Sorry that this is mainly waffle to set the story up for later chapters but it should pick up before long.
This is World different to our own. A World where magic is used by the few and the powerful.
A World where the rise of Queen has equalled the rise of Kings.
A World where the actions of great warriors determine the fates of nations.
A World where Mighty Empires rise and fall seemingly on the whim of Fate.
And a World where the Gods play games with the fates of Humans… But only because they can never agree on who gets the little dog in Monopoly.
Our tale concerns all four of these elements along with great battles, love, the struggles of nations and a rabbit named Dave.
To under stand this World, we must look upon it and its nations. Two great Continents bestride this World like a Colossus, and the territories of the nations upon the two great landmasses make up the majority of this World’s land. Colonies and outposts of these nations only serve to increase their power.
The names of the Continents are the Western Continent of Culcat and the Eastern Continent of Bhi Ci. The Northern Islands are simply known as the ‘Fair Land’ due to the species that lived there. The Southern Islands were also home to a great many different intelligent species with them becoming known as the ‘Wise Islands’. The two most powerful Islands however was the solitary Kingdom of Zalu and the great sea power, the Queen Dom of Spatia.
On the Continents themselves, Culcat was split between the ancient Dhilly Empire to the south and which was protected by the Dhilly Desert and the many nomadic tribes that lived in the barren land. The centre of the Continent was home to the mighty Kingdoms of Ikak and Omare. To the North across the two great rivers of Cormal and Barleen, the rising power of the Commonwealth of Crossmel, the Swase Republic and the battered Lorrare Empire were found, sat on the base of the Tames Lake.
Bhi Ci was somewhat less numerous in its Kingdoms and if not for the Chong Zu river and Jinzow mountain range, there may have been less. The Four Kingdoms of Bhi Ci were the northern Qan Kingdom which benefited from being close to the Fair Islands but had yet to produce a leader who could exploit this advantage. The eastern and western Kingdoms of Soong and Ado (Respectively) were boxed in by both the sea and Chong Zu River and so tried to extend their reach only to be stopped by the final Kingdom (Though at this point, technically a Queen Dom), the Empire of Himiko.
Last but by no means least, there was one particular stretch of land which was free of all other’s influence. In the great Sudai mountain range on Culcat, the Oracle of Ganat stood. It was here where the Gods of this World would show themselves and issue commandments to their followers. It was here where the followers of the Gods also begged for one other crucial aspect of their lives, whether or not they could go to war. For the Gods were wary about losing their followers to a bloody war and insisted that they were asked before such a process could be taken.
The building where the Oracle sat in was located at the top of the mountain range and was a huge, mighty temple. Upon every wall stood the murals of all the Gods who had a presence in the Oracle and beyond. The inside of the Temple was filled with large halls and huge columns to support the ceiling. Torches of flame lined every wall that never had to be replaced because of the power radiating from the building itself. Priests and Priestesses (Most of the Gods didn’t care what gender worshipped them so long as they were worshipped) constantly patrolled the halls of the Temple, cleaning, chanting their mantras and making prayers to the Gods.
The room of the Oracle itself was vast, circular, lined with a myriad of torches on each wall, decorated with a mural the size of a house of each and every God along the walls and the entrance to the room of the Oracle were double doors twenty feet high and twenty feet wide with stone doors which were only opened when the Gods allowed it. In the centre of the chamber stood a pedestal six feet high that was basked with light from a circular hole in the ceiling. Upon the pedestal sat the Oracle herself.
The Oracle was chosen by the High Priests of the Temple by finding a young child whose aura was deep in tune with the Gods. That child would then spend their lives as the one who was the bridge between the Mortals and the Deities until their death. The current Oracle had been from the Lorrare Empire but was now nineteen and had developed into a beautiful young woman. She was petite, with long fair hair that fell freely down to her lower back, smooth pale skin and eyes that had no pupils, but were pure white.
They doors open now. For we have come across a petition to the Gods for war between the Empire of Himiko and the Queen Dom of Spatia. For ever since the ascent of the Empress Sakura Hoshi, Himiko had began to forget about its traditional ideas of expanding north across Bhi Ci and instead had turned to the opposite direction, to the Oceans of the south, where Spatia had dominated for over two centuries previous. Such transgression was unforgivable to the Queen Dom’s eyes and so both nations had sent a group of emissaries to the Oracle to ask for war.
