Chapter 16

When the concert was over, Karina and Doortje steadied Billy so the band could take a curtain call as a whole and then helped him off stage. Now that the festival was over, Billy was overcome with lethargy as if the magical force providing him the necessary energy had been turned off. Tiffany was in tears as she approached, “Billy honey, Karina says her mother wants to meet you, do you think you can make it?”

He gave her a sly smile and replied “I’m dying to meet her.” Which gave everyone a slight chuckle.

They sat him down and forced him to drink some juice to gather up enough energy for the walk to pier. Doortje and Karina helped him up when the crowd had thinned out somewhat and Karina said “We have to get the to pier by 11:30 as we are set to begin at midnight.”

With their help, they slowly made their way down the beach towards the old pier he came across the first day they were here. It seemed like a lifetime ago, too. It was also interesting the throngs of people that were usually there after the concert were not. They had a clear path to the pier almost as if they no longer existed in that reality. At the end of the pier was a very old looking sailboat which looked very much like a Viking Trireme. They got to the end of the pier and the woman whom Billy had been seeing in his dreams stepped up out of the boat so gracefully it appeared she floated. Karina, Beth and Doortje all bowed down and held their subservience. Tiffany and Billy felt very out of place and weren’t sure what to do. She curtsied politely, extended her hand and in magical voice said “I’m Lykke, mother of Karina, Liesbeth, Doortje, and ruler of Aztlan which you probably know by the name Atlantis.”

Billy had pretty much already been told this but you could’ve knocked Tiffany down with a feather because this was totally not what she expected. Tiffany was finally able to choke out “How can that be? There is no such thing, it’s all a myth.” Tiffany remembered that night when Karina had explained everything, but she never really bought into it all.

“It exists as surely as I’m standing in front of you” Lykke said in a gentle voice. My daughters are what you would call mermaids, or sirens in your culture which accounts for their singing ability and how they have the ability to enthrall humans.”

Billy’s head whipped over to look at Karina, but Lykke defended her daughter, “She was forbidden to use any of her powers to alter your decisions or judgement. How can there be true love if it do not happen naturally?”

“It is not as you fear my dear Billy, or should I call you Adam? Which do you prefer?”

“By now, I think I actually prefer Billy” he replied.

“So it shall be. Karina was not allowed to use her powers on you or your mother but I suspect she might’ve fudged a bit when she was on stage” she giggled. “We exist in a different existential plane, mainly due to the growth of humans and their penchant for violence and cruelty. Only once every few millennia does the window between our worlds open allowing for passage between our worlds.”

Lifting her arm to gesture at Karina, her white robes shimmered in the full moon which gave an ethereal look. “Standing before me is my first born and heir to my kingdom, Karina, and you are her chosen.”

A moment of silence went by and Billy said, “I’m at a loss of words here. Please forgive my lack of response. I mean no offense.”

Lykke nodded her head slowly. “None taken. As was surely explained to you before, Karina’s mission at worse was to procure a mate and best case to find a soulmate. It would appear she found the latter in you. She and only she can be ruler as a human could never take the throne. It is hers and hers alone but would fall to Beth if she were to abdicate or perish. Your role would be one of support and primarily to give the kingdom an heir, hopefully lots of them” she said as smiled at the thought of grandchildren.

Tiffany caught the word play and asked “What would happen to Billy if Karina were to die?”

Lykke turned slowly to her: “Ahh, you pay attention to detail. He is not of your blood, yet you treat him as such. That speaks very highly of you.”

“I would marry him” Beth interrupted.

Lykke was shaken for a second. “That is highly irregular, to take another’s spouse as your own!”

“He has proven his loyalty in all aspects. No other human could even hold a torch to what I’ve seen.”

Lykke continued, “Let me finish my story. In our search for a worthy mate for my daughter, we discovered Adam when it was almost too late. His time on this Earth was soon coming to an end and there was not enough time for a proper courtship. Time runs in parallels so you can’t just go to any time, there are restrictions. For Adam’s test, it was decided to send him back into Billy’s body. You see, while we have magical abilities, not even I have power over life and death. We transferred Adam’s essence, or his soul as you would call it from one body to the other. Billy was brain dead but his body was viable so we had to act fast. Leaving all he knew to arrive in a world all alone is exactly the same scenario that will befall Adam when he leaves here for our Realm. He handled himself in an exemplary manner and passed his test with flying colors.”

Tiffany’s eyes narrowed “Did you have anything to do with Billy’s accident to facilitate your test?” She spit out the last word somewhat vehemently.