Rays of light pierced through gaps in the sky's armour, gracing the inhabitants of Aegis with warmth. It was an uncharacteristically cold day in the port city. Wyverns hid in their huts and the denizens bundled themselves in out of season attire.
"They say a foul wind blows from beyond the Seaglass, that's why we keep havin' these miserably cold days." Rogdan complained to Karyl as he grabbed an early morning coffee.
Karyl leaned over the counter to help Rogdan with his payment, "That may be the case sugar, but our open air and free shores will keep our souls warm. May Calamity find you fortune."
Rogdan laughed and turned to leave after thanking the cafe owner. On his way out he noticed a group of four up and coming adventurers planning their day. It's good to see the youngins putin' in the work. Grinning ear to ear he took off, heading out on his own quest.
"Gimmie your milk." Nepped choked on her lunabread.
"What?! No!" Taiga protested while pulling her bottle of milk close to her chest.
Terra slid their cup across the table and Nepped hastily downed the juice it contained, "Seriously furball?!" Nepped complained.
Taiga shrugged, "Maybe if you slowed down a bit you wouldn't choke."
"Alright you two," Holly said, silencing the bickering party members, "Let's focus up and go over the details of this quest."
"You said something about shipments being attacked before we left the hospital, right?" Terra leaned back in their chair.
Holly sat down with her team, "Yep, that's the one. Apparently a handful of transport and shipping vessels have been attacked while en route from the Leofloral Region."
"Don't these crews usually have onboard guards and often hire adventurers to protect them?" Nepped asked, "Seems odd that they'd put in a request with our guild doesn't it?"
"Think about it this way," Jamie approached the table, a drawstring sack hung over his shoulder, "These companies lost a lot of money. Hiring third party individuals to investigate and stem the bleeding is more than worth it to them. Especially when they are hiring The Fool's Carol."
"Jamie?" Holly's expression turned sour, "Are you coming with us again?"
"Huh? Oh, nah I don't plan to cramp your style. I've got plans with a pretty lady that's waiting outside for me. I just swung by to drop these off." Jamie dropped the sack next to Taiga, "Use 'em wisely." He winked at Taiga and began to walk away.
"H-hey wait!" Taiga opened the bag and saw a pair of boots and an onyx ring, "Why are you giving me this stuff?"
"Just a hunch it'll be worth it." Jamie waved and left The Fool's Carol, leaving Team Decima to their business.
"What's in the box?" Terra wondered.
Nepped flicked a grain of rice at Terra's forehead, "It's a bag you blockhead."
"Uhh, boots and some kind of ring. Oh, a note!" Taiga said gleefully. She began reading through it aloud, "The contents of this chest are destined for whomever may find it. A sceptre for the wise, a pair of boots for the brave, a ring for witty, a bangle for the strong-willed and a looking glass for the curious. While my time has run short these items have served me well in my travels. Congratulations to whomever could see through the illusion. Enjoy your spoils, they are a gift."
On the back of the note details about the artifacts were written out:
"-Marble Sceptre: What was once whole will now be round. Use responsibly, reversing its effects requires LOTS of water.
-Pathfinder Boots: Unwelcoming terrain will be tamed, balance will be achieved and weight relieved.
-Ring of Unburdern: Prying eyes inside your mind beware! What you will find elsewhere you cannot find here. Take your nosey magics and shove it! Corruption? Control? Extraction? Nay, consider it empty and impenetrable.
-Gilgamesh's Bangle: Immeasurable pain, a terrifying memory but otherworldly strength. Shall you wear this device of torture for the might it grants? Or will you save it for a rainy day? It isn't a matter of if its temptations will win you over. It's a matter of when.
-Tourmaline Spyglass: From the comfort of my home I've visited many locales. Some near, some far, some even from beyond our world. Use responsibly, as those with nefarious intentions shall be cursed to a life of darkness if they employ the Spyglass haphazardly."
"Sounds like whoever had all of these items was an interesting fella." Holly giggled.
"Yeah... This kinda sucks though." Taiga whined.
Nepped angrily stuffed their face, "Why? You're getting free breakers. Be grateful."
