Someone Else's Kingdom, BOOK I - Chapter 67

Prince Aralak had been travelling for some time now. Following the wide cavernous tunnels as they snaked beneath the hot desert. In the near darkness he'd lost track of time, and was unsure how many days and nights he'd been down there - unsure as to whether it was day or night, in fact. Though the desert fire was raging above, down below in these long winding subways it was much cooler. So the torch he carried had the dual benefit of both lighting the way and warming the upper half of his body. His cold feet aching as they marched along the hard stone ground. There were also occasional oil lamps strung at intermittent points along the caverns, helping to guide the journey.

For most of the kings and princes that had made this journey before him it had been something of a pilgrimage. A life changing experience, forcing the wayfarer to consider deeply the world and their place within it. The darkness, along with the loss of a sense of time, imbibing a feeling of near-death. Where troubling thoughts, spirits and hallucinations would fill the sensory void. A literal journey to the underworld, followed by a rebirth into day-lit reality. However, for Prince Aralak it was simply a necessary chore. Were it not for the four Tunidan guards accompanying him he would've turned back already. The mind-numbing boredom, coupled with the toll the endless walking placed on his body, making the whole thing a dull and unpleasant endeavour.

"Can we not just turn back? I'm more than willing to take your word for it. I'm happy to just believe the Poppy Fields of the Maiden Lands lie at the end of this godforsaken tunnel. I don't need to actually see it."

This was not the first time he'd uttered such a sentiment, but the guards, unmoved, once again just dutifully reminded him of his obligations. Insisting he continue. Prodding him on, by force if necessary to complete the important journey. A political reality that annoyed Prince Aralak even more, but that he at least had the sense to obey as he continued further into the darkness. He'd always wondered why there was such a heavy Tunidan presence in the Upper Desert, and why the position of official consul carried so much weight. At least now he knew why he thought. They guarded this all important passage - a passage that looped from one side of the world to the other. Keeping it secret from all but the chosen few. He then wondered what else he might not know. The first and only flash of inspired reflection he'd had on the journey. Were there other tunnels he wasn't aware of? Were there other secrets beyond this one? Either way, he lacked the effort to explore these thoughts further. Expecting the answers would simply be given to him by other people. Content to take their word, and quickly return to his cardinal life.

More often than not it was this lustful life that occupied his thoughts as he stepped onward. His time spent in the Upper Desert - the girls, the dancing, the music - had at least made the journey somewhat worthwhile. He would've certainly preferred to have been back there. He then wondered if his own guards were enjoying such spoils as they awaited for him to return from this colourless underworld. He would not blame them if they were. He then remembered the strange fortune teller. With her hideous, but beguiling beauty. She was correct with her prognostication. This was indeed a doom-filled torture. He should have listened and turned back. Perhaps the harlot had some magic about her after all. As he thought these thoughts a large bead of water fell from the rocky ceiling of the tunnel and onto his forehead. It was a rust-coloured red, giving it the momentary appearance of a droplet of blood. Mildly irritated, he wiped it from his brow. The flame of his torch shimmering against the wall.

Finally, as his footsteps echoed on, he thought of his bride to be, the beautiful Princess Liofia. A fine prize for a fine prince. The prospect of returning to her spurred him on softly. Just as the thought of the beautiful women of the Three Deserts did likewise. Once he returned the whole world would seemingly be in his possession. This current imposition was just a brief distraction, and soon it would pass. He just needed to keep going. Then all the richness of life would be returned. As these appetising dreams swam through his mind he then remembered the aloofness of Princess Liofia. Her unwillingness. The fact that he couldn't quite hook her in. Somewhere deep down it nagged away at him. Angering him even.

Suddenly as these emotions swirled around his mind and his stomach the four guards stopped. One putting his arm out in front of Prince Aralak to halt his motion. Lost in his own thoughts the prince had not been paying attention to the dim vision ahead. As his focus snapped back he saw why they'd ceased. A set of stone steps, leading up to a stone doorway.

"We've reached the exit," noted one of the guards formally.

Aralak was relieved to finally be at the end of the monotonous trek, and was equally eager to head up the stairway and into daylight. As he impatiently made his way forward two of the guards rushed before him to move open the heavy stone door. As the invincible daylight bloomed in through the gap it briefly blinded Aralak and the four guards. The flash making him drop his flaming torch onto the stony ground. The flame sinking, with the oil, into the seams between the stones. Though temporarily deprived of sight he could instantly smell the sweet fresh air. Recomposing himself, he gripped the cold stone steps and found his balance, then stumbled up the last few feet. He then stepped out into the open space.

As his eyes un-blurred a glorious panorama came into view. Endless poppies and a perfectly blue sky. The fair blue sea meeting it in the far off distance. "The Maiden Lands," he thought to himself as he took it all in. The awe of such a view even impressing him with its colour and wonder. As he drank in the vision he looked out across the horizon line and thought of his kingdom - the Kingdom of Caster, the kingdom he'd left behind - now far beyond sight, but nevertheless somewhere out there in front of him. Gladdened to have returned to the land of the living, he took a deep breath of fresh air. It rejuvenated him. He had traversed the ends of the earth.