"You don't look that happy… It should all be right." Philly said, looking at me and inspecting my gear.
"No, it's not that… It's just… Smaller than I remember… I don't know why, but that's causing a wave of emotions…" I took a long, slow breath as I flexed my arm under my polished blue steel arm guard and felt the strength in my hand. 'Almost like scales…' "It's nothing… Let's get going."
Dorsa's flag flagship was the most marvelous boat I could have imagined. A literal floating castle made from wood from the bay that was nearly impenetrable and covered in dwarven runes. It had a total of 8 sails when fully deployed and was so large that if it was ever in port, it was the only boat in port, rivalling the size of the town itself with over four levels, each one lined with ballista that would make anyone unrecognizable in a single hit… Not to mention the 8 extra massive ones we planted on the deck, each one the size of a war beast.
"What do you think? Is it a ship fit for a general?"
I heard the admiral's voice but was too awestruck to take my eyes away. "More like… A warlord…"
"Well, I can't say I'd mind one of those right now… The flagship is designed to be able to pull whole vessels out of the water if they start to sink. The deck can fit as many as four Krakens on it at once, which is as many as you'll ever see together.
I scanned over it with my eyes. 'I could fit four football fields on that thing…' "So… Why do you need anything? I mean, your boat seems decked out to me." He stared at me blankly for a moment. 'How come no one appreciates my puns…'
Shrugging it off, he continued. "Sure it will do fine against anything in the sea… The Blue Baron… Sorry, the big Fishy may live in the water, but it can fly if it wants to…"
"Please stop calling it that… And shouldn't you already have some larger Ballista? Do wyverns never attack our boats?"
"No, they are dragon kin. They can't stand the water."
'Dragon kin, huh… Like… Rune? Or…' I sighed, pushing it to the back of my mind. "And the strong men you said you needed?"
"After we ping it with the ballista, we will need to pull it out of the air."
'Is this what I sound like when I come up with plans?' "Well… On that topic, anyone with glowing blue writing on their skin will be as strong as a commander. Stronger even." We both paused and looked at each other as the ridiculousness began to set in for each of us. Before either of us addressed it, though, a horn blew, sounding that we were ready to set sail.
"After you, General."
'I don't get how people can call me that… And also treat me like a kid… Or maybe them calling me that is treating me like a kid… Sense I claimed the title myself… I'll never understand adults…' I paused just before boarding. 'Wait… I guess I treat myself like a kid too…' I sighed. "Let's just try not to die…"
When the final preparations were complete, we set sail with the entire Runeborn division, two fleets, and most of our standing army. Sova would first port the majority of our forces to Riverhold before rejoining us at the center of the bay. Meanwhile, our job was to start the hunt… And pray… It was the first time in that world I actually saw a few people doing that. And it was to Agis of all people. 'That useless boy… What's he going to do to help… Although… If there's a real God out there… I wouldn't mind a hand from him.'
I felt a tap on my shoulder and instantly jerked so hard I spun and accidentally hit Airsidh in the face. Like a brick wall, he was completely unfazed… The only thing that hurt was my hand since I didn't reinforce it with magic…
"Bad time?" He asked calmly.
"You just… Startled me…"
"You were praying, and you're embarrassed about it because you think praying is a waste of time."
I couldn't really deny it… But it was still annoying enough to make me growl. "What is it…"
He sighed as he took a few steps to the side and sat on a large barrel, leaning against a wall just outside the main cabin. "Despite what you might think, I don't know everything… I want to know why you brought Lu, Vive, and Rune. As well as Bear, Mo, and Isy. I understand that they were in your guild… But none of them are near the level they need to be for something like this… Lu… Although I hate to admit it, putting her in danger like this makes sense; she has the power of a god inside her. But the others? At first, I thought maybe you were afraid or lonely. Your eyes have grown pretty cold recently, but I don't think you would put your friends in danger over something like that."
'My eyes?' I pushed against them to feel the stoney hard texture before looking down at my pale hands that looked like they had just come out of the snow. "I… Actually, I feel kind of cold too…" My voice nearly cracked as I felt a strange rush to my head, like drinking water after nearly dying of thirst. "The roster so to speak… That's what you're curious about, right? I'll catch you up. Lu I obviously brought because she is a beast. Vive used to be a demon before I saved her. She kept some of her powers and will be pretty useful if we need them. Rune is a bottomless manna well… She's the reason I… That I was able to… That big spell I used… The one that…"
"The one that obliterated half the empire's fifth legion?" He said casually. I nodded. Just as I was about to continue, I suddenly felt a warm heat envelop my whole body. "Even if you're immune to the cold physically, it will put less stress on your mind if you stay warm." He said softly, suddenly standing right next to me and lightly tugging me forward as he hugged me, swiping his cloak around me and blocking the wind that carried the chill from the ocean.
"Maybe I like the cold… Maybe it's better for my mind to numb…"
He sighed, flicking my forehead. "Then take my cloak and just keep the hood down… You don't want your body to stiffen up too much."
As he started to let go, he stopped suddenly, and only then did I realise I was holding onto him. "S-sory…"
He sighed again, sweeping me up in his arms, wrapping the cloak more tightly over me before sitting back down on the barrel. "Aw, the little general needs help from her big brother again, doesn't she?"
"What the… Put me down!"
"Why should I?"
I growled, pulling my arm out of the cloak. "I'm your commanding officer, you know…"
"Right… But technically, I'm third in our house, and you're fourth, which means I still have authority over you."
My body stiffened with a sharp flinch. "Is… that actually how that works?" As a gust of wind rolled through, I slowly pulled the cloak back over my shoulders.
"No, but you wrapping yourself up like that just now does mean you didn't really want me to put you down."
"Shut up…"
After a bit of silence, the wind only picked up more. "Can't we just go below deck…"
"No."
"What? Why not…"
"Don't feel like it."
"Ugh… This behavior is unbecoming…" I grumbled. "And deplorable…"
"And…? I'm sure you have more things to say than that."
"Thank you…" I muttered. For a moment, his eyes and face both softened, though almost more with shock than anything else. Of course, it was hard to tell for sure it was him but… 'Isn't that… What he was getting at?'
"You never finished explaining, by the way." He said coldly, his face quickly returning to normal.
"Whose fault is that I wonder…" I murmured before continuing. "Vive can create teleportation portals, although it's possible they only work on dark magic users like me and her. As for the others, they are mostly just here to be emotional support for the girls… Issy, for instance, has gotten pretty close to Rune and Vive, so if something shakes them up, she will be able to calm them down. They are still just kids, after all. And it's not like the others aren't skilled."
He let out a deep hum that I could feel resonate in his chest. "Ok… So how about that sage girl or whatever her name is, the prisoner. Why is she here?"
"Oh, right… Hara… That's a bit more complicated…" 'I heard the whole story from the girls… But it's still hard to believe… I know we're technically fighting a sea monster… Not her people… But I don't see why she would help us… Then again… Maybe the girls really did just melt her heart… Could that really… No… I suppose it is possible…'