It should be noted at this time the differences that the Empire and the Queen Dom both had. The Himiko Empire was an ancient culture, built upon the rice fields and mines of South Bhi Ci which had gradually became a thriving civilisation. As the centuries rolled by, the Empire emerged from a set of individual states that became one under the Emperor Ieyasu Hoshi. The Empire was protected by the Southern Ocean to the west, south and east while the Jinzow was an almost impossible obstacle for any Army to cross.
Because of these great defences, the Empire had never placed a great emphasis on martial status, preferring the gentle ways of culture and the people of Himiko became famous for their great literature and poems rather than great victories. One other aspect which differed the Empire from the Queen Dom was that both genders in the Empire were treated equally and given equal opportunities, stemming from Emperor Ieyasu Hoshi’s infamous proclamation of “My wife gives me permission to say that women are equal to men.”
The Queen Dom on the other hand, was forged rather than formed. The tribes that came from the Spatia Isle had warred for centuries until the Amaz tribe emerged victorious. The Amaz tribe were warlike, ever searching for glory and victories against their foes and were dedicated to the ideal that women were superior to men, forcing the men to stay look after the home while the women fought the battles. Having conquered the Spatia Isle, the Amaz tribe quickly set about building the World’s greatest navy and they succeeded. Within a century, almost all of the Southern Ocean was under the domination of the Amaz. Only one thing stood in their way.
And that was the Kingdom of Zalu. Located off the south-west coast of Culcat, Zalu was identical to Spatia in its formation with many tribes being conquered by one. The Zalu had differed from the Spatia in their relaxed attitudes to letting both men and women become soldiers. The Kingdom of Zalu and Queen Dom of Spatia had, over the last century, fought six different wars with each other and each time, the Zalu Kingdom had repelled the invaders from their shores. The Gods had eventually ordered a stop to such pointless carnage and Spatia had been forced to sign an alliance with Zalu and pledge to aid each other in times of need. The Spatian emissary was planning to use that Alliance this day.
The group of emissaries to the Gods were typical of their nations. The Spatian emissaries were a group of three women, all of them well muscled, with long, fair hair, striking looks and lack of clothing. Despite the freezing temperatures of the Temple, the Spatian emissaries were only wearing their ceremonial battle armour of thin chain mail which covered their upper torsos and leather calfskins which covered their legs up to a leather loincloth. Only by wearing furred boots and cloaks with hoods did they bow to the pressures of nature.
The emissaries from Himiko however were all clad in thick fur coats with large boots that covered their bodies and obscured their faces. Two of them were men and the third was a woman. It was one of the men, taller than the other two, who was addressing the Oracle of the Gods. His name was Fudo Tayomi while the Spatian emissary was named Agape Efrosyni. At the time, it was Agape pleading her case to the Oracle.
“… and so you can see Oracle, we of Spatia cannot just sit back and allow this transgression of our lands go unpunished. We of Spatia ask that the Gods allow us to wage war on those who constantly make aggressive move towards us.”
There was silence as Fudo stepped forward and began to present the argument he had been given by the Empress. Not much could be seen under all the layers of clothing he wore but he was short and his eyes seemed to sparkle with some sort of mischief “Oh Great Oracle, we of Himiko merely wish to have a port in the Southern Ocean. Is it fair the Amaz monopolise all of the rich resources of the Southern Islands? We don’t want to wage war but if the Amaz refuse to allow our merchants and people to use the Southern Isles as they do, then we have little choice.”
There was a pause as the Oracle considered this and shared her thoughts with the Gods. Finally, her voice, a strange booming mix of hers and the voices of the Gods, was heard “And you are unable to find a way to peacefully settle this?”
Agape scowled at the question “Why should we allow those of Himiko to have one of the ports which we have spent blood in conquering? If they agreed to give us total dominion over their ships then we would allow it.”
Fudo sighed sadly “As you can see Great Oracle, we cannot negotiate when their demands are so harsh. Complete dominion over our ships? When will it stop if we allow that? The Empress merely asks for access to the ports and we are willing to buy one. But not at the expense of our sovereignty.”
The Oracle sat back and considered this, her attractive features still blank as she consulted with the Gods. After some time, the voice once again was heard “Very Well, the Gods grant their permission for you to fight this war. What rules of conduct have you decided to fight this war?”
