing, he ran through the castle yelling at the top of his lungs. 'Father!Father! Mother is trying to free slabes!' Father said I was napping at the time it happened. The staff, the guards and slaves alike, all heard his shouting before he could reach my father. That kind of thing is looked down upon. For his public image, my father had to execute my mother as a show of faith to the lizards of the land. To show that he does not condone such actions. If he had not, there could have been multiple uprisings. Among the slaves who believed it to be possible but not acted upon. The slave owners who did not want to lose their slaves and those that firmly stand by the laws in place for slavery. Owners or not."

"I'm sorry to hear that. She was definitely doing the right thing and she got punished for it to save your father's image."

"To save me, my father said. If he was overthrown I would have been another target to eliminate. He says, after some extra education and training, he will give me the crown."

"Great! I think you can make some real changes. Your brother was a dolt but, I believe you can make a name for yourself as a King."

"What is a dolt?"

"Another Earth term for an idiot."

"Haha. I like that word."

His amusement turned to uncertainty.

"Lake... Do you really think I can be a King? A proper King?"

"Absolutely. Keep thinking of what is best for your people instead of yourself. It will make some hate you but, you will be a true King to all of the people who are helped by your actions. Learn from the people. This may seem more difficult but, don't take everyone at face value. There are people who would trick you into helping them. I'm sure your father can show you some useful tricks of the trade."

"Thank you, Lake. You believed in me when no one else would. Is there anything I could do for you?"

"Yeah, were you listening when I was making demands of Cazthil last night?"

"I was. There is a removable rock behind a painting between those rooms. That makes it easy to listen."

"Do you think you could help Wab and Malfigi? And Riksa?"

"I asked my father about them. He had nothing to do with them. It was probably Cazthil the entire time. I may have to find his personal guards and have them interrogated. I can do this today."

"I would really appreciate it. One more thing, what happened to your mother's research?"

"My father said it was still there. He told me where it is."

"Can we check it out? I wouldn't mind taking an interest in such an item."

"Sure."

I was led to a room that was at the end of a hallway. We entered the room. Arthand shut the door behind us and locked it. He found a hidden lever near the bed. A stone door began to shift. It was dark. Arthand took a candle from the room and lit it before sharing the fire with a second candle. He gave me one of the candles. We descended into the dark stairway.

Only two flights of stairs brought us to our destination. A simple wooden door was unlocked and open. The room was covered in dust and cobwebs. There were maps, books and drawings all over the room. On the walls and even a few on the floor.

Some time and searching allowed me to find a world map. The only maps I have seen up to now were maps of The Missing Star continent alone. This world map had three major continents. Missing Star was not one of them. It looked like a tiny island in the far west compared to the main continents.

"You haven't seen this map before?"

I shook my head. He pointed at the large continent on the left side of the map.

"This continent is closest to us. It is called Cumios. It is smaller than the other two but has the most life and the most diverse habitats. This middle continent is called Grampus. It has the least hospitable landscapes. The largest of the three is Lunula. It is said to be a vast desert as far as the eye can see. Any explorers that have gone, say that it wasn't worth staying or they never came back."

Grampus kinda looked like a whale with its mouth open. The tip of the head facing the top of the page and the tail curled up at the bottom. Lunula was like a giant crescent moon. The left side almost matched the shape of the right side of the whale known as Grampus. Cumios did not really have a defining shape. Maybe semi-close to the shape of Africa. Not quite though.

The Missing Star continent that we were on was closest to the southern tip of Cumios. Still, the distance between them was maybe four or five times the length of the Missing Star.

"What other races are on these continents?"

"No one knows if there is any at all on Lunula. Cumios has many. It is the main homeland for the dwarves, dark elves, florys and beast people. Grampus is home to flare breathers, Yetis and peoplams."

"I think I know what most of those races are. What are florys, flare breathers and peoplams?"

"Florys are plant-based life. Flowers, trees and everything in between. Some are bipedal and others have multiple limbs. Flare breathers are humans who had to adapt to a hostile environment with extreme heat. Over many centuries, they are no longer considered humans from the transformation they have undergone to survive. It is rumored that they made a pact with a major fire spirit to undergo this evolution in what is technically a short amount of time. Lastly, the peoplams are actually large clams that have literally come out of their shells. Though, it is still attached to them. They mostly live in tropical locations and are popular because of how cute they are. Thus, they tend to run resorts for those wealthy enough to make the trip there."

"I see. Very interesting."

We spent more time rummaging through paperwork until Arthand found a page of interest.

"What does this say? I can not read it."

"It's written in English. A language from Earth. It says, 'Seal Negator.' Do you think this is the WoM object your mother was researching? Why is it in English?"

"She was an explorer. It is possible that she researched the previous Master and thus, your world. If someone was spying on her, they would be none the wiser if her work is written in a language they can not decipher."

"It says,

'Last assumed position was the ruins of an old god in the Death Lands. An expedition had successfully entered and recorded the ruins in its entirety. No trace of the artifact was discovered. The conclusion was that it either never existed or the ruins were disturbed before the expedition could arrive. Another theory was that one of the explorers stole it and claimed to have never seen it.'

This must be where the trail grew cold."

"The Death Lands are in the southeast of Grumpus. The name is self-explanatory. Either the researchers were strong or they had a mercenary escort into the Death Lands. You don't go there on a whim. There had to have been some very convincing evidence to make them search that place."

"Do you mind if I keep this?"

There were several other pages written in English. I held up the handful of paper to indicate what I wanted.

"I have no use for it if I can not read it. You have helped me a lot. I owe you anyway. Keep them. Anything in here is yours if you want it."

I saw nothing else beyond the world map that I wanted. I stashed the paperwork into a sack and used a belt hook I found on a table to attach the sack to my side.