"That's the problem, I didn't find them myself." Taiga sighed, "I don't really feel like these were earned." With another sigh Taiga reluctantly slid the boots on, a perfect fit. Then she carefully slid the dark ring onto her shield hand's pinky finger. For a moment it was a little loose but then it quickly adjusted its size to fit her finger.
"So..." Taiga said, breaking the moment of silence, "We just have to figure out what's attacking the ships and then deal with it before coming home?"
"That's the jist," Holly smiled, "We will be boarding Aurelia's Jewel and heading through where the attacks have happened. Should there be no action, we will rest in The Leofloral Region for a day before heading back."
"So the whole trip should take about three days then." Terra noted.
"Yeah, that's right." Holly gave Terra a thumbs up, "We leave in four hours, so finish getting around and do whatever you have to before we take off. We'll meet by dock three at 10:20 sharp." The group excitedly finished their meals and went their separate ways.
*****
A handful of hours later Holly approached the docks and cast their gaze out over the ever expanding ocean. The calls of Wyvern overhead blended into the minutiae of dockhands clamouring, merchants advertising and adventurers bargaining. This town really is something. Every area of it is so different but the people are always so lively. Holly grinned and adjusted their fatpack before pressing onwards. It didn't take long before she could spot the faces of her companions.
Holly's eyes widened, "I didn't expect you all to get here before me."
"With something this exciting how could we just sit around?" Taiga's tail bounced.
"I'm only here early because I couldn't get her to shut up." Nepped groaned.
Terra laughed, "Yeah she kept yapping about wanting to see the ship."
"That would've been fine," Nepped sighed, "But she kept asking questions about Aurelia's Jewel, like we would somehow know."
Are we going to be alright? Holly's smile weakened, "Well since we have about fifteen extra minutes why don't we get ourselves sorted?"
Holly motioned for the group to follow her as she walked over to a dockhand. She quickly flashed her phone over the worker's terminal and it gave a reassuring beep.
"You four may board, but..." The skinny dockhand eyed them carefully, "I would consider turning back."
"Can't," Holly shrugged, "We've got a quest, but I appreciate your concern."
"I hope the creds are worth the peril," He said darkly, "I've heard tales of gargantuan sea creatures, mighty enough to fell a cruiser in a single blow. Jaws wide enough to swallow a small battalion of soldiers as though they were nothing more than a snack."
"Sounds lovely." Holly said dryly, "Either way, I've got a hammer for bonking and from the sounds of it- a rather large beast in need of a good bonk."
The man simply shook his head but allowed them to pass without another word. Holly turned her attention to the ship and gasped. Oh my, she's a beaut. Aurelia's Jewel towered over Team Decima and many of the ships currently in the port. Its white and gold exterior gave off a presence that seemed to fill the air. It is said that this ship was once part of a thirteen ship fleet that traveled the world under the command of The Great Conqueror Augusta.
The party boarded the ship and asked their way around to the captain's quarters. Up on the thirteenth floor they found an embroidered door made from golden chrominium. Holly's palms began to sweat as she raised her hand to grab the door knocker located near its center. She hesitated for a moment before knocking three times. The group waited for what felt like a whole hour, but after about a minute a scratchy grumble came from behind them.
"Can I help ye lot?"
They turned to see a man standing no more than four feet tall. His golden metallic peg leg bore the weight of his right side. Fancy circular sunglasses rested on the bridge of his thick nose, their orange gleam obscuring his eyes from their view. Various nautical tattoos and scars were exposed by his unbuttoned blue shirt and rolled up pants. His chaotic outfit was complemented by his unruly black hair and unkept beard. For all his apparent lack of decorum he wore a carefully polished emblem of gold proudly on his belt that laid over his thigh. It appeared to feature twin basilisks wrapping around a family crest in the shape of a shield.
I didn't even hear him get behind us. Nepped's hairs on the back of her neck stood up.
Holly spoke up, "We're here to meet the captain, we are adventurer's sent from The Fool's Carol."
"That so? I am the one ye seek, ye bring proper documentation?" The man eyed the four intently.
"Here it is sir." Holly produced a scroll wrapped neatly in twine.
The captain grabbed the scroll and unbound it quickly. He took a moment to read over its contents and occasionally looked up to size the team up.
