Feast of the chosen, p.16
Feast of the Chosen, page 16
A hail of gunfire smashed all around, making him scramble away once more. Yeong-su’s fury could be heard as he snarled back, “You have delayed my plans, yes. But you have not beaten me. We know the factors now. Divine choice of the gods? A fanciful story I tell the masses to keep them in awe. It was science! It was experimentation. It cost so many lives, but we know at what range we must place the couple and for how long to create a spawn such as you. It will not take long.” He scoffed at the rest. “The world is too pathetic to take advantage even when it knows it should. I’ll dazzle them with petitions for peace. I’ll feign begging forgiveness for the mad Chosen who killed their own. It was not my will! You went insane and took us to the brink of war. They’ll eat that up. All I need to do is promise to stall my nuclear ambitions for a while longer. A few more years.”
“You’ll fail!” Sseunami called, goading him on.
“Fail? Such a fool! I cannot fail. I will be immortal, as soon as my cloning process is perfected. We are already searching for a Gifted or a Chosen that can transfer consciousness into a different body. One such as that must exist. We will either buy their loyalty or steal them away and hold them captive. I will live forever. I will be a god!”
A click fell into place inside Sseunami’s mind. A content smile lit onto his face. “There was a lesson you should have learned. One your friend Jun taught me!”
A suspicious growl came back to him, “What?”
Sseunami slowly rose into sight, holding up his hands in a warding gesture. Long enough to meet the King’s eyes. “Knowing when to shut up. Thanks for giving me… time.”
Yeong-su’s eyes went wide in sudden understanding.
And then… he evaporated. Between one breath and the next, Sseunami turned every molecule of water in the ruler’s body into vapor. Exploding outward, a crimson spray painted the inside of the plastic cage and covered the bodyguards.
Flexing his will, Sseunami turned the bloody mist into a maelstrom. Solidifying parts of the former ruler into hailstones, he pummeled the two Gifted until they were nothing but humps of broken meat.
For a long time, he peered into that cage, hardy believing the battle was over.
But it was.
The death was over.
Now… the building could begin.
Chapter 10
There was so much work to do in the aftermath. It was nearly as crushing to the soul as anything else about what had happened. Cleaning up the irradiated mess in the Tower so that it wouldn’t pollute the rest of the palace. So many dead to be buried. So many guards and servants who hadn’t agreed to a revolution needed to be handled and maybe even imprisoned if necessary, until decisions could be made.
Most of all, the Secretaries and advisors to the Daewang had to be contained quickly. His death would make dreams of ruling surface in each of their minds. Those dreams had to be quashed before anything else could be done. They belonged to powerful families, which meant Sseunami couldn’t kill them all outright. He knew most of them deserved it. They had enabled the King in his ambitions. Perhaps it had been for their survival and that of their families. But Sseunami wouldn’t trust them until he could be sure they meant the country no harm.
Once that was done, a natural lull came over the palace. It was a false stability. A fake sense of security and peace. It was the eye of the storm. They had come through the first half. But flying through the other side might prove even more destructive.
It had to be done. Overthrowing the Daewang was critical, but the shift into a new era was even more important. While Sseunami kept the peace, the Devoted got to work on establishing a new system.
Into that calm, there spawned a desire to celebrate. It began slowly. Sseunami… only, he was now retreating back into being Angae… had to admit he was the cause of it. His innocuous request for food was the catalyst, followed by a deep bow from Min-seo who promised to find something for him.
The next thing he knew, a feast was being planned. That feast started as a thanks for what he had done. But it grew from there into a celebration of unity among the Devoted. A gathering in thanks to the heavens above for the Chosen who walked among them and for giving them the chance to craft a new future for their people. Ideas began to spawn about what they were going to build. Some crazy. Others not crazy enough.
It was a delightful mess. Angae knew they would have to form together in groups to consider the problem. They would talk. Invite experts to talk to. That would come in time. He trusted in their intelligence and creativity to find a proper path.
But that would be tomorrow.
This was today.
After the sun dawned, the feast was prepared. Tables were assembled and a tent was placed over one of the large courtyards in palace. They found one big enough where a thousand Devoted could seat themselves together and be part of the moment.
Somehow, they managed to find enough servants who were willing to commit to them. Enough that could be proven loyal. Perhaps that wasn’t such a surprise. Most of those servants had lived in a state of quiet fear just like them. The servants of the palace knew better than anyone the evil lurking at the heart of the Daewang. It was amazing how few of them actually mourned his death.
Those servants’ first gift was to serve the Devoted during the feast, allowing all of them to enjoy it. It was the first time in all their history where they could all sit down to eat as one union, without any of them needing to tend the kitchens or clean away the mess.
At the head table, sat Angae. He had invited those who had been so instrumental in what had happened to sit closest to him. Min-seo. Nari. Myung. Kyung-sook. Mi-gyeong. They would be the first to remind him that they were but five. That the others would have willingly risked their lives as well. Over two hundred of them had entered the Tower with him, after all. But these five were the heroes of the moment. Angae could tell the others wanted to honor them as well. He was not about to say no.
He looked out over the tent from the raised platform on which the head table was constructed. All the tables were low, with the Devoted sitting on pillows up and down the rows. His eyes floated from familiar face to familiar face. Each one warmed him a little further.
Slowly rising to his feet, he held out his hands. “If I can?”
He didn’t have to speak loudly. Whatever might happen in the coming days, they were still his Devoted. The day before, they had been in his manse where they had existed to serve him for the last several years. It was not the sort of thing that was forgotten easily.
