Chapter 5

Wedding Day

“Finally, you’ve returned,” Jaxon said.

“What do you mean, finally?”

“Dude, your wedding is this afternoon. VeLana is going to kill you.”

“Dammit Avencast!” I mocked yelled at him across the multiverse.

“I’ll have someone send word you’re back while I get you cleaned up and dressed. You stink, covered in blood, and I think that’s an eyeball hanging off your bracer.”

I looked down and gagged when I saw it. Quickly flicking it off, I nodded to him in agreement with the plan.

As weddings go, this one was not normal. Lykaians do things a bit differently. First was the “Primal War Song,” which was enchantingly haunting yet beautiful. Next was the ritual, which would bind our souls together. I am still unclear about how bound we actually become, but safe to say there is no divorce in this culture.

Finally, the ceremony began, which was the only part not unfamiliar to Earth customs. The gorgeous white dress made my heart stop beating when she entered. She was escorted by her father, the Alpha King. As they walked down the aisle, soft music played, shallow hoots could be heard, and everything faded when she smiled at me. For this singular moment in time, it was just her and me, and I felt a piece of my life that had been missing was suddenly found.

There were no vows to be said since we had already done the ritual, and there was no priest, but speeches were made on our behalf by those closest to us before the gift-giving stage. To begin, I would present three gifts, and then she would present hers. Afterward, each member of the audience would present a gift. Since there were hundreds in attendance, it meant we would be here for a while.

“Ve,” I addressed her, “my first gift is this axe. It is from my world, and while it has no power here, it is a part of my homeland’s history. And I want you to have it.” Yes, I did clean it first… Ok, Jaxon cleaned it. I was busy cleaning myself.

“This is incredible, thank you.”

“My second gift is this Crystal Fire Jeweled necklace.” I held it up to the light to show her the inner burning effect. Her breath was taken away at the radiance of it. “It has a powerful Rune enchantment that will protect you three times from death.”

“That is… too much. This must’ve cost a fortune.”

“You’re worth it, and I’m rich. Your life is worth more than money. “Now, for your final gift, I present to you this ring,” I picked up her hand and slipped it on. “In my world, this is a symbol of marriage and of our love. I know it is not a custom here, but I wanted it to be clear to anyone that we are one.”

“Well, you might’ve flipped my order a bit,” she said while blushing. “I may have asked Harry about some of your customs, and I, too, had a ring made for you. So, I’ll give it as my first gift, and don’t worry, it is enchanted to accommodate your shifting, which is far more aggressive than mine.”

“I’m lost for words. Thank you.”

“Of course, your past and our future are important to me. Ok, so for your second gift, this is an enhancement chip, if I’m saying that, right? Jaxon made it for Harry, and I figured it would be appropriate since he is a part of your Divine Blessing.”

“Oh,” Harry floated upward while wearing his mini-suit. I handed the chip to him now that Harry had created little pincher arms and other tools he could whip out. He scanned the chip and nearly blew a gasket. “This is incredible, and how did I not think of something like this? I have every known technology downloaded in my memory core.”

“Well? What does it do?” I asked.

“It doubles the efficiency of my fusion engine, allowing me to output nearly five times the energy. It also includes an energy shield! I can’t wait to tweak my entire design.”

“I’m glad you like it, Harry,” VeLana smiled at him. “Husband, my final gift is a key to my chastity belt,” she said with a straight face.

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“Wait, what?”

She burst out laughing, and the audience joined in. “Sorry, Harry told me to say it.”

“Good one, and Harry, I’ll get you back.”

“Please, this was my payback in the first place.”

“Fair.”

“Ok, so my real final gift is the Necklace of Kratymus. It is crafted from a piece of an apocalypse beast’s heart.”

I cast Appraiser’s Oculus on it:

Item: Necklace of Kratymus

Description:

Astra Control is enhanced by 30%

At first, I wanted to ask what made this so valuable since it had one function but was created from such a high-level monster, but then I thought about it. First, that would piss her off, and secondly, Way of the Astra ability has given me vastly great advantages. More control would increase those advantages further. One area I've been lacking in has been Aura control. At first, it started out great, being able to mimic other's control just by observing them. But somewhere around A rank, my progression seemed to plateau.

