ã€ŠThe Magi&#x27;s Societyã€‹


 Volume 1: Prologue

    ---Scholarly analysis of the Baes historical archives, in regards to "Galactic History". The following abstract, written by Chronicler Anen Norhi, details the summary opinion found within the collection of volumes titled " Comprehensive History of "Humanity" " volumes 1 - 9.---

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    This is the abstract of my account regarding the cross reference and study of achieves within the various noble houses of Baes. I, Anen Norhi, provide conjecture based on the accumulated knowledge collected from our ancient records, and what few records we may have been gifted to us by our Lords. My opinions may be based on unreliable narrators, and what little information was provided from a shared knowledge-base within the collective nobility of Baes. While most people are unaware, or uninterested, in our ancient history; the noble patronage of our great houses allows for my organization of what few records we maintain. I strive to create a comprehensive opinion on what history we have collected and preserved, and seek to understand better our role given by our great Lords.

    Note: I, Anen Norhi, coin several terms and phrases to give a generalized understanding of certain events and peoples. These descriptions are not intended to be completely accurate, to their finest degree, and each is explained further in the readings of their respective volumes within the " Comprehensive History of "Humanity" ". For further explanation, please read further into the beginning volume where I define, and organize, every term and phrase used within my research that may not be directly understood, in its definition, to my audience.

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    Starting where all must, the interlude of the old world and beginning of the new.

    Society, and all places known, seems oft governed by the aristocratic houses of ancient days. When it is told that peoples first set off in search of homes in the stars and faraway places. While there are several rumors and legends of where and whence people came from, most conclude it is a trifle to the age of true expansion. The age of expansion, a time when all people left their respected homes and made the slow journey into the stars. In this old and barbaric time, space travel was little more than throwing a rock in a great pool whilst hoping what current may there be took it to your desired destination. Large interlocking colony vessels bound together by a central gravitational force artificially frozen to preserve the interior for long travel. Truly a barbaric measure by any standard, the chances of survival being a violent crash landing on distant planetoids at best, and a destiny to be burned in a star at worse.

    The age of expansion left many lost and underdeveloped for their eventual colonization of their desired targets. The people forgetting whence they came and how to get there, as well as changing physically so much that species and race is said to have become less of a concept than a topic of study for only the most archaic of scholarium. What few archives could be gained, from visiting Lords, over the many centuries detail other colonies and some of their most basic records. While the accuracy of the records is in question, due to the lack of sources and potential unreliable narrators, the details within the records almost always vary drastically from our own founding. Depictions of humanity cause us to believe that we are not the template of what is considered, "human", but this idea is considered radical by most of my peers.

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    Within the acquired records most people are described as extremely different than us, and the cause is theorized to be rooted in the erosion of genetic codes. Mutation, as it has labeled by my peerage, ran rampant in the frozen depths and the eventual reintegration of people created new and diverse societies that each expanded in their own way. While the most common of which being an ancient frame of reference word ¡°humanoid¡± many shapes and sizes abounded in any one colony. The idea of being Human seemed to dwindle to the comparison of a moon technically being a rock floating in space, only true in the strictest of senses. The age of expansion is oft translated to the age of strife, or some similar terminology denoting civil difficulties and societal issues, where kin fought against one another due to their appearance and disposition rather than creed or resources. As explained, a barbaric time.

    These events soon lead to an almost universal implementation of a similar system of government that is used within our own society within Baes, though it would be developed many times over the course of each society¡¯s evolution if not entirely destroyed. The people who gained the most, fortuitous, mutations are said to have become the leaders of their small clans on their barren and hostile worlds. Leading from a position of strength, most governments of this time would prefer force of arms than cooperation and community. While this would develop, in some cases, to extremes and outright devilish productions most societies settled on agrarian and feudal lifestyles due to the lack of technology and available resources not dissimilar to our own moon''s finite resources. Some colonists never reached a livable planet or even descended from space into a gravitational well.

    While most colonists would find their target markers, without being terribly molested by the ravages of time and radiation, many were lost or otherwise caught. Some records of salvagers, or even space-faring societies, give records attesting the acquisition of these ancient vessels and their database records becoming corrupted after unknown eons without maintenance. Yet some amount of our shared records make a curious suggestion. Finding their colony caught in a great blackness, but their crude ship systems heating and awakening regardless, some colonists may have discovered the Barges.

    The Barges, great and powerful ships larger than cities wide while taller than bursting mountains. Massive behemoth adrift and derelict, with barley functioning systems, the colonists could have descended into the various Barges one by one These people, who were once known to us as our people, soon would become more. They became that what the Barges needed, Magi.

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    ----This abstract is a placeholder for the collection of volumes titled " Comprehensive History of "Humanity" " volumes 1 - 9. It will remain a placeholder until further access is permitted by order of the Noble Council of Baes.---

    ---The " Comprehensive History of "Humanity" " is no longer made available by order of the Noble Council of Baes following the excommunication, and execution, of its author by request of our Lords Above. Respect and reverence be to our Lords.---

 Chapter 1: The Bensari

    The great house Bensari, of the outcast and adrift moon Baes of their same named system. An unimportant world, in the grand scheme, but one visited by the Barges regardless. Bensari being of the great houses on the moon bore the great honor and responsibility to give their own blood for the Barges as tax. A single child, once a generation, to be given wholly to the Barge that visits their system. In most systems a great honor and joy, but of Baes a looming terror.

    Baes, and by association its noble houses, is small enough to be ignored but large enough it warrants the siphoning of mana from a Barge. Due to the smallness of the population, even a single member being lost a generation could mean the fall of a noble house into drudgery or worse. While most societies offer their best, brightest, and most worthy, the Bensari house maintains their control by only ever offering what they don¡¯t need. Those who live but become unfit for work, those who show no talent, and the lowest of their high born children. The cycle soon comes to a close, and the Barge soon to arrive by the day. Mevi, a name meaning small by the Baes people¡¯s ancestors, has been long groomed since birth to join the Barges. As such Mevi has been ignored and neglected by all her house, and forced away from her parents and siblings.

    Mevi awakens suddenly, clenching her heart tightly as if it may leap from her chest. A nightmare, one she has had for several years but can never remember the contents. While not ideal, Mevi thanks its presence for awakening her so early so as to make herself useful in the bright before the morning. Mevi takes in her surroundings, the soft bedsheets beneath her and woolen blanket now strewn onto the floor both remain the same, her small room being barely large enough to fit a bed made for a child. Mevi climbs from her rest and fixes her sheets to her bed¡¯s frame, smoothing its wrinkles and creases to calm her nerves and slow her heart. She knows something is happening soon, but doesn¡¯t understand what or why. So many of her cousins and revered elders watch her so intently these last few months. Their gazes on her at all times but the earliest hours, when she cleans and tidies the mansion alone, she is graciously welcome in.

