26 Bon Voyage!
"We need you to drop us off in Hong Kong! Thus, we need to travel in a straight line!"
Like a mundane beast roaming in the wild, Venice slams the wooden table and emphasised our voyage towards our primary goal.
The atmosphere was tensed, and not a single conversation was left close or crude. All details are further elaborated by the meeting held by Rogh. Knowing that his schmuck behaviour clashes with Venice, the conference had been slowly progressing that it was rather becoming dull from my ignorance between their arrogant set-off.
Venice had been arguing that we should take the 'closest' route, by venturing over the middle of the islands of Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines; traveling in a linear line towards Hong Kong.
On the other hand, Rogh wished to traverse 'Around' Papua New Guinea, traveling in both the North Pacific and the Philippine Sea.
"Wrong! As a captain myself, the shortest route that will take us around the quickest will be the curvature toward the North Pacific and Philippine's Sea" Likewise, slamming the wooden table.
"You know, it isn't necessary to jab your fists on the table…"
"SHUT UP"
And thus was our gallivant meeting.
In all honesty, traveling in a straight line would seem to be the quickest way, following the rhumb line—a curve that crosses each meridian angle...basically, a straight line drawn from the globe. However, the great circle, proposed by the captain 'Rogh' should sail the seas at a curve manner, —called the orthodromic line.
It was a handful debate since the rest of us spectators haven't got a clue to which side must be approved.
The 25 red pins connecting towards the islands mentioned in the map, traveling directly in the middle, are the ones placed by Venice herself.
While 16 small chess pieces, pawns, have been set by Rogh, in a bending direction.
Both captains engaged in a roundabout situation that even Paul having nothing to suggest nor what we can do in this current occurrences. As we both had been silenced from the process, Rogh forms a snicker on his mouth and paused whilst closing his eyes, allowing ourselves to listen from what he has to say.
"Let's have a deal. You and me, in a chess match. The victor of the game must abide based on his or her navigations" He carefully picks up the chess piece, and abruptly threw it towards the direction of the aligned red pins-- scattering it from the force exerted by the toss.
Shockingly as it is, the actions done were the means of wanting to indicate that the theory proposed by Venice had already been proven wrong; mocking the contestant even before the match. Venice gritted her teeth but had still managed to calm herself, and sassily sat down on the wide table, crossing her arms and leg, provoking Rogh in his game.
"Sure"
The game had finally begun!
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Chess match:
Venice- White
Rogh- Black
Chess is a two-player strategy board game played on a checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an 8x8 grid. According to my dad, Chess was the match for the brain—where the greatest minds fight and outsmart the enemy team. The white moves first, followed by the black, played by alternative patterned moves that have the common goal of eliminating the king or taking more chess piece from your opponent in the stated time; well, in this match, it'll be them playing a single round, winner takes all.
On my right, there we have Venice who had been eagerly frustrated about the matter
And at her end, Rogh was…flexing his muscles. We had no time to retort, so need not to worry about it!
Thus,
"Let the game begin" I clapped my hand and signaled their game. There will be no timers, no coaching, no noise, no nothing. It'll be them playing their heart's content inside the chess battlefield.
"Take the first lead" Rogh provoked, and sat flat on his seat.
"With pleasure"
E4 White ->D6 Black-> D4 W-> NF6 B -> NC3W-à and so on; 'til the game had finally heated up to its last 6 pieces each from the board—
Leaving him with 2 knights, 2 pawns, 1 bishop, and a king from Rogh's side.
At the same time with Venice who has 2 bishops, 3 pawns, and a king; positioned elsewhere
"Check and mate" Rogh declares after his promoted pawn reaches the ends of the board and transformed it into a queen. The queen was pointing at the cornered enemy's team, disabling its further moves; evident from what I could see during the match.
Venice's defeat had a quick turn in her robust mind. She suddenly stood up, stomped her feet, and started walking away whispering "So be it" as she exited the scene. With all responsibility and relationship we have, I followed suit and ran after her towards the door, not minding the audience inside. Paul wanted to tail around, but soon reckon that I was soon nearby, a person closest to Venice. With that being in mind, he took his seat once again and silently prayed for my success.
"We'll be arriving at 16 days" Rogh's voice echoed inside the room.
-----
I dashed toward the lengthy amber hall akin to a hotel. The doors were rather scattered as if it was built from a villa or a townhouse near the hills. There were even decors at the sides, paintings of all kinds well established and hanged, refined plants blooming like the wild—never rotten nor dying from sunlight, and even a red glamorous carpet extending endlessly at the end had made myself thinking if this whole ship even suited for sailing. Or was it? We do not know.
The rooms inside must also be spacious, enough to cater to 2 nuclear families at most. And the ones we are staying in was a VIP class, much more elegant than the ones I could see. Alongside the numerous doors passing on my stride, I could see a faint girl running across the aisle, hastily moving forward.
"VENICE!" I shouted, but to no avail. The words I've screeched were heard yet her ears were blocked by an unknown force of anger and pride. Still, I needed to converse with her and convince that Rogh's plan could've been the best one we can ever abide.
