Chapter 243: Voyage to Nowhere

Day 9

Today is our ninth day since Thesan sent our ship, the Edna Lorraine, through the vortex to aid me in my search for the fourth piece of the Te’trad.

My first six days were spent in preparation for transiting the Gate, which we finally did on the morning of my seventh day in this dimension.

After spending our seventh night, first laying siege to the castle of Gerwayne, and then the rest of the night in the king’s council chambers, hashing out an agreement that would see him helping us to find and explore the infamous Isle of Mirthwa, we were tired.

It had been just past sunrise on our eighth day when we were fed a quick breakfast and then finally led to an empty barracks that had been provided for our use. I fell asleep immediately and slept until we were called for supper with the king.

After a delicious meal, mostly to celebrate the re-instatement of the king’s army as well as the return of his eldest son, we retired to our barracks early to prepare for our departure tomorrow.

The Jarvee was the king’s largest warship with a crew of almost two dozen sailors and a compliment of twelve armed marines. With the thirty three of us, it made for a full ship. The captain was a grizzled veteran of almost forty seasons by the name of Grantham. He claimed he knew approximately where this Isle of Mirthwa was supposed to be located and estimated that it would take us five full days of sailing to reach it.

King Heddon and his son, Prince Lassos had decided that the prince would go as the overall commander of the expedition, but I convinced the king that I would rather have Prince Neilon as my second in command. I still didn’t trust Lassos and did not want to deal with his antics.

I also had to insist on Aiziel accompanying us. The King resisted that suggestion more than the others, but finally his wives opinions prevailed. Aiziel would go with us.

There were not enough staterooms on board for all of us and Captain Grantham was going to kick all his officers and crew out of their cabins, but I stayed his orders and suggested he allow us to occupy the two barrack-style accommodations that the marines would normally use and leave the marines in Gerwayne.

He was uncomfortable with this, but I think it was Neilon who finally persuaded him that I would be more effective than his fighting force, if the need arose.

With the marines and Lassos still standing on the pier, we finally set sail under overcast skies. The winds were favorable and the seas relatively smooth so I quickly grew bored staring out to sea and after a light lunch, went to our barracks below for a nap.

“He’s awake!” Sandy thought to the others when I finally opened my eyes.

“Hello, sweetheart,” I said. “How is my little mother-to-be?”

Sandy was almost two months pregnant with our son, who’s birth had been prophesied before Sandy became pregnant. It said that he would be born at Twin Pines and his name would be David. And he would one day bear the mantle of great power, wisely.

“I have missed you, Michael,” Sandy cooed in my ear. “Will you make love to me now? Here on this ship? On this strange, magical world?”

And we did.

After Sandy, it was Adriana, Izzy, Eve, Vickie, Allie, Grace, Rose, Shelby, Narvenia, Abby, Hanna, Nicky, and lastly Ileana.

Finally, on our fourth day at sea, my lovers allowed me to venture back above deck. After fourteen lovers and three days of almost nonstop sex, you would think I would be exhausted. But, for some reason, instead of exhausting me, their love gave me strength.

My heart was full of love and my lusts were more than sated. I found a small barrel on the forepeak and just sat with my eyes closed while I relished the sun on my face and the wind in my hair. My thoughts were just turning to the Isle of Mirthwa and the task that lay before me when I heard that melodious voice.

“Would you mind if I sat with you for a while?” Aiziel exclaimed with a smile.

“It would be my pleasure,” I told her with a big smile as I gave up my small barrel and quickly pulled up another from close by. “I had hoped to be able to spend some time talking with you on our journey.”

“It seems that you have been a very busy man!” she said with a giggle. I think that was the first time I had ever heard her sounding happy.

“Sometimes, duty calls,” I replied, unsure whether it sounded like I was bragging.

“If I had not seen it with my own eyes, I would not have believed it!” she exclaimed. “I have never seen even two women share a man without some jealously, let alone, more than a dozen!”