With a fist he covered his mouth and cleared his throat, "Ahem, My name is Captain Dullahan. While I appreciate yer fine guild for providing my beautiful ship with four capable adventurers I fear they may be underestimating the dangers ahead."
Holly bowed her head slightly, "I understand your concern but allow me to put your mind at ease."
"I mean no offense to yer and yer party lass but the only thing that would put my mind at ease is The Heart of Aegis himself, Jamie Jaminson." Dullahan explained.
Holly's jaw tightened for a moment but she quickly corrected her expression, "While we may not be Jamie we are a group of varied and talented individuals. Each of us can handle terrible threats alone, but together we can overcome even more. In fact, we recently braved mimic forest and bested a dire pack led by an established Alpha... Not to mention we fought and won against mimics of ourselves and Jamie."
Dullahan raised his brow and his eyes twinkled, "That so? Well it wouldn't hurt to keep ye around then. Worst case ye are good for a story and a drink before we all die."
"I appreciate your vote of confidence captain." Holly said dryly.
"Aye, I would suggest we enter my quarters and discuss the details of our request over drinks. What say ye?"
"I don't think drinking on the job is the best call for us to make." Terra scratched her head, "Wait..." Terra looked around frantically searching for Taiga and Nepped.
"It's fine, I could use a drink. Why don't you go find our resident troublemakers and I'll wrap things up here." Holly messaged the Decima group chat with the information for their quarters. "If I'm not back in a few hours just assume I'm busy and do what needs to be done without me." Holly waved Terra off as she followed Dullahan into his quarters. "Byee!"
"So I'm on babysitting duty? Great." Terra mopped but began her search for Nepped and Taiga.
*****
A couple hours had come and gone since Holly entered the captain's quarters. Terra found herself lost on the twenty fifth floor searching aimlessly for her party members that refused to answer her messages. A few distractions later and Terra was nose deep in the facilities desserts and entertainment.
Several floors down on the rear end of the boat Taiga and Nepped stood a handful of meters apart from each other. Their gear and belongings were laid out on a bench not too far away. They appeared to have found themselves in an open area with various training gear and a space clearly meant for sparring. With no one else around the two circled each other like two animals in a cage.
"All I'm saying is you can't just go around grabbing stuff that doesn't belong to you!" Nepped yelled over the sea wind.
Taiga pouted, "I wasn't going to KEEP it! I just wanted to look!"
"Again, that doesn't matter!"
"Why are you always on my tail about everything?! I thought we were past whatever this is!" Taiga spat.
Nepped furrowed their brow, "I'm not on your tail! You're just careless and put us all at risk!"
"I don't see how inspecting a vase with runes from my hometown would put us at risk." Taiga shook her head, "And you still haven't apologized for calling me dead weight!"
"I only called you dead weight because ever since we went to mimic forest your head has gotten too big for your body to carry!" Nepped yelled.
"What? I'm not allowed to be happy we made it out of that?! Are you that miserable all the time you can't just enjoy a victory?!" Taiga clenched their fist.
"Take that back." Nepped walked towards Taiga.
"No, apologize for calling me deadweight first." Taiga matched Nepped's stride and approached in kind.
The two stormed towards each other and without another word once within striking distance Nepped went to headbut Taiga. But to her surprise Taiga pulled her entire body back then flung her forehead straight into Nepped's. CRACK! Their skulls collided and the sound of the impact cut through the gusting winds. Nepped quickly threw an uppercut aimed straight for Taiga's jaw but Taiga was able to aptly dodge it as she tried to sweep Nepped's legs. Nepped jumped back creating some distance but Taiga quickly appeared in front of her.
"I knew you'd jump back, you're always moving away from your opponents." Taiga smirked as she threw a shot towards Nepped's liver.
"And you always push through yours." Nepped's grin sent a shiver through Taiga's tail.
But before she could move Nepped had grabbed Taiga's punching arm and put her into a flying armbar. Taiga felt a small twinge in her elbow. Her body moved on its own causing Taiga to spin quickly while throwing herself towards the deck. Nepped released her hold and performed a variety of acrobatics to get away while dampening the momentum of Taiga's counter. Taiga quickly got back to her feet and took a deep breath.