The rules of conduct were rules which all sides agreed to abide by during the war. They were usually concerned with the treatment of prisoners and outlines for what behaviour would be outlawed during the war. From the back of the chamber, a monk stepped forward with a large scroll of paper and a feathered quill in his hands. He walked over to the space between Fudo and Agape and sat down. It was his job to record the rules of conduct so that all sides made no transgression of the rules.
It was Agape who spoke first “The Amaz demand that peace should not be declared until one year has passed.” This was an order given to her by Queen Echo herself. A year would give the Amaz plenty of time to conquer and destroy Himiko as a threat.
Fudo simply shrugged “We have no qualms about that Great Oracle.” He had been instructed by Empress Sakura over which demands were acceptable and which ones weren’t. The Empress, though young, had spent years studying politics and warfare to the extent where Fudo trusted her judgement implicitly.
“So noted.” The Oracle boomed and the Priest began to write this rule down on the scroll. The quill however, was long and stiff enough to reach up to where Agape was standing beside him. Much to her misfortune, the armour she wore stopped just around her midriff and exposed a circle of flesh around her body. Agape’s eyebrows shot up as she felt the quill tickle her side as the Priest wrote the rule down. Her midriff was toned and muscled from years of training but also very, very ticklish.
Agape had to stop herself sighing with relief when the Priest finally stopped writing and laid the quill down for the moment “What other rules do you want?”
“Amaz demands that only the women of our nations be the ones who fight.” Agape demanded her tone back to its usual arrogant self now the quill had gone “But our Allies should be able to send their males under our supervision should we ask for it.”
Fudo nodded “The Empire of Himiko agrees to this as well Great Oracle.” Agape looked at the man in surprise and suspicion. How long had the Empire been preparing for war? The question was driven from her mind as the Priest began writing this rule down and the feather once again swished across the small space of exposed skin. Agape let out a gasp before shutting her mouth, it was too late however as Fudo’s eyebrows went up in mild, amused surprise. Agape inwardly groaned at knowing the opposing emissary now knew her secret…
Agape really should have stepped back to avoid the tickly quill but her pride refused to allow her to show any weakness in front of any mere man. Agape merely gritted her teeth and tried to avoid making any sort of sound that could give her away to everyone else in the room. The tingling sensation of the feather almost drove her to despair when it finally stopped.
“Are there any other rules you wish for?” The Oracle boomed.
For half an hour, this pattern continued with each rule being suggested and written down with the quill held by the Priest slowly driving Agape insane as it tickled that exposed area of skin again and again. When Fudo started to suggest rules such as “Every rainy day at exactly three o’clock, small cakes should be provided to every prisoner with the letters Z and X (In that order) in their name.” Agape had to bite her tongue so she wouldn’t scream in fury.
Finally, as the twenty third rule was written down and dotted, Agape allowed herself to breath out somewhat in relief, she’d made her way through it without showing her weakness to everyone… The Oracle spoke again “And what form of fighting do you want to use for this war?” This question was standard as several nations preferred unarmed combat as it saved a lot of money to go without weapons. There was also the case of King Alai ‘The Headcase’ III, who had insisted on waging a war purely with custard pie fights. Not much too write sagas about and the war ended in a stalemate but the soldiers never went hungry and it became the basis of an entire baking industry.
Agape opened her mouth to come up with the usual Amaz fare of swords, shields and boats. But she was interrupted when the Priest brought up the quill once more and brushed Agape’s side once more. Agape snapped “STOP DOING THAT!!!” She screeched “IT DAMN WELL TICKLES!!!” There was a pause as everyone looked at her in shock. To raise your voice in the Temple of the Oracle was considered the worst of behaviour. The Priests and Priestesses all glared at Agape with silent outrage which was broken after several long seconds by the Oracle.
“So shall it be. This war shall be fought with tickling as suggested by the Amaz emissary Agape.” Agape looked at the Oracle with horror as she realised what had just happened. Before she could protest however, the voice of the Oracle rang out once more “According to the rules set out by the emissary, tickling shall be the form of warfare used.”
There was a shocked silence only to be broken by Agape screeching “And how are we supposed to do that?!”
The Oracle smiled for the first time since the emissaries and entered the chamber “Surprise me.”