    Mevi, leaving her undecorated room and collecting her small decorated metal bucket and carved plas-wood mop. These two items being one of the few she calls her own, the mop carved from a fallen branch of an artificial plastoid wood tree, its handle twisting at the end with a crudely crafted flower¡¯s bloom. Not Mevi¡¯s best work, but with her time abundant she finds crafts and cleaning to her liking. Her bucket, an old and should be rusted thing only not for her loving care and attention, painted with flowers and landscape twisting with its curl and bend. Her materials in hand, and the pond close by the work to clean before the house¡¯s awakening begins.

    Mevi starts with entering through a nearby hatchway to what she calls ¡°The Pond¡±. Then her usual filling of the well, maintaining the water reserves of a certain level is a task begrudgingly taught to her by a kinder-than-most cousin. Her bucket filled with a portion of what remains at the bottom of the divine provider, an old device that creates water almost by magic, Mevi begins her cleaning of the mansion. Vast halls of polished stone and metal, befitting that of a single great lord, but strangely cramped for the large noble house. Decorations minimally placed along the empty corridor, large metallic statues of the original colonists twisted into strange art pieces Mevi never truly understood, but understands she is not clever enough to see their meaning. Along the stone tiled floors the shine reflects from the incoming meteors that often fall to the barren icy planet Baes orbits. The tiles themselves each unique but simple and cheap in design, with artistic and inspired designs that flood into shapes of any imagination. Mevi occasionally would become lost tracing their flow through the long hallways when she was younger, though she is older now and knows to not let her imagination wander as often. While otherwise unremarkable, beyond the sigil of the Bensari house a cheap and old design of some strange creature called a bird, the mansion expands as one large hallway marked with rooms and doors on both sides. The main door, in great contrast to the small hatchway to Mevi¡¯s well, two large beams of a substance called wood stretch at least ten meters, arching at the top in a spiraling connection that twists into metallic plates that are etched with inscription. The mighty plasteel doors able to open almost as wide as the doors are tall, but the wooden frame is without blemish or decoration due to its rarity.

    While Mevi scurries and scrambles for her duties to clean and polish the marks and dust away from floor, wall, and anything she can reach, the faint light of the Baes star creeps in and fully illuminates the mansion. Suddenly thrust from the dim Mevi works in the blinding light that is almost beautiful as the star¡¯s rays of blue and purples shine through the glass ceiling that protects the household from the outside air that is almost toxic and completely unfiltered. While it is the noble houses¡¯ duty on Baes to provide them, many common workers and people cant afford or obtain a breather that allows for normal unfaltering labor in the muggy outside air. The mists and smoke visible outside through the windowed ceiling even in the dimness of first and last light.

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    Mevi quickly finishes, having fully polished and cleaned the entire mansion¡¯s hallway in only a few hours. While machinery, leadership, technology, or heavy labor is outside of her reach, Mevi can take water and rags and clean just about anything in moments. As Mevi admires another good day¡¯s work she hears a crack of a door, a sudden moment of panic flushes the color from her face. Nobody becomes awake this early, the star¡¯s light as it breaches the atmosphere of the planet below creates near-blinding rays until the star is eclipsed again a few hours after first light. Few laborers even attempt to work in the early hours of the morning for fear of sudden blindness.

    In the direction of Mevi¡¯s small room, a door creaks slowly open. As if time became slowed, Mevi panics and attempts to internally debate what to do. Deciding on hiding herself, she quickly finds one of the art pieces hanging from the walls, while most are statues or carvings in the wall, some are long drapes or cloth decorations. One such decoration hangs low enough for Mevi to fit behind. She darts quickly and positions herself on the lip of the floor that curls in meeting with the wall. Her small frame useful enough to allow her to press against the tiny ledge and not allow her feet to be visible on the floor. The door finishes opening and clicking heels can be heard, thankfully progressing away from where Mevi hides. Another door is quickly opened but no new feet exit. Mevi presses herself fully against the wall to prevent her form disfiguring the draped cloth. Not able to peak around and past the cloth due to the artistic curve causing it to almost envelop her. The door that was just opened seems to shut after a few moments, and the clicking walks away calmly, but suddenly the clicking stops. Mevi holds her breath, as she remembers the bucket and mop left in the middle of the hallway. Indeed the figure seems to be suddenly walking in this direction. The walking becomes louder and louder as the echoing of shoes against floor tile comes closer and closer. Only what must¡¯ve been a meter away from Mevi¡¯s hiding spot do they stop.

    The shoes and their menace stop clicking, but being only a few steps away Mevi knows whoever this is must have stopped next to her clearing supplies. The unknown figure sighs and an elderly and stern man¡¯s voice is heard, ¡°Mevare, I know you must be here somewhere. You wouldn''t leave your supplies unguarded.¡±

    Mevi gives no response, hoping the figure has other business and will soon leave.

    The voice speaks again, ¡°You know Mevare, the cleaning servitor is able to do this work for you and without your help¡­¡±

    Suddenly feeling insulted, without meaning to, Mevi blurts out, ¡°But it doesn¡¯t polish the corners as shiny and wastes solution against the walls!¡± Quickly covering her mouth as if to catch the words before they escaped, Mevi moves and soon falls from behind her perch.

    Clattering to the ground, Mevi throws herself to not tangle in the drape¡¯s cloth so as to not pull it down. Landing stomach first, arms and legs sprawled out, a slap against the tile floor echos for a few moments down the hall. Mevi quickly gathers herself into a knee-sitting position and looks up to see who had found her and insulted the art of cleaning. To Mevi¡¯s surprise, it was none other than her revered grandfather, the current leader of the Bensari house.

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather, seems to appraise the heap on the floor, ¡°You always seem to rise early, even before the star¡¯s light. Your mastery of stealth makes us none the wiser to the cleaning outside of a few¡­¡±

    Mevi quietly mutters, ¡°The servitor can reach higher but does a worse job with too much wasted solution¡­ I just wish to be of use, grandfather.¡±

    The man, tall with entirely grayed hair and a short trimmed beard, leans forward with his thin frame as he seems to inspect Mevi further. ¡°You are good at what you do, this is true. But a pointless task is still useless to us. I have need of you, and since you are awake you may come to my quarters as soon as you put your things where they should be.¡±

    Mevi quickly responds, ¡°Yes grandfather, right away grandfather.¡± Her conditioned responses kicking back in after the pain and startle of her fall fades away.

    Both leaving to their respective directions, Mevi begins to clean up what mess she left behind and walk to her room. Then she realizes what grandfather had said, to meet him in his quarters. But Mevi had never been there before, only important people or important meetings are hosted there. Mevi couldn¡¯t possibly be either¡­ Suddenly a pit forms in her stomach, and realizes she could only have done something wrong and is in great trouble. Enough trouble that it warrants an audience with her grandfather, Mevi realizes how badly she wished she wasn¡¯t found. Quickly hastening to her room, Mevi puts her belongings away and begins to get dressed in a proper noble¡¯s tunic and long skirt. Hand-me-downs and old pieces of clothing, but her best dressings she could find. The blue tunic being the only thing that matched her skirt, and while both were simple the soft fabric was regardless extravagant compared to the normal clothes she wore.