Soon, Venice had reached the end, and fortunately for her, that was our designated room. A clear 'VIP' tag was placed above on the golden door, with a lion crest at the centre. Nostalgia hits me, as I could remember the same ingress we have previously stayed before in the Magique hotel.
Venice hurriedly reaches for the keys inside her pocket and aimlessly pushed the door and slammed it behind. I was 3 seconds too late when the door had greatly banged right in front of my face.
"Venice…it's me" I called for her but there was no response.
"Venice?" Again, I had tried but…
"Leave me alone" A whisper resonates from the other side, weeping even, nearest from the door. She had locked herself in, allowing herself to remorse the forgetful event where she had lost in a game depicting our route.
"It's okay. It doesn't matter, right? You tried and we���I know that you're doing your best." I pleaded, this time allowing my voice to speak louder than the ones I have done before.
"NO. CAN'T YOU SEE? I WAS BEING MOCKED!"
"No, you learned" Paul who had been listening from all this time appeared from the shadows.
"Following the great circle is indeed the quickest trail, and not knowing must've hurt you. But the fact that you know, allowing the knowledge to sink in, is the greatest treasure you can have" Paul took out his spare key from his small pouch entangling his waist, and threw it aiming for my face.
"hey, we—OUCH!"
"You were awesome back there. Even I can't beat that damn Rogh in chess but, he told me…you were the most difficult opponent he has ever had…it's thwarting, of course, that you may be able to beat me too." Paul winks at me and points out the spare key caught by my hand.
His body language indicated that I should be the one staying by her side.
After his speech, Paul walks away, and surprisingly vanished once more, fading from a distance.
I blinked once…twice
"How the fuck? Oh, ah, Venice! I'll open the door" I rummage the key and inserted it in the knob.
*click*
"You know, I can't push you away if you're there, right? As the man has said, you did well. I can't play chess and that's vexing, knowing that you're way more ahead of me" I sneered with a smile, hoping it had reached her isolated heart.
At long last, her cries where nowhere to be heard, and the door that has been stuck was now coaxingly budged, slowly revealing the dimmed room inside.
A tanned hand grabs me from the collar, followed by a soft warm smooch from the plumped lips of Venice, seductively touching mine.
I steadily closed the door and leisurely, once again, explored a great lovely night with Venice Veronica~.
-----
Approximately 30 minutes had passed since the sudden 'enlightenment' I and Venice have had. Eventually, we head out on the exterior floors for the available drinks offered from the bar.
"Marvellous paintings they have here, right, Yuki?" I stopped for a moment, not from the portrait she had mentioned, but from the name she has called me.
"Yeah…and uhm, Yuki? Really?" I chuckled. Nobody had ever called me by my surname 'Yuki' from before. Hearing the unusual term from Venice made the word special as it is.
"Do you mind?" She asks as she stared at the painting of a little girl parallel from a birdcage filled with anonymous thoughts and ideas, spiraling around her deeming escape.
"Maybe the artist wanted to imply that the cage itself was…the dreams and the concept we all have been missing out."
"Yeah, I guess your right"
The tour was followed by a couple of art laid out over on the sides; composing the walls with red and white spider lilies, a sweet girl with a pot of new-born plant over her head, and plenty more, which made everything eager to be seen.
As much as we wanted to go outside, the time spent in the long tunnel of colours flying between imaginations from imaginations contemplated our awaited journey.
----
The cruise had finally set sail, and our next destination will be following the great circle of the vast ocean. The captain, Rogh, must have a keen optimal sense of direction for him to maintain the steady sail from the appointed path.
Arriving at the bar, we have heard the announcement from the captain himself that we will arrive at Singapore, where aid should be received, at 16 days. Before which, we are advised to patiently wait for further orders and…kill some time; not zombies, LoL…or I ain't jinxing myself this time, am I (?)
And that's what we're aiming to achieve, as we casually walk over on the bar, only to found Rogh drinking an extravagant purple wine on a sexy martini glass.
"Hey! Well if it isn't you guys, Venice, Fleur! Come join the party, it'll be fun." With a drunken tone and a cherry red cheeks, Rogh could be described as a wasted man found in your average pub right inside the cities of Los Angeles. But in fact, the whole ambient was indeed similar to the lively casinos. Just across Rogh's table, we could see dozens of marine men and women leisurely playing poker.
"Are…they even allowed to do that?" I asked, seemingly petrified from the abundant amount of energy laid out despite the early moon from above.
"You see, kid. Here in the water, we are tasked to form different groups to watch the docks of the seas. The horizon at its finest could be heavily categorised as dreadful and unpredictable. There could be waves or storms crashing against the current at any time, that even Paul himself could piss the shit out of him." As he gobbles up the last bottle on his table provided by the waiter. He soon tumbled around from his upright position and lay flat on the floor, still holding the empty tequila gripped on his hand.
As the heavily drunken man dozes off in delight, our wildest voyage has yet to begin!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ End of Volume 1 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
