The High Priestess

My body moved on its own, following the tabby cat to our destination. I didn’t understand what was happening and I replayed the events in my mind to try and make sense of them. Why does an undine high priestess want to marry me? More importantly, I was chasing a rainbow when a white light engulfed me and this cat started talking to me. The white light—am I dying? Dead? A heavy lump gathered in my chest.

“E-Excuse me, uh, Mrs. Cat, am I dead?”

“No, you are alive. And I am called Luna, but you must call me Luna Meowstre,” answered the cat.

I closed my eyes to regain a sense of composure.

“Luna Meow...stray? Can I call you Luna?”

She turned her head and flashed me a look of contempt. “Meowstre; and, no, you may not. We are not yet quite that well acquainted.”

“Okay… Luna Meowstre, if I’m not dead then where am I?”

“We are in the kingdom of his majesty, King Eulerich.”

That wasn’t a helpful answer. I mean, where am I? How did I get here? For now, I needed a better understanding of how I got here.

“And how did I arrive here? What did you mean I’m going to marry the Undine Priestess? What’s an undine?”

Luna continued to lead me through the forest, giving me one more look of contempt before looking forward again. “Human, you ask far too many questions. Silence.”

With that command, I was a complete prisoner without will. Not only had I lost the ability to move my freely, but I had now lost the ability to speak. Left with nothing to do, I continued to think over what happened, trying to understand of everything.

This is either an elaborate prank and I’ve been drugged into thinking a cat is talking to me or… What else could this be? A magical world? This all started when I chased after that rainbow and arrived at the clearing. Was the rainbow a bridge like in those Germanic fairytales? The moment I passed under it must have been when the white light got me.

We walked for a long time in silence through the forest until we reached a large clearing with a great oak tree in the middle, which was covered in briars. There were four towers surrounding the great oak, each coloured blue, yellow, red, and white respectively. It was hard to see from this distance, but I believed there were knights looking out from atop the towers.

We arrived at the main entrance, whereupon the tabby cat, Luna, amazingly, stood on her hind legs and rang a bell to signal our arrival. She then flung her paws forward and twisted them around her head, and as she did so, a cape appeared out of thin air cloaked her. A large creature, what could only be described as a giant, opened the gate for us and we walked in.

The great inner hall of the giant oak was empty, still, and quiet. I didn’t hear anything: not the giant behind us closing the gate, not our footsteps, nothing. As quiet as the inner hall was, it was equally dark. The floor looked to be made of marble. It felt smooth as we walked over it. The walls displayed no paintings of past kings or monarchs, but instead a cloudy, dark sky.

When we arrived at a second pair of great doors, Luna turned and spoke to me.

“We are about to enter the royal chamber of his majesty, King Eulerich. You are not to say anything until spoken to. Do not speak to those whose introduction you have not had.”

I still couldn’t speak so I nodded my head. Luna pushed the door open and we entered. At some distance from the king, she stopped and bowed as well as a cat on its hind legs can.

“Your majesty, great king of the Alppen woods, lord of the Gallen skies, ruler of the Wallian owls, I return with the human whom her ladyship, Marisa, is to wed.”

It was then that the king revealed himself. Curtains were flung open and light painted the chamber. Perched atop a throne was a great owl in his great hall.

“You have done well, Luna,” said the King. He turned to me and said, “And what is your name, o human?”

Luna gave me a look and I found that I could talk again. I cleared my throat.

“M-My name is Ferdinand, your majesty.”

‘Your majesty’!? Was I swept up in the grandness of it all or was it another spell?

“Hoo, Luna, do humans have but one name?” asked the King.

I noticed Luna’s tail stiffen a little.

“N-No… they have many names.”

“Oh-hoo, I see. Human, have you more than this one name?” asked the king delightedly.

I guess he was asking for my first and last name.

“My full name is Ferdinand Bernhaas, your majesty.”

I averted my gaze, directing it down to my feet while contemplating what I just said.

“Hoo-hoo! I see,” said the King as he stroked his wise beard with his wing.

“Look, your majesty, I don’t understand what’s going on or where I am. I just want to go home,” I blurted out.

“Bernhaas, do not speak out of line, or bad fortune shall befall you,” warned the King.

King Eulerich hopped off his perch and began to waddle around in front of his throne, deep in thought. I thought about protesting some more but I didn’t want to get in trouble again, or worse, be eaten by the king. And what was this talk of marriage to a Lady Marisa?

The king, having made up his mind, held up his great wing and a door to the left opened; in walked a lady outshining the brilliance of the room. Three girls, no less beautiful than their mistress, followed her as if they were her reflections. The lady’s dress was blue; her three attendants’ dresses were red, yellow, and white. There was a shimmering quality to her dress, as if it flowed on an invisible current.

The woman held a solemn look on her face as she approached. This must be the High Priestess that Luna mentioned. She looked human but incomplete, and there was a subtle blue hue that coated her.

So this was an undine.

The first to speak was the King. “Lady Marisa, Priestess of the Undines, daughter of Olaf the Just, this is your future husband, Ferdinand Bernhaas.”

Lady Marisa gave a slight bow and then said, “Thank you, your majesty, for officiating the wedding. And thank you, Ferdinand Bernhaas, for coming here.”

It was embarrassing to be addressed so formally.

“I didn’t choose to come here. I think there’s been a big misunderstanding and it would be best if I went back home.”

“This is no mistake, you were the first to answer the call. When you stepped into the are beneath the rainbow you were transported here,” Lady Marisa answered.

“Where is here? I still don’t understand what’s going on.”

“Perhaps I can elucidate; but please, do forgive our poor hospitality, for I see not all has been told,” said the King. He waved his wing and a circle appeared in the air before us.

“We are in the world of elements and spirits. It is a world parallel to your own.” He made a downward gesture with the tip of his wing and a line went down the middle of the circle, breaking it into two halves.

Elements and spirits? A parallel world? I had a hard time wrapping my head around it.

The King continued, “There are times when balance is achieved and a bridge between our worlds forms: the rainbow,” he then made another gesture with the tip of his wing, this time a small arc, and a rainbow appeared, connecting the two halves of the circle.

“So all I need to do is wait for the next rainbow to appear and I can go back home?”

The King and Priestess Marisa gave each other a troubled look.

“There is still the matter of your wedding, but no, there is no way for you to journey back now,” said the King.

No words came forth. Instead, a force from a unknown psychic well threatened to erupt.

Luna sensed my agitation and doubled her control over my body before speaking. “Your majesty, I believe it would be best that Bernhaas be taken to a room until a suitable state of mind is set.”

“Wise is your counsel, Luna,” the King said as he hopped back onto his throne. He turned his head back to Lady Marisa and said, “High Priestess, prepare a gathering on the north wing’s balcony.”

With the King’s command given, we dispersed.