"We gonna dance around all day? Or are we gonna fight?" Taiga's voice seemed off and less whimsical than usual. It had a hint of malice dripping from each syllable.
"I'm not stupid, Taiga. Just because I'm better than you doesn't mean that I'm going to win if we go blow for blow." Nepped shrugged, "How about you put those legs of yours to use and get your ass over here?"
Provoked, Taiga dropped onto all fours and blasted towards Nepped. Nepped couldn't fully react by the time Taiga reached her. She swung downwards in an attempt to strike Taiga but Taiga had already juked to the right. Pouncing on Nepped, Taiga was able to get into a full mount position before raining down blows. A left, Nepped dodged. A right, Nepped barely blocked. Another left grazed Nepped's cheek instantly bruising it. The follow up right landed above Nepped's head to Taiga's surprise. Coming to her senses she realized that Nepped had lifted her up with their hips, pushing Taiga into the air. Before Taiga could adjust her position Nepped swiftly dropped their hips and threw a straight directly into Taiga's jaw. The combined force of the downward momentum and Nepped's swift strike shook Taiga's vision.
"Ack!" Taiga winced but before Nepped could retract their hand Taiga countered with a hook over Nepped's arm, drilling Nepped in the cheek once more. Nepped's face began to swell but she managed to pull Taiga down for a moment and roll to get on top. Rather than holding the mount Nepped got to their feet and once again created distance. She spat some blood onto the deck before assuming a fighting stance once more. Taiga slowly rose to their feet, their nose twitched and the light in their eyes had dulled.
"All I wanted was to have fun adventuring with friends. Finding artifacts, seeing new places and maybe get a monster pet or two along the way. Why do you hate me so much?" Taiga hung her head and her ears hung flat.
Nepped loosened their stance and dropped their hands to their side, "I don't hate you. I just..." Nepped looked away.
"You what then? You get bored? You need someone to be your punching bag? What is it?!" Taiga yelled at Nepped again.
"They were like you." Nepped said absentmindedly.
"Huh?"
"They loved the thrill of the adventure, and even though they could barely use magic they held their own. Always charging in headfirst without a care in the world." Nepped's voice began to crack. "And you know what? We were all stupid enough to believe that they could have defeated any foe. Their confidence and carelessness led to their death and none of us were able to prevent it... Especially me." Nepped began to cry but wiped away their tears with their sleeve.
"I- I didn't know. But you have to know I'm not them, right?" Taiga asked.
"Can you fault me for trying to protect myself? What if we all get super close and then you go and die? I can't deal with that pain again. I-I don't want to."
"Well that's a problem." Taiga said bluntly.
"Huh?"
"I can't promise that I'm not going to die, but I also want us to be friends and enjoy our adventurers together." Taiga stated simply.
Nepped's face was struck with awe, "Are you being for real right now?"
"Yeah, so how about you let me worry about keeping myself alive and you worry about trying to have fun?" Taiga smiled at her brilliant plan.
"Unbelievable," Nepped whispered as she hid their smile by hanging their head. "I'm sorry for calling you deadweight," Nepped chuckled.
"As you should be." Taiga offered Nepped a drink that she had grabbed from The Big Smol Bag. "And uh, sorry for... That." Taiga pointed to Nepped's face.
"Oh this? It's fine, to be completely honest I kinda expected this might happen."
"How so?" Taiga wondered.
"Well, you see... I didn't use magic, like at all." Nepped stated.
"Oh yeah." Taiga blushed.
"We are both probably about the same speed but my physical strength could never compare to yours, at least not without the help of magic." Nepped explained as she pressed the cool drink to her cheek.
Taiga shrugged, "If I didn't know you better I'd think you were going easy on me. But I know you were really just convinced you could beat me."
"That's not it," Nepped rested her arm for a moment, "If I had used magic to enhance my body it would have been a more fair fight. I'm well aware of the difference in raw strength between races. That being said, I'm more than capable of overcoming that with my abilities."
"Then why didn't you?" Taiga asked.
"I don't know, didn't feel like I guess. All I know is that letting you rough me up a bit made me feel a little bit better about everything."
Taiga shrugged, "But I'm the careless one."