    Mevi quickly set out to meet her grandfather, not allowing herself to waste any more time than necessary. Whatever was to come, Mevi needed to be strong and mindful of what she hears, regardless of what she may or may not have done wrong.

 Chapter 2: The Great Barges

    Mevi followed her grandfather. The long hallway all the more lonely in the tense silence despite the two souls walking alongside each other. Mevi does her best to avoid looking even at the feat of her revered grandfather.

    Before the turn into her grandfather¡¯s personal domicile within the great mansion, she hesitates. It might not be too late to run and hope she is once again forgotten,  she thinks to herself. Looking up, for only a moment, she sees her grandfather¡¯s gaze. But despite what she has become used to, it is a look of genuine patience and kindness. An almost pained look of contemplation coming and passing from her grandfather. With quickly darting her eyes away from his form Mevi shuffles into her grandfather¡¯s entryway.

    The interior of the most important man in the Bensari household¡¯s personal living space was incomparable to any Mevi had glimpsed before, disregarding the thought of even trying to compare her own room to such a masterwork of a living space. The high walls didn¡¯t reach as tall as the outside hallway, but were doubly more intimidating. The walls, in almost every available space, held either dense and fully stocked book shelves or extravagant drapery. While each member of the household shared a small space for themselves and their non-adult children, Mevi¡¯s grandfather held what could easily house two or three families even with their various luxuries. Rather than the bright illumination and pristine white, most other nobles abided, her grandfather¡¯s domain held a soft and warm aura. Despite the almost immeasurable amount of books, tomes, and documents the floor was left mostly bare. The panels making up the floor painted painstakingly to resemble the ancient wooden material of the Bensari¡¯s great entryway. The rest of the room filled with a motley arrangement of comfortable furniture and old-styled electric appliances. The entire atmosphere giving off a feeling as if it was a shelter from a painfully cold outside, despite the controlled atmosphere.

    Walking in the dimmed light, that almost flickered with a subtle orange tint, Mevi¡¯s grandfather walked to the center and sat himself on a padded armchair. He gestured to the seat across from his, with a plastoid table between them. Mevi carefully walked inside, taking her comparably filthy shoes off and carrying them with care. Hesitating for a moment but resolving herself to take a seat, Mevi looked at her grandfather¡¯s face for the second time. In his gaze the space of time felt as if an eternity passed. Again, to her surprise, he was patient and watching with care at her practiced movements. Before long her grandfather spoke, slowly as if trying to not scare off a frightened animal, ¡°Mevare¡­¡± her grandfather opening his mouth as if to speak more, but stopping himself as his voice trailed off. He seemed to recollect the words that escaped him, and spoke again with confidence. ¡°Mevare. Our family has never treated you as it might¡¯ve should. Yet your diligence and dedication to us remains proven by your own best attempts. I thank you for this. But our family has our own¡­ strange reasoning for what you have experienced. It was decided a long time ago how you might serve our family, and as per our family¡¯s opinions it caused some degree of mistreatment¡­¡± Her grandfather spoke as if trying to reason his words to himself, but Mevi sat mostly confused while attempting to take in whatever was said. Her grandfather continued again, ¡°We must ask you to perform one final duty to us, and frankly I have no understanding of what it will entail. I can¡¯t imagine it will be worse than your treatment here. If you would do this task for us, our family will honor you.¡±

    Mevi took in the confusing string of words that seemed to avoid what was at the core of her grandfather¡¯s mind. She worked up her courage as he seemed not exactly how to proceed with the conversation, his hands clasped together in thought.

    Mevi took the silence to ask, ¡°What might I be tasked with, revered grandfather?¡±

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather sighed, and resolved himself to speak again, ¡°You know little of the outside world. Our family is as strong as it has become because of our methods, as cruel as they are. Every few decades a great vessel arrives at our moon. They provide us with our people¡¯s lifeblood, with mana. This mana is a material that allows our equipment to function, our synthesizers to produce sustenance, and any number of strange things. We haven¡¯t the ability to produce this material on our own, and without it we would sooner die to the elements of toxin and vacuum before starvation.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather took a moment to recollect himself, waving a hand and a panel in the table before him opens and produced a filled glass of water. Instinctively drinking it, he almost comes to a realization and continues, ¡°Even this just now, this water and ability to create it from such impressive instruments is created by this material called mana. This great vessel¡­ It provides this in abundance, even to the lowest of laborers, and gives more than enough for all to meet their base needs. But in exchange they ask for tribute. This tribute is a single child from every noble house when they arrive. Due to our moon¡¯s low resources stockpiling mana is vital for our survival and continued rule. Our family has governed and remained in control by our, less than honorable means, and one which way was to ignore the chosen tribute. When you were born, due to the alignment of the vessel¡¯s arrival, you were chosen. Most in our family determined that since you wouldn¡¯t be of use after you were given away, the need to give you anything was nonexistent. With your parents housing such little of their own mana, they had little say in the decision and could barely spare enough mana for themselves and other children. So you have been left into my care. To some, my providing even your own place to sleep was too much, but as the day of your departure comes closer I realize that¡­ I am too old for this. I apologize for my treatment of you Mevare, I hope you will perform this one last duty for us.¡±

    Mevi is taken aback by the immense amount of information given so openly to her. She must take several moments just to process what some of the words mean. But even once she realizes her grandfather is expecting a response, she can¡¯t seem to find what words to say. She doesn¡¯t know what this vessel is, or having ever heard of mana, even knowing her grandfather was her caretaker was something new to her knowledge. Mevi finally works up the courage to speak once again, ¡°Grandfather, what will they do with me once I am given?¡±

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather was frank, ¡°I do not know. Only that we have few records of seeing those we give come back or send some kind of notice. I believe, from what I have understood, you may be given as a servant of sorts. But even that I could not say for certain.¡±

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    Mevi mulls over the information, but doesn¡¯t take long to come to a decision. ¡°I will do this for you grandfather¡­ And I do thank you for what you have done to take care of me. What little I do have is a treasure to me.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather, throughout the conversation, seems to age by the moment. Appearing less and less the stern, strong, and stalwart figure that led the Bensari and more like an old, tired, and sad man. Her grandfather only gives a nod in response, reaching his hand to cover his eyes. Leaning forward, as if his head is in pain, he speaks for the last time to Mevi, ¡°Thank you¡­ The Holy Barge will be here tomorrow. I will have the others prepare you, in whatever way they can.¡± As if wanting to speak more, but losing the will and words to do so, Mevi¡¯s grandfather simply waves a hand to dismiss her. A weak gesture, but Mevi follows it regardless and silently leaves the room. Looking back just before exit one last time at the sad old man in his large and empty room.

