The Man Who - Had A Dream

"Finn...Finn, it's me. How could you forget me? You promised you'd come back." The soft voice kept calling out to him in his sleep but he stubbornly chose to ignore it. He just wanted a few more minutes of peace but the table in the room was not helping.

Sitting up he sighed heavily, how did he end up here again? Right. He had been on his way to visit Lilian, the queen of Lilene, he had made it a habit to visit the monarchs at least twice every century.

This was supposed to be his first visit to the present queen but he found out she had just passed away.  He sensed foul play, the dome bestowed a long lifespan upon the people but an even longer one upon the royals. He was sure of it, Lilian did not just pass away peacefully like they were insinuating.

Finn looked around and drummed a gloved hand on the table. When he had left Lune, he had entered the city through a secret passage built just for him by the first royals. It led him straight to the wine cellars underneath the palace where a secret chamber waited. 

He had sent secret codes through a mechanism meant to be passed down from royal to royal to summon the present monarch to the chamber for a meeting with their benefactor.  The queen was then meant to reaffirm the deal and pledge her allegiance to Finn while thanking him for the gift of the dome and its many benefits.

He had waited, but she never came. After 2 days in the large underground chamber, he decided to explore out of curiosity and a bit of concern.

He had emerged from a hidden door located behind the portrait of himself and the first monarch in ancient garbs, He almost didn't recognize his past self.  The portrait was located behind the throne in the throne room. Slipping out quietly, he heard voices.

Finn had walked in on a court session being held by the regent who would be in charge till the next royal was of age. Unfortunately, it seemed the regent knew nothing about the deal or the secret rooms or paths.

Finn stood quietly behind the large throne and listened to the proceeding of the court that day.  It seemed that the people were complaining bitterly about the dome.

They were unhappy with being trapped on their small planet that barely had up to 3 continents. The population was exploding and they felt it was time for them to explore and begin intergalactic relations again.  They just needed the regent to discuss with the being who would take down the dome.

The regent had reassured them that the III was getting very close to a breakthrough and soon the dome would no longer impede their prosperity.

Finn had snorted at that comment, it seemed they had conveniently forgotten just why they needed it in the first place. But he did acknowledge their opinions, maybe it was time. Time to move on, To travel again.

While he was lost in thought, the court session had ended and he walked out from behind the throne.

"You! Where the devil did you come from?! How long have you been standing there?" The regent had flown into a full-blown panic and was waving a finger at Finn.

"Guards! Arrest that man immediately!", The regent shouted.

Chuckling softly, Finn calmly walked towards the elderly man, "You really shouldn't shout, can't be good for your health at your age". He stopped as he reached the regent and swiveled to face the portrait. "Besides, don't you think I look a little bit familiar?"

The regent turned to look at the portrait and gawked at Finn, the guards came in and bundled him up and dragged him away. He didn't resist.

Alone in the throne room, the regent still stood dumbfounded and unable to move a muscle. "There's no way...It can't be. That would mean he didn't age a single day..." He proceeded to faint.