"This is amazing, Ve, and so are you," I said, and she blushed. Part of being a hardened Veteran and maintaining enough sanity to not completely lose it was knowing how to have fun. To make light of terrible things. It didn't help much when I slept in the early days, but it helped during my missions. Yet, I never expected to have more than fun and hard times. Having times filled with love and appreciation? I could get behind that.

"Awe, you big softy," VeLana replied.

"Ok, time to go kill things now." Everyone besides the women in the room chuckled. After the two hours of gift-giving, consisting mostly of trinkets, home rune tech appliances, or money, we finally concluded the ceremony with a kiss and many cheers. Then the afterparty started, and let's just say even Tobi went home missing his pants, half a shirt, and both shoes. I think he even took a woman home. VeLana and I weren't too terribly torn up from the party since she excitedly wanted to get me alone.

The next morning, er, afternoon, we had a feast and a lot of water. There might've been some healing spells, too. Love magic. We were greeted by VeLana's father, Alpha King Satori, as he entered halfway through lunch.

"Ah, my new son! What a party last night! I haven't had that much fun in ages," he said boomingly. It wasn't quite on Dave's level, but still impressive. Dave was the giant, white-furred Tauren with broken horns. He was kicked out of his tribe for having white fur. It didn't make him any less of a warrior, though, and he proved it by getting to S rank and was close to ranking up.

King Satori had long black hair and no beard, which surprised me since I had only seen him fully transformed. Even at the party, he got drunk, played games, and never reverted his form. I stood, and we clasped arms, which was apparently the way two Alphas greeted. Although I wasn't a king, bowing would be bad taste. Plus, he wasn't my king.

"Come, come, you hungry?" I asked.

"I'm always hungry. I hear you cooked?"

"Yes, come try this." We sat down and enjoyed a large burger, beer, and a ton of beer-battered fries. I would have thought he was a starving child in some poor country if I didn't know he was wealthy and a king. The way he ate threw out the idea of a dignified royal way of eating I had always seen on TV or the one time I did surveillance on a king before putting a bullet through his head. Ah, good times.

"This… is… good," he said through a mouthful of food. After finishing the last bite, he asked, "So, Zeke, what are your plans for the future?"

"That is a good question. We have a large house and more than enough money to settle down for a bit. But I am itching to find out what is on that boat, which means, at the very least, I'd like to rank up again before then."

"I understand. Wish you'd make some babies first, but there is always time for that. My son will take over for me in a few years, and I'll also be heading to the boat like my father before me. It would be good to see you on the other side." I nodded to him in agreement.

Suddenly, alarms went off, and guards took up stations around the table on alert. Then, another guard dressed in black appeared out of smoke like a real-life ninja. "Sire, I have a report."

"Speak shadow," the king replied.

"There is a floating city-size vessel approaching, and they are being trailed by countless Kordra both in the air and on the ground."

"Are they being chased?" I asked.

"No, they are leading them."

"How large of a city-sized ship are we talking?" the king asked.

"Nearly three times larger than this mountain, Sire."

There were gasps about the room.

"Who has a ship that size?" VeLana asked."

"If they're leading Kordra, I'd say the Majin. Likely, the Tokeki under the new Monster King. Shoot, it might even be the Monster King himself."

"Why do you think that?" the king asked.

"Well, after killing the former Monster King, I escaped up a floating platform that led to the roof. As it rose, I looked down to see other Kordra burst in and launch many spells at the throne where the dead body was. It was clear to me it was a hostile takeover. My guess is the new Monster King plotted something during their ritual, and something went wrong, resulting in me. But the reason behind it might just be lust for power, or it could be differences in strategy. Since you told me that the Monster Surge occurred every century or so, perhaps the rest of their Generals, the Tokeki, got tired of that plan."

"Well, let's go find out. After we defeat them, we can question the survivors," the king stated. His people and leaders were already on the move for defense; no orders were required. VeLana and I headed out to gather our team and gear up. I couldn't wait to see this floating city, and it never even occurred to me to be worried. I mean, I've seen the Lykaian power. I just wish I had been more cautious.