    <hr>

    The rest of the day was quickly filled with commotion. It did not take many minutes after Mevi¡¯s conversation for her to return to her room, still confused and conflicted. It took even less time before her door was suddenly open and two women walked in. Mevi quickly reeled and recognized one, a tall, and hawkish person who Mevi immediately recognized as her great aunt. Following her was a meek and simply dressed woman who Mevi thought might¡¯ve been only a few years older than herself.

    Mevi¡¯s aunt commanded the woman and Mevi, ¡°Come. We have little time, and you must be removed from these filthy clothes at once.¡± Mevi soon found herself almost swept away from her room, as the girl who must¡¯ve been a servant quickly gathered Mevi and carried her confused and out of her room. The three were transplanted into a large dressing area, walls filled with cupboards, drawers, and shelves housing materials and equipment. In a blur of motion the servant girl quickly began stripping Mevi¡¯s dirty attire off and making measurements. Mevi¡¯s aunt didn¡¯t hesitate to immediately begin scrutinizing every detail. ¡®Mevare, you must stand still¡¯ ¡®Mevare don¡¯t bother covering up, you are blocking the light.¡¯ ¡®Mevare, why are you so filthy.¡¯ ¡®Mevare you must put this, that, and the other thing on¡­¡¯ A whirlwind of motion spiraling around as Mevi attempted her best to follow direction while covering her modesty. Before she knew it she had been plunged into a bubbling bath and scrubbed head to toe by the servant girl while her hawk-mistress gave orders and directions all the while.

    Soon Mevi had been cleaned, scrubbed, dried, cleaned again, and placed in a long white blouse. The servant and Mevi¡¯s aunt dutifully and quickly measured every millimeter and began placing fabric, design, and material in every angle along Mevi¡¯s body. Before long she was shooed from the middle of the room, her aunt apparently done with her and a new set of people hauled her to the next area of preparation. Mevi caught a glimpse of herself in a standing mirror, and for one of the few times she can remember, she saw herself and was clean.

    Through the rest of the day she was drilled, measured, cleaned a few more times, and lectured. Most a blur of information and details on how to be and act a proper lady, few instructors waiting to ensure she understood and simply pawning her off to the next set of hands. More attention was given to Mevi in the long hours of the day than she had ever received in recalled memory. By the end of the day she was walking with books stacked high on her head, spinning with information without having actually remembered or understood any of it. Before long her handlers seemed done with her and turned her over into a new, different, small guest room with a single bed and a small table without a chair. Mevi¡¯s head spun as the amount of things having taken place so suddenly flooded in waves. She steadied herself against the wall and seemed to fall into it. Confused and head still spinning she found herself in a bathroom on the tiled floor.

    Mevi stood up and balanced herself against the sink, which sprayed a sand-soap solution used for scrubbing difficult dirt. The familiar scent summoned her to activate the sink and gather the puddy-like solution into her hands. Leaning against the wall behind her and sitting on the ground, soap slowly dissolving in her hands, Mevi rested for the first time in the entire day. She brushed away the remaining soap allowing it to dissolve against the floor tiles and looked into the bathroom. Built into the wall there was a large mirror, and in her reflection she could hardly recognize herself. Makeup, tied up hair, strange ornaments on her blouse, and so much powdered material covering her. A strange amalgamation of several people¡¯s idea of what she should look like, she thought.

    Mevi quickly got up, wiped away the makeup, untied her hair to allow it to hang freely, and discarded the strange items clipped and pinned to her. Her naturally wavy silver hair, fully cleaned pale skin, and vibrant orange eyes staring back at her in the reflection. She hadn¡¯t had many chances to see herself in a real mirror, and even if she could her messiness disallowed for her to dream of being pretty. But in this mirror, she could finally see the girl that had hidden away for so many years.

    After Mevi shed the assortment of ¡°enhancements¡± forced onto her, she returned to the main room. The table was filled, despite being bare before. The table held an assortment of food she can¡¯t recall ever seeing before, artificial meats, fragrant bread, flowering assortments and decadent selections of all kinds of food. She hesitated for a few moments, suddenly not sure if any of it was allowed to be hers. Looking through the bare room, she suddenly noticed on the bed laid some of her belongings. Walking over, she saw her woolen blanket, simple but decorated with pain-stakingly stitched flowers given to her by her mother when she was still very young. Placed neatly next to her blanket was a small mouse-like stuffed animal that she thought she kept hidden, except during asteroid storms. Finally her carved mop, now missing the strings and looking like a carved staff, the flower she engraved polished and the rest of the stick treated and softened. A single note laid among the items, and inside it read simply ¡°Good luck.¡± without a signature or obvious origin.

    Mevi was suddenly overcome by all that had happened and was revealed in such a short amount of time. The return of her few belongings being the last spark to light her emotions aflame. Mevi began to cry, silently, falling to the floor clutching her belongings close to her chest. She only now processing all that had been said and explained. Her being taken from her parents, ignored to save costs, kindness disallowed to prevent her becoming more attached, and suddenly expected to journey to some strange vessel? A ¡°Barge¡± that apparently no people have returned and only a few had given any signal to home of what goes on. The all too much exposure to the outside overwhelmed her. Looking around in some way to calm herself, she remembered the table of food. Her house¡¯s last and only kindness to her, she thought. Without much hesitation she began to pull and shift the table from its position to closer to her bed. Sitting at the edge of her bed she began eating at the table, slowly picking at the strange new food at first, but then quickly eating while small tears flowed from the corners of her eyes.

    At some point she had fallen asleep, her blanket and stuffed creature in her arms. Forgetting, at least in her dreams, of what was to soon arrive.

 Chapter 3: Arrival

    Mevi awoke already exhausted and confused with her surroundings. Suddenly remembering what went on the day before she gathered herself to the best of her ability. She hadn¡¯t had the chance to change from her tailored blouse but after looking in the mirror she decided it was fine as it was. Curious why she wasn¡¯t being summoned to be ferried away to places unknown, Mevi slowly crept outside after retrieving her belongings.

    Blanket dragging quietly along the polished tile, and staff clicking against the floor as she walked, Mevi began cautiously investigating the outside. Only to find that the sun hasn¡¯t even risen yet. Mevi had woken up a great deal sooner than she anticipated. A sigh of relief escaped as her tensions lessoned. Tense in the dark and silence, she didn¡¯t know how much she craved the safety of the light. The light that kept the outside world at bay with its blinding rays comforted her more than she ever realized. Mevi, despite the dark, slowly walked the halls towards her old room.