Once more, we returned to Arthand's room. We discussed ideas for integrating the slaves from the basement below into society. It would be a tough thing to do. This was something deeply rooted in this world. I wanted to help make some kind of change in this world. I had almost nothing to show for my life on Earth. Here, I might be able to do something worthwhile.

Even with our discussion, no changes would happen immediately. Arthand was not crowned yet. His first intention would be to outlaw the creation of new slaves on lizard land. Any slaver WoM devices would be collected and destroyed.

I left the castle, feeling satisfied at what Arthand could do. I found Riksa, Wab and Malfigi waiting for me out front.

"Lake..."

Riksa had a compassionate look. She was nearly ready to cry too. I was nearly five feet from her before she began to move toward me. She hugged me and hid her face in my chest. I began to pat the back of her head.

"I'm back. Are you okay?"

"Yes. We all are. Thanks to you."

Wab simply waved at me while he left one hand on the back of his son. Malfigi suddenly realized who I was.

"Hey! You're that prick that stole my sack of money!"

I took a few steps to get close to him. Riksa stayed at my side, wrapped in my left arm.

"Yeah, I remember you. You were the kid who had stolen that same coin sack from a woman only moments before. I returned it to her for you."

I bonked him on the head. He looked up at Wab for some kind of retaliation. Wab only looked at him with a glare. Malfigi lowered his gaze, realizing that his father was more mad about the theft.

Before we could head out, a guard approached me.

"This is from Prince Arthand."

He handed me a sack with 50 gold coins. I counted after the guard left. This was a nice surprise.

We began to make our way back to Onala by foot. Wab and Malfigi were chatting each other up almost the entire time. Beyond their scale coloring, they had no contact or knowledge of each other. Father and son were catching up on lost years. Riksa spent most of that time close to me. We held hands. An occasional kiss was shared. We were mostly silent.

We needed no words. The gazes and affection we shared were worth more than words.

The boys were too excited to sleep. Riksa was tired but we all pushed through the night. We came to Onala in the early morning. Wab showed Malfigi his tent. The first thing Malfigi wanted to do was learn to fight properly from Wab.

Riksa and I had decided to stay in Onala for a short while longer, before heading back to Sophie. I had not seen this side of Wab before. His fatherly instincts were amazing to watch.

I was almost jealous. I looked at Riksa. She was enamored in the bond forming between them. I wondered if she felt the same way I did.

As afraid as I was to have a child in my situation, I felt like the three of us would be okay together. If Wab was as good an uncle as he is a father, I think this would be a good life here. Between our house and the lizard lands. Go on trips to see uncle Wab...

Suddenly I remembered my own family at home. I used to do that kind of thing as a kid. Go on trips to see family. I got along well with my extended family. Aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. I missed them all. I want that kind of thing for my family if we ever decided to grow.

Another random thought crossed my mind. Sophie implied that it was possible between us but, what of the cross-species difference between Riksa and I? Could the two of us have children? Worst case scenario, we could find out the hard way.

"What is that stupid grin for? Are you thinking of something naughty?"

Riksa caught me daydreaming.

"If I said it was?"

"I would be okay with it if I was part of it."

"You were."

"Good."

We were both seated on a rock that was designated seating. She leaned against my shoulder.

"What were you thinking about?"

"Children. Is it possible... between us?"

"Yes. Human, lizard relations are unusual but, it had to happen somewhere in the past. I don't get my more human features from lizard descendants."

"I was wondering."

"Do you want children?"

"I was afraid of the thought before. Not of a child. I was afraid of what that child might have to bear if my genetics pass down something from the potion. I was just thinking, as long as I have you and Sophie, It will be alright."

"Honestly, I am troubled at the thought of my genetics too. I..."

"I think I would prefer kids with your coloring. I'm used to seeing it now. It would only make sense to see little ones that looked like you."

She looked at me in surprise. Tears began to form. I smiled at her and let out a gentle laugh.

"You cry too much."

I reached out and wiped her tears away. Her face buried itself into my shoulder.

"That's okay though. It's part of who you are. Who you are is who I love."

She began to cry harder into my shoulder. Wab and Malfigi were alerted by her sobbing.

"Did you make my aunt cry! I'll kick your ass!"

I only let them see a smile.

Wab grabbed Malfigi's shoulder before he could advance further. I could not hear what Wab was saying but, it looked like Malfigi understood. They continued to practice fight.

I decided to go shopping for some more supplies for the house. I bought another large sack, similar to the pack that Sophie had appropriated from me. I got a few more aesthetics for the house including candles in mass quantities. A few of them were scented for some late-night activity. I got a few new spices and food items. There were some packaged items that were not supposed to go bad as soon as anything fresh. They used a special combination of sinew from the hunt and wax mixed with another substance that made it more rubbery to prevent the seal from just crumbling away.

My last purchase was an impulse buy. I found a music box. Crude for Earth. State of the art for Eyse. It had to be made somewhere else. The design was nothing like I had seen in the lizard lands. I wondered if Butkis had sold it here before he left.

"Are you sure? I won't sell for anything less than five gold. I have to make some kind of profit off of this garbage."

The merchant probably thought I was dumb for paying that much. I didn't care. I slammed the five gold coins down onto the counter.

"Shut up and take my money!"

The merchant was taken aback by my forward statement.

"Okay, here."

He handed it over to me. I turned and began to make my way to the south of the village where Riksa was waiting for me. I opened the music box and wound it up. The tune was simple. It had an almost bitter-sweet sound. Endearing. It was perfect. I hid it in the pack that was almost overflowing at this point.

"Ready, Lake?"

"Yeah. Sophie, here we come!"