“Well,” Fudo muttered as everyone else gaped like a fish “This should be interesting…”
The Tickling War
This is World different to our own. A World where magic is used by the few and the powerful.
A World where the rise of Queen has equalled the rise of Kings.
A World where the actions of great warriors determine the fates of nations.
A World where Mighty Empires rise and fall seemingly on the whim of Fate.
And a World where the Gods play games with the fates of Humans… But only because they can never agree on who gets the little dog in Monopoly.
Our tale concerns all four of these elements along with great battles, love, the struggles of nations and a rabbit named Dave.
To under stand this World, we must look upon it and its nations. Two great Continents bestride this World like a Colossus, and the territories of the nations upon the two great landmasses make up the majority of this World’s land. Colonies and outposts of these nations only serve to increase their power.
The names of the Continents are the Western Continent of Culcat and the Eastern Continent of Bhi Ci. The Northern Islands are simply known as the ‘Fair Land’ due to the species that lived there. The Southern Islands were also home to a great many different intelligent species with them becoming known as the ‘Wise Islands’. The two most powerful Islands however was the solitary Kingdom of Zalu and the great sea power, the Queen Dom of Spatia.
On the Continents themselves, Culcat was split between the ancient Dhilly Empire to the south and which was protected by the Dhilly Desert and the many nomadic tribes that lived in the barren land. The centre of the Continent was home to the mighty Kingdoms of Ikak and Omare. To the North across the two great rivers of Cormal and Barleen, the rising power of the Commonwealth of Crossmel, the Swase Republic and the battered Lorrare Empire were found, sat on the base of the Tames Lake.
Bhi Ci was somewhat less numerous in its Kingdoms and if not for the Chong Zu river and Jinzow mountain range, there may have been less. The Four Kingdoms of Bhi Ci were the northern Qan Kingdom which benefited from being close to the Fair Islands but had yet to produce a leader who could exploit this advantage. The eastern and western Kingdoms of Soong and Ado (Respectively) were boxed in by both the sea and Chong Zu River and so tried to extend their reach only to be stopped by the final Kingdom (Though at this point, technically a Queen Dom), the Empire of Himiko.
Last but by no means least, there was one particular stretch of land which was free of all other’s influence. In the great Sudai mountain range on Culcat, the Oracle of Ganat stood. It was here where the Gods of this World would show themselves and issue commandments to their followers. It was here where the followers of the Gods also begged for one other crucial aspect of their lives, whether or not they could go to war. For the Gods were wary about losing their followers to a bloody war and insisted that they were asked before such a process could be taken.
The building where the Oracle sat in was located at the top of the mountain range and was a huge, mighty temple. Upon every wall stood the murals of all the Gods who had a presence in the Oracle and beyond. The inside of the Temple was filled with large halls and huge columns to support the ceiling. Torches of flame lined every wall that never had to be replaced because of the power radiating from the building itself. Priests and Priestesses (Most of the Gods didn’t care what gender worshipped them so long as they were worshipped) constantly patrolled the halls of the Temple, cleaning, chanting their mantras and making prayers to the Gods.
The room of the Oracle itself was vast, circular, lined with a myriad of torches on each wall, decorated with a mural the size of a house of each and every God along the walls and the entrance to the room of the Oracle were double doors twenty feet high and twenty feet wide with stone doors which were only opened when the Gods allowed it. In the centre of the chamber stood a pedestal six feet high that was basked with light from a circular hole in the ceiling. Upon the pedestal sat the Oracle herself.
The Oracle was chosen by the High Priests of the Temple by finding a young child whose aura was deep in tune with the Gods. That child would then spend their lives as the one who was the bridge between the Mortals and the Deities until their death. The current Oracle had been from the Lorrare Empire but was now nineteen and had developed into a beautiful young woman. She was petite, with long fair hair that fell freely down to her lower back, smooth pale skin and eyes that had no pupils, but were pure white.
They doors open now. For we have come across a petition to the Gods for war between the Empire of Himiko and the Queen Dom of Spatia. For ever since the ascent of the Empress Sakura Hoshi, Himiko had began to forget about its traditional ideas of expanding north across Bhi Ci and instead had turned to the opposite direction, to the Oceans of the south, where Spatia had dominated for over two centuries previous. Such transgression was unforgivable to the Queen Dom’s eyes and so both nations had sent a group of emissaries to the Oracle to ask for war.