I just smiled. I could feel my face getting flushed.

“Tell me, Sire. How did you choose them?” she asked.

“I did not choose them,” I replied automatically. “Nor did they choose me, specifically.”

“I do not understand,” she said.

“Are you certain you wish to know this?” I asked.

When she replied in the affirmative, I began by telling her my story. Coming from different worlds, there was much she didn’t understand, mainly the mechanics of things. For instance, she understood being depressed enough to end your own life, but not how it could be done with a handheld weapon that throws projectiles at a rapid speed.

I told her about waking up inside the body of a braindead youth, inheriting his body but not his mind. And how I had inherited his family. When I explained about being empathic, she understood immediately. It seems her own gift embodied a limited amount of empathic abilities.

I quickly brushed over my cousins, whom she hadn’t met yet and told her about Grace, both the good and the painful. Then I told her about the Indian Princesses and then the ceremony with Mikeya and Ileana.

“Oh, yes! Ileana told me all about the ceremony, and the ring, and the pendant, and even the honey,” she told me.

“The honey?” I had to ask.

“The honey-MOON! Sweetheart. You know ... those two days we spent in that small cabin at the end of the trail!” Ileana supplied with a giggle.

‘It seems like somebody has been eavesdropping!” I told Aiziel with a grin. It was obvious to me that Vickie was responsible, but I really didn’t mind. It would keep me from having to repeat it all back to them later.

“We only want to make sure that she gets the story right!” Vickie laughed.

“Then why don’t I let you all tell her the rest of the story?” I thought to all of them.

“But you have yet to tell me how you chose them!” Aiziel cried in major frustration in my mind.

Immediately, there was silence. Nobody was saying anything, almost as if they were all holding their breath.

“Victoria! Please tell me you had Aiziel connected to you,” I thought softly.

“No, Master. I thought you had done it,” Vickie responded submissively.

I made sure I was not connected to any of them, and then turned to face Aiziel.

“Now ... you know how they were chosen,” I said with a smile. “Why don’t I let them fill you in on the rest?”

I left my seat on the small barrel and made my way aft to the pilots deck, only moments before the horde descended on the hapless girl.

“Ahoy! Off the port bow!” cried the lookout from the crow’s nest. Quickly there was a rush of seamen crowding the port rail. Several began pointing.

“It’s some kind of raft, Captain!” said the first mate as he lowered the small cylindrical spying device from his eye. “Looks like there’s a body lying on it.”

The Captain ordered the main sail furled as the first mate lowered a longboat and the three men began rowing toward the raft. In less than twenty minutes, they had the body onboard and the sails unfurled as we resumed our journey.

When the Captain left to check on the body his men had pulled from the sea, I followed. Luisa and Karla were already there, administering CPR and soon the man began to cough.

“He’s alive?” Captain Grantham asked in surprise.

“It appears so. My ladies are very talented,” I told him.

“But ... but I thought that you were the only one who could bring the dead back to life?” he said in amazement. And I’m sure that to this somewhat primitive world, the basics of CPR did seem like raising the dead. I just smiled without bothering to explain as I followed him back to the pilot deck.

“Make sure that those ladies have everything they need,” I heard him whisper to the first mate a short time later.

It was over dinner that I heard the story of Pennar. While he was still abed, it did not stop Abby and Eve from relating the strange tale he had told them. Pennar was a crewman on a double rigg, as he called it. From the description, it was some kind of freight hauler. Big and slow, with twin main sails. It seems that a strong storm had come up and blown their ship ashore on what they thought was a deserted island.

After the storm had passed, and while they awaited the tide to help them escape the sandbar where they had been run aground, Pennar and another sailor decided to explore a little. They were hoping to find an easy source of fresh water to replenish their dwindling supply.

After about an hour, they stumbled across a fresh water creek. Not ready to return to the ship just yet, they decided to explore upstream a little ways. If they could find a slightly deeper pool, it would make it much simpler to refill their water barrels.