Nepped smiled and went to stand up but her smile quickly turned to panic as she leapt for Taiga. Taiga was caught off guard and pushed to the ground by Nepped's body slam.
"What are you doing?!" Taiga shouted, but was swiftly answered by the sound of a trident crashing into the ship's deck. They nodded at each other and quickly bolted off towards their armaments and belongings. Taiga quickly noticed four merfolk standing aboard the Aurelia's Jewel and Nepped scouted another six with a handful more heading towards the doors. Nepped signaled to Taiga to take care of the one's trying to breach the interior. Taiga's pace quickened as she lowered her body to grab The Big Smol Bag. With a flick of her arm she was able to secure it on her shoulder before quickly snagging her Broadfeather and Cinnabarrier. Her body seemed to be moving at an odd angle but she never lost pace or traction. Wow! These boots are crazy nice! Taiga weaved in and out of an oncoming barrage of bullet shaped water magic. Her speed never ceased as she closed the gap between her and the four closest Merfolk.
"Outta my way!" Taiga yelled confidently.
One of the merfolk charged mana into its arm. A quick flex caused it to grow twice as large, it then swung a giant war axe towards Taiga. The reflection of its worn blade bounced from her azure eyes. So slow. Aptly crossing over to the outside of their striking arm, Taiga slid her blade through the beast's gut. Blood spilled gratuitously onto the deck as she whirled around lopping another's head off. Changing her momentum with a thrust she plunged her Broadfeather through the third's chest. With a swift heel kick she pounced off of the now dead Merfolk thrusting forward towards the head of the fourth. It managed to barely raise its trident causing Broadfeather to swing wildly to the right.
"Oh no!" Taiga said as she began to move in that direction.
The merfolk began to smile, its mouth leaked some parasitic worms native to the depths of the ocean from its teeth.
"Sike." Taiga giggled.
Taiga's shield had been in her offhand and cracked into the skull of the Merfolk as she flew by. This caused its entire jaw to rip from its head. It was left writing in pain on the deck while Taiga went to deal with its allies attempting to breach the interior of the ship.
Back where Nepped and Taiga had been fighting, Nepped found herself surrounded by a dozen or so merfolk. While she had quickly used Ouroboros to dispatch of the first six, more came from beyond the gunwale.
"I just made tuna fish out of your friends, are you sure that fighting me like this is a good idea?" Nepped goaded the merfolk.
With a synchronized attack the Merfolk utilized their tridents and magical water bullets to assail Nepped. For six seconds Nepped stood in the center of them, slipping their attacks and routing them with Ouroboros. She didn't seem to be able to make a move offensively but suddenly her eyes lit up.
"Now!"
She wrapped one head of Ouroboros around the bottom of her foot and allowed it to spin around her heel while dodging the incoming attacks. Faster. She thought as she grabbed a trident that was stuck in the ground nearby and had the other head of Ouroboros wrap itself around the hilt of it. Another trident narrowly missed Nepped's neck as she flipped onto the ground starting a windmill motion with their legs. The trident that Nepped had latched Ouroboros onto ripped itself from the ground and into the air. It aptly diced Nepped's foes as it circled around her. One merfolk tried to run away but the trident caught it from behind severing its achilles tendon. It threw itself to the deck screeching in misery as Nepped slowly approached it. Its screams ricocheted through the salty air but quickly fell to soft whimpers once Nepped towered above it.
"Why are you lot attacking this ship?" Nepped questioned the seabeast.
The merfolk quivered and rhythmically created noises with its tongue and teeth.
Nepped sighed, "Yeah, I don't know what you're saying."
"I do." Taiga came up from behind Nepped.
With a few percussion clicks of her own Taiga addressed the merfolk. The two exchanged dialogue for a few moments before Taiga calmly ran their blade through its neck with a deadpan expression.
"Huh? Why did you do that? We needed information from it ya furball!" Nepped complained.
Taiga put away their sword, "Yeah I don't think it was going to be of much use..."
"What makes you so sure?" Nepped asked.
"It kept repeating itself. Something about 'Thirteen apostles have come.' Whatever that's supposed to mean." Taiga turned their attention to the double doors she had protected moments earlier.