He found a smile for them easier than he thought he would. He knew there was grief lurking somewhere inside him. Perhaps even soul-searching to be done after the lives he had ended. But right now, he was floating behind a shield of righteous victory. They had destroyed a tyrant. Freed their island nation. Dealing with complex morality of the details would come in time. Tonight, it was simple. They were heroes.
To his Devoted, he said, “When the sun dawned today, I had forgotten what day it was. It is the Feast of the Chosen. The day the nation has celebrated my birth and the linking to my Core.” He paused as they all cheered and shouted their congratulations. Much of it was genuine, though there was a small bit of laughter and gentle mockery. Basically, the normal teasing he would expect mingled among their caring and warmth.
“Not that I’m trying to fish for compliments,” he reassured them. This of course led to a little more teasing and ‘oh sures!’ His smile remained as he enjoyed the clear sign of contentment among them.
He kept going, “I think the first changes we should make is to get beyond such a simple thing. As much as everyone deserves a birthday, mine has been used to focus the blind devotion of our people to a bad cause. I was made into a symbol by an unworthy king. I will continue to serve you, but… I think today needs to be about them gaining their freedom.”
He reached down and picked up the glass of wine, then raised it up in the time-honored posture of one about to give a toast. “In the West, there is America. They barely know of us. We are mere notes in their history books. Like the rest of the world, they can’t know us because we haven’t been allowed to let them know us. A wall has been built between us. It is going to be the work of our lives to tear that down.”
He went on, “I once suggested to the Fallen King that we stand at a crossroads where we could be a voice of reason in the world. I am hoping America and their Allies will come to agree in that.” He cast his memory backward. “Yeong-su crafted the Feast of the Chosen to honor me, but also in mockery of America’s holiday. On this day, they give thanks for all the things that are good and true and wonderful in their lives. Family.” He gestured to his Devoted. “Lovers.” He gestured to them again, his smile brighter. “And yes, even to their nation standing as a beacon of hope in the world. Perhaps we might become one as well. We are small; but we can have an impact. I hope those you choose to lead us will agree.”
Another ripple of the Devoted’s voices rose from the tables. It carried to him agreement. Support. Belief. They heard the hope in his voice and clearly hoped for the same.
“Then perhaps… you will agree with what I suggest. Today, let us adopt that tradition. At the least, it will give us one tidbit of common ground with them. A day to pause and give thanks. I hope it will resonate with our people. This is the day we give thanks for being free of a despot. Free to choose our destiny.”
He took a long, deep breath, and then said. “Free to choose who we love.”
Quiet descended over the Devoted.
He rushed on, before he lost his nerve. “I know… I am terrified of what comes next. But it needs to be said. You all need to be as free as everyone else. We were thrust together for a purpose. These last years… I will never forget them. Don’t want to forget them. I think on every moment without an ounce of regret. From all the tragedy Yeong-su brought, I think of being with you all as the glowing silver lining that can’t be ignored.”
“But you deserve as much choice as everyone else. A choice free of pressure.” He tried to smile in a genuine way, though fear and the potential for sadness lurked behind his voice. “I want you all to be happy. I… can’t say the words. Can’t find the words. But… you know what I am saying. Know that if you choose… well, whatever you choose, I’ll support you.” He raised his glass. “And I’ll give thanks for the time that we had together.”
Slowly, Min-seo uncoiled from her folded-leg posture at the end of the table. She rose and raised her own glass. “For the time we’ve had.” Her smile softened, “And the time we’re yet to have, I give my thanks.” Her dark eyes simmered with deep emotion. “I choose you.”
At the other end of the table, Nari smoothly rose. The glowing intensity in her eyes was no less. And with her glass held just as high, she proclaimed, “I choose you.”
One by one, the Devoted rose. All around the room, the women he had come to know and love turned and faced him. Row after row. Glass after glass. Voice after voice echoed the same, sweet words:
I choose you!
It was Kyong-sook and Mi-gyeong who were right by his side that were last. They didn’t rise. They traded mischievous smiles, and then both kicked back their glasses and drained them in one swallow. They reached up and brushed their hands over his loose pants.
Kyong-sook grinned up at him, and then squeezed the growing hardness underneath. “I choose you.”
Mi-gyeong caressed a hand up his leg and cupped his butt in a gentle squeeze. She leaned in and kissed the outside of his hip just above the hem of his pants, making his skin tingle. “I choose you.”
From out in the rows of Devoted, a gleeful sound of eagerness sounded. Two petite Devoted rushed to the front of the assembly. Ha-yu and Suk-ja raced forward, already peeling their dresses off their bodies, revealing the angelic lingerie they wore beneath: simple, white and perfect. They bustled around the table with the naked joy that came from women without a trace of shame as they tossed themselves into a moment of passion and lust. “We choose you too!” they echoed between them, repeating their earlier words.
As they all but launched into his arms, Angae gathered them in. They wrapped around him, legs and arms and all, suspended off the ground. Their kisses rained own on his neck and chin and cheeks.
Their unabashed joy was perfect.
He looked past them as Min-seo paced to the middle of the table on the far side. She peered up at him, her love shining bright and true. “Your Devoted have spoken, my love.”
Nothing seemed powerful enough to give words to his emotions. All he could think to say was, “And for that… I give my undying devotion. And love. And… thanks.” He shrugged, knowing it was too simple a thing. How does one give gratitude to the whole universe for so many wonderful gifts?
But he would spend the rest of his life trying. Beginning with giving all his love to these women around him.
His Devoted. They were his. And he was theirs.
Keys, Shawn, Feast of the Chosen