    The light from the dim and far off emitters in the colony barely breached the ceiling¡¯s windows, giving an eerie but familiar air throughout the long cavernous hallway. Tall shadows enveloped the entire journey. Mevi caught her orange eyes almost glowing in the night like a feline¡¯s, due to the lack of light on their small moon her people became adept at seeing in the dark (or so she overheard in muffled conversations). The star¡¯s light was soon to shine overhead, the few hours in any day she could trust few or no people would be walking about. She relaxed as she finally reached her small room¡¯s old door.

    Her only home was practically ransacked, anything of value already taken away or given to her while everything else was clearly moved to make space. They would likely turn this into some kind of equipment closet now that she didn¡¯t reside inside. But before she left there was one final thing she had to retrieve.

    Mevi traced a hand across the metallic wall, while her time couldn¡¯t be described as pleasant with the Bensari house, her room was still hers. Mevi almost felt sad to lose the only space she tried to call her own, but shaking herself out of dark thoughts she focused. In the almost complete darkness, due to the room not having a light source, the adults wouldn¡¯t have found her small markings. In the corner, where her bed had been only the day before, a series of small scratches against the wall hid one of her secrets. Pressing into where she made her marks, the panel of the wall came partially loose and a small bundle fell out of the loosened panel.

    A small pouch, no bigger than her own fist, made of an old cloth stitched together into an array of vines and flowering blooms. One of her finest creations, most of the others were probably found and thrown away; her staff and mouse were lucky to survive the decompose. Inside the pouch were only a few things, a small marble she once found fallen and lost, a ring she stolen that gives access to food replicators, and the final marvel. A small orange gem, cut elegantly to resemble a small star no larger than her pinky¡¯s nail. It was sharp and jagged, but held an elegant and ferocious beauty. It glowed sometimes, when she concentrated upon it and wished for light. Its illumination providing a spectre of amorphous changing shape that danced across her walls. A beautiful item, she can¡¯t even remember how it was retrieved, and she couldn¡¯t imagine leaving the mansion without it by her side.

    As if by instinct, Mevi began concentrating on the small gem and willed it to shine its light in her lightless hovel. Within moments the golden light glowed dimly from the gem and started dancing across the walls. The wild and fast movement of shadows within the gem, making ever changing shapes across her walls. Entranced and calmed by her small companion¡¯s light, she sat and waited for the light¡¯s dancing to reach its magnum opus. But it didn¡¯t come. Almost as if sensing her own tense and sorrowful thoughts, the light¡¯s dancing was sluggish and strained until it almost entirely subsided. Slowly dimming and sinking back into her hand, submerging Mevi in darkness once again. Mevi stood after placing the few items back into her pouch and reassured herself, as long as she had her few treasures she could go anywhere. The Bensari house, her own family, hadn¡¯t cared for her and preferred their power and profits over her place here, so why not embrace her new destination? Mevi steeled herself against her own thoughts and doubts, resolving that wherever she could go would probably be a little better than being sold off by her own family.

    Mevi returned to the room she was placed in, and dutifully cleaned and prepared herself. Awaiting whatever future came her way.

    <hr>

    It didn¡¯t take Mevi¡¯s family long, after the star¡¯s darkening, to relight the halls and retrieve her. Satisfied with her cleanliness and looks, or not having enough time to fix them, Mevi was swept away with an escort carrying her few things in a bundle within her arms.

    Hastily being brought to another room, near to the main gate, she was placed on a small stool and dressed in the fabric that was being sewn and pinned to her the day before. With a view from a wall mirror nearby, Mevi saw her transformation into a beautiful woman of noble caste in moments. Long flowing robes with a pristine white almost glowing across the body, the sleeves and cloak draped in baggy and embroidered orange cloth. Golden yarn twisting in elaborate designs across the sleeves, body, and cloak. A blue undercloak that draped across her chest and down her body like a dress glided lightly around her legs while the golden and white robes dragged slightly across the ground. When she was made to move, and she caught herself in the mirror, it looked almost as if she was gliding across the room. Mevi¡¯s silver hair hung loosely and curling around her, almost framing her body in the far-too elegant clothes.

    Her escorts seemed satisfied with her appearance, and as they were congratulating themselves over the ensemble the door behind Mevi opened suddenly and all her escorts fell silent. Turning, Mevi saw a stern middle aged man, who could be said was attractive if not for the scowling disappointment he cast over Mevi. His long platinum hair tied back into a well cared for braid down to his waist, wearing a fine suit of black and silvery white.

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    The sudden voice made Mevi jump and almost tumble backwards, ¡°Mevare. Come with me, you must be instructed while our house prepares for the Holy Barge¡¯s arrival.¡± commanded the newly arrived man. The other people in the room quickly left through the door behind him. The man didn¡¯t wait more than a moment before turning and leaving the room himself. Chasing after the man Mevi did her best to pick up her robes to not trip herself, only now noticing her belongings, pouch, staff, blanket, mouse, and all, were stuffed into and tied to a convenient bag that could be hoisted over her shoulders and almost hid against the robe¡¯s natural baggage and cloak.

    The two quickly and silently moved through the hallway and up to the gates. The sudden realization of what was happening almost made Mevi want to run, but she steeled herself for the second time that day and watched as the massive doors began to swing outwardly open. A gust of dusty air billowed into the hallway. She can only remember one other time the main doors ever opened, and that was when her grandfather¡¯s wife passed and a procession was made down the slopes into the lower colony. The sudden fear of her marching to her death began to seep in, she was made to be one beautiful corpse for this unknown entity ¡®The Holy Barge¡¯.

    Before Mevi could run away, the stern man grasped her wrist tightly and began to tug her down the slope¡¯s stairs that wound down the rocky terrain. The doors were quickly closed behind her as many people flowed out of them, carrying various boxes, items, and confection. Though each of her follower¡¯s wore masks that protected from the smog, smoke, and toxins in the air, Mevi¡¯s guide and her were bare and unguarded from the elements. The man who was her strict guide wasn¡¯t fazed by the sudden change in air purity, while Mevi was coughing and struggling for breath.

    This man continued to guide her by the wrist down the slope, Mevi¡¯s eyes watering while her cough slowly subsided as she grew used to the sensation. When her breathing was ragged, but breathing regardless, the man finally spoke.

    In a clear and unimpeded tone, ¡°Mevare, what do you know of the Barge.¡± the man demanded.

    Coughing one last time and gasping a reply, ¡°Only, the title sir. I¡¯ve known nothing of them before yesterday.¡± Mevi began breathing deeply to steady herself, but it felt impossible in the intolerable oxygen.

    Ignoring her struggle, ¡°The Holy Barge, they provide for us. In exchange, once every fifty years we give them our offerings. The Bensari remain strong by only giving what is least to us, enough to get by and receive their patronage.¡±

    Beginning to become emboldened by her discomfort Mevi retorted, ¡°Then I must be worth very little, how can I be worth anything at all to these people?¡±

    The man actually scoffed and stifled an arrogant laugh, ¡°Do not sell yourself short girl. You are still my daughter, and those of mine are worth more than their looks.¡±

    Almost unsurprised that such an obvious villain could be Mevi¡¯s father, Mevi became further emboldened, ¡°Then it must be a great shame to give me away, or are you glad to be rid of me?¡± Her tone quickly adopting a rebellious nature.