Holly, Terra, and Dullahan emerged from the ship entrance stepping over the bodies by the door. Holly eyed the pair suspiciously while Terra inspected the bodies to confirm the kills.
"Now that's not a sight ye see everyday." Dullahan muttered, "Did the two of ye make this mess all by yerselves?"
Nepped and Taiga nodded in sync, "Hmmmm." Dullahan shifted his glasses, "I've got a bad feeling about this. The merfolk haven't attacked us in decades, why start now?"
"They didn't seem to speak common either, which is strange." Nepped pointed out.
"Does anyone know anything about The Thirteen Apostles?" Taiga inquired.
Holly shook her head, "Nope."
"Me either, good job cleaning up you two." Terra said.
"Nay, I've heard naught of these Thirteen Apostles. Regardless, I'll leave ye four to clean up and do your duties." Captain Dullhan surveyed the deck one last time before heading back inside.
"Now that he's gone..." Holly sighed, "Everything sorted between yourselves now?"
Taiga's ears perked up, "How did she-"
"Yeah, we took care of it." Nepped grinned.
"Taiga, to answer your question, a leader's job isn't all about strength. I must also be intune with the thoughts and feelings of my party. If tensions continued to build it could have resulted in a fatality. But it seems my fears were unfounded." Holly's warm smile embraced the pair like a loving hug.
"If I'm being honest," Terra cut in. "I assumed all the noise was the Nessies coming out to play."
"I'd be perfectly content with them never approaching a ship again." Holly admitted.
The party took their time to inspect the Merfolk's belongings before stacking them into a pile. Holly held out her hand and channeled her mana briefly before immolating the deceased. After a few minutes the remains were nowhere to be found. Not even a spec of ash.
"Whew, that's hot, did you increase your flame's temperature?" Terra wondered.
"Yes, it's in the beginning stages so I don't have full control of it... But I will soon." Holly's face bore a determined expression as she cast her gaze out onto the expanse of the ocean.
"Ya know I was thinking." Taiga blurted out.
"Oh? That's new." Nepped smirked.
"Ha-Ha, very funny. Isn't this boat a little too large for us to fight effectively on?"
Holly nodded, "Yeah, I had been thinking that myself. With the four of us we could realistically cover every side of the boat. Then if a Nessy were to show we call for help and fight where it's located."
"But there's no way it's just going to stick around, it's going to take advantage of its domain." Taiga reasoned.
"Right. That's where I come in." Terra sighed.
"Yeah, we're going to use the jumpads again." Holly leaned in, "The Nessy may have dominion over the water, but we'll have the sky's on our side."
"Makes sense to me," Nepped crossed her arms, "How long do you think you can hold them before drying up?"
Terra scratched their chin, "If I have to cover the whole boat and its exterior? 15 minutes, maybe. If you guys can stay grouped together in a quadrant I can probably keep it up for a few hours. I've been training real hard so just leave it to me!"
"That's good to hear," Holly's gaze seemed distant. "However this time we're going to take a more conservative approach to start."
"How so?" Taiga raised her brow.
"Assuming it's a one on four fight this is what we'll do." Holly began explaining her plan to the group.
Everyone listened intently, her words were laced with confidence. Nepped, Taiga and Terra remained silent as Holly began to excitedly draw out her intentions on a notebook. After Holly's orders were finished Terra was the first to speak.
"Incredible, that was very thorough."
"Yeah, I have no issues with this." Taiga smiled.
Nepped stood up, "Well all that's left is to wait. Might as well enjoy the ship and rest up while we can."
Each party member set an alarm on their phone based on how Holly had directed them to. Holly was the first to patrol the deck while everyone else went inside to spend their free time how they saw fit. Taiga and Nepped meandered to a fancy looking restaurant on the 3rd floor where they were greeted by a hostess. Terra went straight to their room and began meditating in the dark. Each member of Team Decima found themselves comfortably awaiting their battle with the titans of the Seaglass aboard The Aurelia's Jewel.
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(Uploaded version is the initial draft of the work LxD. The final edited version will be available for purchase in the future and you can check the progress of the book by visiting Lucky's streams twitch.tv/TheLuckyTempest)