It should be noted at this time the differences that the Empire and the Queen Dom both had. The Himiko Empire was an ancient culture, built upon the rice fields and mines of South Bhi Ci which had gradually became a thriving civilisation. As the centuries rolled by, the Empire emerged from a set of individual states that became one under the Emperor Ieyasu Hoshi. The Empire was protected by the Southern Ocean to the west, south and east while the Jinzow was an almost impossible obstacle for any Army to cross.
Because of these great defences, the Empire had never placed a great emphasis on martial status, preferring the gentle ways of culture and the people of Himiko became famous for their great literature and poems rather than great victories. One other aspect which differed the Empire from the Queen Dom was that both genders in the Empire were treated equally and given equal opportunities, stemming from Emperor Ieyasu Hoshi’s infamous proclamation of “My wife gives me permission to say that women are equal to men.”
The Queen Dom on the other hand, was forged rather than formed. The tribes that came from the Spatia Isle had warred for centuries until the Amaz tribe emerged victorious. The Amaz tribe were warlike, ever searching for glory and victories against their foes and were dedicated to the ideal that women were superior to men, forcing the men to stay look after the home while the women fought the battles. Having conquered the Spatia Isle, the Amaz tribe quickly set about building the World’s greatest navy and they succeeded. Within a century, almost all of the Southern Ocean was under the domination of the Amaz. Only one thing stood in their way.
And that was the Kingdom of Zalu. Located off the south-west coast of Culcat, Zalu was identical to Spatia in its formation with many tribes being conquered by one. The Zalu had differed from the Spatia in their relaxed attitudes to letting both men and women become soldiers. The Kingdom of Zalu and Queen Dom of Spatia had, over the last century, fought six different wars with each other and each time, the Zalu Kingdom had repelled the invaders from their shores. The Gods had eventually ordered a stop to such pointless carnage and Spatia had been forced to sign an alliance with Zalu and pledge to aid each other in times of need. The Spatian emissary was planning to use that Alliance this day.
The group of emissaries to the Gods were typical of their nations. The Spatian emissaries were a group of three women, all of them well muscled, with long, fair hair, striking looks and lack of clothing. Despite the freezing temperatures of the Temple, the Spatian emissaries were only wearing their ceremonial battle armour of thin chain mail which covered their upper torsos and leather calfskins which covered their legs up to a leather loincloth. Only by wearing furred boots and cloaks with hoods did they bow to the pressures of nature.
The emissaries from Himiko however were all clad in thick fur coats with large boots that covered their bodies and obscured their faces. Two of them were men and the third was a woman. It was one of the men, taller than the other two, who was addressing the Oracle of the Gods. His name was Fudo Tayomi while the Spatian emissary was named Agape Efrosyni. At the time, it was Agape pleading her case to the Oracle.
“… and so you can see Oracle, we of Spatia cannot just sit back and allow this transgression of our lands go unpunished. We of Spatia ask that the Gods allow us to wage war on those who constantly make aggressive move towards us.”
There was silence as Fudo stepped forward and began to present the argument he had been given by the Empress. Not much could be seen under all the layers of clothing he wore but he was short and his eyes seemed to sparkle with some sort of mischief “Oh Great Oracle, we of Himiko merely wish to have a port in the Southern Ocean. Is it fair the Amaz monopolise all of the rich resources of the Southern Islands? We don’t want to wage war but if the Amaz refuse to allow our merchants and people to use the Southern Isles as they do, then we have little choice.”
There was a pause as the Oracle considered this and shared her thoughts with the Gods. Finally, her voice, a strange booming mix of hers and the voices of the Gods, was heard “And you are unable to find a way to peacefully settle this?”
Agape scowled at the question “Why should we allow those of Himiko to have one of the ports which we have spent blood in conquering? If they agreed to give us total dominion over their ships then we would allow it.”
Fudo sighed sadly “As you can see Great Oracle, we cannot negotiate when their demands are so harsh. Complete dominion over our ships? When will it stop if we allow that? The Empress merely asks for access to the ports and we are willing to buy one. But not at the expense of our sovereignty.”
The Oracle sat back and considered this, her attractive features still blank as she consulted with the Gods. After some time, the voice once again was heard “Very Well, the Gods grant their permission for you to fight this war. What rules of conduct have you decided to fight this war?”