    Ignoring her comment, her father continued, ¡°Those from the Barge will expect a certain degree of respect and attitude. If you are in their presence, you first bow low, and never look them in the eyes. If you must look at all, behold their feet and nothing else. When your name is summoned, walk slowly towards them and always behind the one that summoned you. Do nothing else, we of our house will not be harmed or punished for impudence. We get our patronage regardless of your attitude.¡±

    Mevi wanted to respond smartly, but quickly was cut off when a thunderous cacophony of noise ripped through the air. For almost a minute, a wall of noise railed against Mevi¡¯s senses. Her hands kept to her ears and her body naturally crumpled to the ground. When the assault of noise subsided she was surprised to see her father clutching her, his hand over her head and her face pressed against his chest in a protective manner. While she gazed upward, embarrassed, his own eyes were trained on the dark sky far off.

    Beyond the protective dome around their section of colony, a glint could be seen. The dredges of darkness absorbing what should be starlight and leaving void instead. The glint grew, golden and shining. As the darkness erased itself, an impossibly massive vessel was seen. Golden, silver, white, and embodying Mevi¡¯s definition of divine. The impossible vessel curved in many strange and alien ways, disregarding coherent structure and artisanship, and instead reaching outward with pointed and spiked mandibles as if attempting to writhe against the empty void of space itself.

    From the structure that seemed so close, but must be far across Baes¡¯s small system, the vessel opened. As if it had its own great maw, reaching outward as if it intended to devour their small moon, the vessel split itself open and its shape reached around and enveloped itself. When it was done transforming, a smooth and understandable shape remained. Like ships of ancient times Mevi had learned about from the images in texts she happened across when nobody watched, it wielded itself similar to those within the ancient documents. A long cylindrical form with several stretching towers protruding from a sort of dorsal superstructure on the ship. It retained its golden and silver motif, but additionally exuded an orange glow, as if there were millions of tiny windows each producing its own light that enveloped the ship in an almost holy visage. All of its glory was basking in a iridescent golden light save for the top of the ship, which was dark as pitch and tar while being impossibly flat with no blemishes or curvature.

    When the ship was finished transforming, several small glints shining against the invisible star of the Baes system began darting towards the colony. With the danger and eventful appearance passed, Mevi¡¯s father suddenly became aware of himself and for the first time held a look that was neither stern nor mean. Rather he looked embarrassed at his own actions and quickly let go of his daughter, brushing himself and Mevi off from the dirt that spiraled from the force of the Barge¡¯s entry.

    The two of them descended the rest of the way in silence, some of their household members racing past with various equipment, items, and even food stuffs. When the descent ended the two were at the edge of a large platform, clearly meant to house large ships that the colony didn¡¯t have access to. Mevi could see around the platform, and clustering in masses she hadn¡¯t seen in any prior event, large quantities of people all wearing their protective masks. Only some of the nobles forced themselves to bear the toxins or suffer pain of pride. A small gathering was made in the center of the platform where Mevi could see other pairs of noble houses. Several children around her age, and some much younger, all alongside what she assumed was a parental figure.

    Some pairs were standing proud and tall, while others held frightened or crying children with barely stable parents. Her own father assigned himself to the center stage with her and stood straight and tall, glaring at the sky above him. Mevi realized that, compared to the other houses, she was by far the most finely dressed. Some of the other pairs even showing signs of smudge, dirt, and filth. Mevi wondered if common laborers had to deliver an offering as well?

    Her thoughts were quickly torn away from the others as a rumbling was heard overhead. As if appearing from nothing, there was somehow a small vessel directly above the platform. Pure silver, emitting the same glow as the entity it flew out of. The bottom of the smaller vessel opened in a perfect circle, a blue and silver cylindrical glow descended from the opening. One figure, flanked by two heavily armored golden guardians wielding long staves, descended with the blue-silver glow. Somehow these figures passed through the protective barrier of the colony. The figures landed what Mevi assumed to be thirty, maybe more, meters away from where she stood. All the parents and their children encircling this unknown and their guards.

    The figure was masked, his face nothing but dark swirling void, and his voice boomed across the space, ¡°Let the Chosen step forward by my summons.¡±

 Chapter 4: The Selection

    The echo of the ominous golden-clad entity dissipated any semblance of whisper or gossip from the colony. It seemed the entire moon had heard their voice and responded with obedient silence. As the echo faded the shadow-faced entity seemed to scan his gaze across the pairs standing atop the platform. Judging silently as he inspected his supplicants.

    The silence was interrupted as the entity spoke once more, voice still booming and demanding authority, ¡°One of your offerings is missing. Deliver those of House Demetra.¡±

    A collection of whispers and gossip was started anew in the crowd. Rustling and footsteps loud enough in the quiet that it sounded almost like the earth was shifting. All Mevi¡¯s senses seemed to be heightened as adrenaline pumped through her veins. She began looking towards the other pairs, who were also looking about them. Few stood still at attention, Mevi¡¯s father being one of the unflinching, his practiced stance and gaze glaring towards the entity.

    Eventually a clamor could be heard down one of the roads. Frightened and desperate shouts fighting against something within the crowd and out of view. A child was thrust onto the stage, flanked by two large men each clasping a wrist. Following in a panic, a woman scrambled past the crowd after them. The woman was disheveled and bearing a black eye.

    The woman grasped at the legs of one of the men and screamed, ¡°Please! Not my boy! He is all I have left, please don¡¯t take him from me. Take me instead, please!¡±

    The man she begged to kicked at her to release her grip cursing, ¡°Damn you woman! Get back and away from the holy emissary!¡±

    The other man released his hold over the boy and grappled with the distraught woman, who was probably the boy¡¯s mother. The boy was frightened but following the man who led him towards the center, whispering up towards the man. The man replied in an equally hushed tone, both inaudible over the shouts and incoherent yelling of the woman. She clawed at the man¡¯s arm trying to break free, but another man came out from the crowd and hit her over the head with some kind of blunt object. She slumped to the ground unconscious. When she hit the platform¡¯s floor the boy made a small yip-like sound, and small tears formed around his eyes. How he wasn¡¯t already crying Mevi couldn¡¯t understand, she was terrified, confused, and saddened by the horrid sight.

    The boy, who looked no older than twelve or thirteen, held back his own tears admirably as he stood quietly next to the man. The two of them now held hands gently while the woman was dragged back up the road. The entity, titled ¡®The Emissary¡¯ stayed silent and vigilant. When all was settled again, and the crowd was silent, this Emissary spoke his command.