The rules of conduct were rules which all sides agreed to abide by during the war. They were usually concerned with the treatment of prisoners and outlines for what behaviour would be outlawed during the war. From the back of the chamber, a monk stepped forward with a large scroll of paper and a feathered quill in his hands. He walked over to the space between Fudo and Agape and sat down. It was his job to record the rules of conduct so that all sides made no transgression of the rules.
It was Agape who spoke first “The Amaz demand that peace should not be declared until one year has passed.” This was an order given to her by Queen Echo herself. A year would give the Amaz plenty of time to conquer and destroy Himiko as a threat.
Fudo simply shrugged “We have no qualms about that Great Oracle.” He had been instructed by Empress Sakura over which demands were acceptable and which ones weren’t. The Empress, though young, had spent years studying politics and warfare to the extent where Fudo trusted her judgement implicitly.
“So noted.” The Oracle boomed and the Priest began to write this rule down on the scroll. The quill however, was long and stiff enough to reach up to where Agape was standing beside him. Much to her misfortune, the armour she wore stopped just around her midriff and exposed a circle of flesh around her body. Agape’s eyebrows shot up as she felt the quill tickle her side as the Priest wrote the rule down. Her midriff was toned and muscled from years of training but also very, very ticklish.
Agape had to stop herself sighing with relief when the Priest finally stopped writing and laid the quill down for the moment “What other rules do you want?”
“Amaz demands that only the women of our nations be the ones who fight.” Agape demanded her tone back to its usual arrogant self now the quill had gone “But our Allies should be able to send their males under our supervision should we ask for it.”
Fudo nodded “The Empire of Himiko agrees to this as well Great Oracle.” Agape looked at the man in surprise and suspicion. How long had the Empire been preparing for war? The question was driven from her mind as the Priest began writing this rule down and the feather once again swished across the small space of exposed skin. Agape let out a gasp before shutting her mouth, it was too late however as Fudo’s eyebrows went up in mild, amused surprise. Agape inwardly groaned at knowing the opposing emissary now knew her secret…
Agape really should have stepped back to avoid the tickly quill but her pride refused to allow her to show any weakness in front of any mere man. Agape merely gritted her teeth and tried to avoid making any sort of sound that could give her away to everyone else in the room. The tingling sensation of the feather almost drove her to despair when it finally stopped.
“Are there any other rules you wish for?” The Oracle boomed.
For half an hour, this pattern continued with each rule being suggested and written down with the quill held by the Priest slowly driving Agape insane as it tickled that exposed area of skin again and again. When Fudo started to suggest rules such as “Every rainy day at exactly three o’clock, small cakes should be provided to every prisoner with the letters Z and X (In that order) in their name.” Agape had to bite her tongue so she wouldn’t scream in fury.
Finally, as the twenty third rule was written down and dotted, Agape allowed herself to breath out somewhat in relief, she’d made her way through it without showing her weakness to everyone… The Oracle spoke again “And what form of fighting do you want to use for this war?” This question was standard as several nations preferred unarmed combat as it saved a lot of money to go without weapons. There was also the case of King Alai ‘The Headcase’ III, who had insisted on waging a war purely with custard pie fights. Not much too write sagas about and the war ended in a stalemate but the soldiers never went hungry and it became the basis of an entire baking industry.
Agape opened her mouth to come up with the usual Amaz fare of swords, shields and boats. But she was interrupted when the Priest brought up the quill once more and brushed Agape’s side once more. Agape snapped “STOP DOING THAT!!!” She screeched “IT DAMN WELL TICKLES!!!” There was a pause as everyone looked at her in shock. To raise your voice in the Temple of the Oracle was considered the worst of behaviour. The Priests and Priestesses all glared at Agape with silent outrage which was broken after several long seconds by the Oracle.
“So shall it be. This war shall be fought with tickling as suggested by the Amaz emissary Agape.” Agape looked at the Oracle with horror as she realised what had just happened. Before she could protest however, the voice of the Oracle rang out once more “According to the rules set out by the emissary, tickling shall be the form of warfare used.”
There was a shocked silence only to be broken by Agape screeching “And how are we supposed to do that?!”
The Oracle smiled for the first time since the emissaries and entered the chamber “Surprise me.”
“Well,” Fudo muttered as everyone else gaped like a fish “This should be interesting…”
To be continued…