    ¡°Kornal, House Demetra. Age eleven. Arrive to me.¡± The boy bowed, as if practiced, and walked to the Emissary and was directed by the two golden guardians to stand directly behind the shadow-faced entity.

    ¡°Maze, House Klama. Age fourteen. Arrive to me.¡± A young girl stepped away from their teary-eyed father, and placed themselves behind the boy.

    ¡°Arnel, House Arnel. Age fourteen. Arrive to me.¡± A boy this time, proud and sure of himself, made his way behind the girl.

    The names listed, but Mevi was only half paying attention. Her gaze still remained in the direction of the battered woman. She eventually returned to herself. Looking up towards her stalwart father, whose glare hadn¡¯t subsided. She listened only enough to count the sacrifices. Seven, eight, nine, upwards to seventeen children listed in order of age. She realized she had her eyes shut in anticipation. But her name was still not being called. She opened her eyes and looked around her. No other sacrifices remained, only their guardians standing in a mixture of pride, fear, sadness, and even anger. She made the mistake of gazing towards the Emissary, and stared into its empty face. As if an abyss of darkness and dread, it looked directly at her, almost awaiting her. In the echoing silence of her own thoughts she heard an overwhelming voice say, ¡°Mevare, House Bensari. Age eighteen. Arrive to me.¡±

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    Compelled by something that wasn¡¯t her own will, her legs began to walk towards the Emissary. Her eyes fixated on the swirling inky blackness, her vision filled by the overwhelming presence of that darkness. There was nothing but this entity, this Emissary. Her thoughts were drowned by the echoing command, being summoned to this creature¡¯s side. By the time she shook her senses back into being, she was already inside the still glowing blue and silvery aura that emitted from the ship above. Her eyes blurred and still saw the blackness that swelled from that mask.

    With her senses partly returned, Mevi looked towards her father. Whose gaze was gone from his glare at the entity. His eyes squarely on her, and softened but stern. Mevi had a whirlwind of emotions suddenly flow back into her body, now controlled by her own desires again. She held strong, not wanting to admit any fear or pain to this man who claimed to be her father. Around her the other children seemed equally confused, some seemed entirely overpowered by the entity¡¯s presence and their eyes were empty and dull. A few of the older children shook their heads over and over, as if there was something in their brain they needed to escape but wouldn¡¯t release its grasp. Only Mevi and one other, a boy, seemed coherent enough to appraise their surroundings, but even Mevi couldn¡¯t will her legs or arms to move. She was trapped in her own body, barely able to move her head and eyes.

    The Emissary had been saying something since she stopped walking, she felt as if she had been standing for hours. Time was mixing in and out of understanding as her willpower fought to gain control of herself once more. She focused, and stared as high as she could force her neck to twist. Looking fitfully towards the planet above, past it¡¯s round horizon, and longing for the blinding light. She mustered herself and bit her lip, still trying to grapple with this overpowering confusion. Then slowly remembered. Her desire for light and the bright to sweep away this dark haze. She focused herself on the memory of the glow, the almost magic glow of her gem, the gem that chased and fought against the shadows in her room. Then, in her battle that seemed to last forever, she broke out of the dark haze.

    Mevi gasped, breaking the obedient silence that had enveloped the crowd. The dark and golden entity spun to face her. Looming tall and long, eclipsing the dim light of the colony, and the blue glow from its own ship. Her only source of respite and light being what little she could muster in her own mind. But even her thoughts weren¡¯t safe, as this black mist waved over her and encompassed her entire being. She was left entirely blank and overcome. Suddenly able to open her eyes again, she found she hadn¡¯t moved. The figure wasn¡¯t standing over her. She still stood obediently in place. All the other children, even the other eldest who had fought like she did, were entirely silent and staring blankly forward.

    Mevi looked to the crowd, they had no reactions or any evidence she had made noise or moved at all. She began to believe she had hallucinated the entire encounter and even her own breaking free. Her vision still foggy, but able to make out shapes and moving figures. The nobles seemed to be offering items, goods, and boxes to the Emissary. Mevi watched each noble house listlessly as they, or at least those who gave offerings of kin and blood, placed boxes into the hands of the golden clad guardians. The guardians then placed the boxes behind the enchanted children. Her own father finally came with his offerings. Mevi had watched in strained silence as her own family members, her house, had been quietly discussing and arranging an array of offerings. Her father walked towards the arrayed items and appraised them.

    The other houses gathered many things, as many as could fit into the uniform cube containers they used. Her father however, only reached for one item. Not bothering to place it within the container for transport. He gripped a single thing, his clenched fingers covering the offering he dutifully chose. As he stopped in front of the golden guardians he splayed his fingers and offered the treasure in his hand to them. A single golden-shining gemstone, glowing with a white-orange light. The treasure didn¡¯t look dissimilar to Mevi¡¯s own precious gem, but her father¡¯s seemed refined and well cut in comparison to hers. The few of the gathered people who could spot the item seemed to breath in deep and look on in surprise. But her father looked stalwart as ever, and offered it plainly.

    The golden guardian began to reach for the gem. But the Emissary held a hand to stop him. Instead this dark figure approached slowly. Mevi¡¯s father looked visibly disturbed and surprised but only her and the Emissary could view his face. His back to the crowd, he must have looked stoic and immobile, but even Mevi could tell he was frozen in sudden fear of his own actions. The Emissary reached a silver-taloned hand and grasped the gem. A low growl could be heard by only those closest to it. As it stepped back, holding the gem in both of its hands, and presenting it outward for the entire crowd to see. Mevi¡¯s father gasped for air, only giving a moment to recover himself before he stood straight and began to walk back to his place. The Emissary omitted a loud proclamation, ¡°You have given blood and vein. Offered Kin and body. The selection is over. Await our holy patronage, and the loyal be rewarded.¡±

    The Emissary finished his proclamation with a flourish, turning around to face his sacrifices. Mevi could feel her feet no longer touching the ground. In a hushed tone, the Emissary¡¯s whisper echoed in Mevi¡¯s mind, ¡°Sleep.¡± Mevi was encompassed in blackness once more, and lost consciousness in a dreamless sleep.

 Chapter 5: The Maw, Part 1

    Mevi drifted in and out of fitful visions. Ideas, dreams, and memories clouding or crashing together. What was real or what wasn¡¯t could not be comprehended. Only that she was commanded, by a dark-golden god and obeyed. But what was its will? What was she doing floating is the dark abyss of empathic thought? She grasped at her memories, vainly attempting to retain something of herself and what was happening. The ocean of empty, formless, dark was surrounding her, battering her against what little she could recall. The endless void threw her to and fro in its endless waves of chaotic confusion.

    In the darkness Mevi struggled, and reached out for anything to grasp and understand. The god-like figure her only salvation of thought and mind. She writhed against the desire to give in and accept her salvation. She didn¡¯t know why, but this shining beacon of black horror felt wrong and she fought against its inky tendrils grasping at her. In her fitful state she reached in all directions hoping for something or someone that wasn¡¯t her proclaimed salvation. A dim light beaming under the inky ocean waves. Away from and without the figure looming, reaching, and strangling her. Mevi strained against her own instinct, knowing that her surroundings were wrong and can¡¯t be accepted. The straining, the reaching, and fighting pushed her away from the salvation. Away from where her mind echoed that she should accept fate. She flew away and through the dark maelstrom spiraling her mind into incoherent thought. Fought to reach and grasp the only source of light in the abyssal plane she lost herself in.

    Mevi grasped the light. Suddenly tearing her eyes open, breathing heavy and fitful. Moving to sit up but straining against something. Her eyes blurry, bright beaming light completely blinding her like the Baes sunrises she waited so longingly for. Mevi couldn¡¯t see, and she fought against the binds that held her to something hard and cold. Muffled voices echoed around her, a shout stabbed pain through her ears. She struggled for freedom as her vision slowly adjusted to the blinding light.

    Mevi could see, wanting to cry and in a panic. Was she tied to some sort of table? Bright lights filled the room she was held in, golden walls shine with brilliant radiance in the overwhelming light. She suddenly craved the dark again, she could faintly make out figures wearing similar robes of gold, silver, and black, as to the Emissary. Less godly and without covered faces, but her eyes were too blurry to make out features. She was trying to yell, but something was covering her own face and mouth. She looked closer, and tried to inspect her surroundings. As she looked outward she noticed a faint blue haze encapsulated her, she was looking through something. Or she was inside of something?

    The realization filled Mevi suddenly, she was inside of some kind of, sarcophagus made of glass and steel. She was tied and unable to move and couldn¡¯t scream for help. Her horror of being led to her death was beginning to be realized. Trapped in her own mind again, and being carried away by the Emissary of death in her own personal grave. Mevi gave up struggling, straining against her bonds would probably only anger her captors and not likely to promise escape. She watched, in the blurred vision and blinding light, as figures moved performing unknown tasks and burdens.

    Mevi watched for a while, unwilling to return to unconsciousness for fear of the consuming dark. So she waited, and tried to strain her vision and senses against the light and blue haze.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how much time passed, but she felt as if nothing in the world had moved for a long time. Even on Baes she could mostly feel the slow movement of the moon beneath her, as the strong forces in the system and planet tore at the colony at all times. But here, in her demise, all things were quiet and still. An unsettling feeling that alerted her to every insignificant movement and muffled sound. She wasn¡¯t sure how long her purgatory lasted, but eventually a clear bubbling sound reverberated around her. A current downward? Indeed it felt as if liquid of some kind was streaming across her skin and through her robes. Only when she looked up and saw a waving breach in the blue haze did she realize she was submerged.

    The blue liquid she resided in started to slowly drain downward. Strangely, as the substance passed over her, she didn¡¯t feel wet or any sensation like there was any residue remaining on her. The liquid drained away, leaving her just as dry as she was at the selection. Her vision cleared all but for the bright lights still shining into her strange capsule. A sudden suction of air as the last of the liquid drained, and a pop when her prison opened. The front glass being pulled upward and revealing an unobscured vision of the outside. A strange circular chamber, with odd cylindrical capsules made from gold, with wires and tubes stretching behind and into the black hull of the room Mevi resided in. Her eyes still adjusting to the overwhelming light, she could see a feminine figure in front of her, bearing a light-born halo as she protected Mevi¡¯s view from the overpowering aura with her form. They seemed to be looking at something, deliberately looking towards the floor with their eyes quickly scanning back and forth as if intently investigating something. Mevi wondered if something was wrong, if this figure was here to sentence her permanently. But the figure soon dismissed their intense investigation and looked up into Mevi¡¯s face and their eyes met.

    Mevi was panicked and scared, not sure what was happening and this silent investigator said nothing to her for comfort or explanation. The woman spoke strange words to her, and without understanding their meaning Mevi could only look on confused and concerned. The woman continued to speak, in a slow deliberate way, enunciating carefully and loudly. The sounds rang in Mevi¡¯s ears, and she winced in pain. But as the woman¡¯s voice continued on some of the words began to make some sense. ¡®Understand¡¯? ¡®Calibrate¡¯? ¡®Working?¡¯ The words flooded in fitfully but she could understand them, though not all she could decipher correctly. The woman¡¯s voice continued, and eventually Mevi could understand, ¡°should be working soon. Its calibration takes a few moments after initial application. But soon you should be understanding me. The device should be working soon¡­ Its calibration¡­ Seems to have finished.¡± With a smile the woman waved her hand in front of her, and with the motion Mevi¡¯s bindings came loose and she tumbled to the ground.

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    Looking up at her savior, as strange as the circumstances were, Mevi was almost relieved. Despite her black robes, with gold tabard lined with silver sigils, the woman looked normal. If you ignored her orange-red hair.

    ¡°Good, you are coherent. Your eyes will adjust to the light soon. You are commanded by his lord, the Magi, to attend to him. I will show you the way. You will follow me.¡± The woman commanded.

    Confused, but still getting up and clamoring after the woman, Mevi asked, ¡°The Magi? What is a Magi?¡±

    The two pass through the chamber filled with, to Mevi¡¯s horror, the children that were given to the Emissary as they sleep in the strange capsules. The both of them pass into a long corridor with a short ceiling and coal-colored walls curving into a sort of tube. The woman¡¯s pace is quick, and with no other people around, Mevi has little choice but to follow as fast as she can behind.

    The woman speaks up again as they pass through the corridor, that seems to have no end, ¡°The Magi are our lords and masters. You follow their will and do as you are told. You do not question, speak only when spoken to, and show the utmost respect. If you do this, nothing will happen to you and you may be rewarded.¡±

    Mevi is still confused, ¡°I thought the Barges were in charge?¡±

    The woman scoffs, ¡°The Barges are controlled and operated by the Magi. Their will is absolute, and your survival depends on if you can submit to them as they demand. Whenever they demand.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s realization started slow but soon came to the forefront of her thoughts, ¡°Was.. ¡®The Emissary¡¯ a Magi?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He is known as lord Falcier. Fal-si-er. Always address him as, ¡®My lord Magi¡¯, ¡®My Lord¡¯, or ¡®Lord Falcier¡¯. Unless told otherwise by him or another Magi.¡± The demanding reply ending as the woman turns suddenly and the corridor¡¯s wall stretches to open like a yawning mouth.

    Mevi yelps, and stumbles backwards and stammers, ¡°What was that, how did that happen? There was no door there before, no seam or sign!¡±

    The woman waits for only a few moments before rolling her eyes and turning to walk through the opened passage, ¡°Get used to it. Also, control your noises and yells. The Magi do not appreciate outbursts.¡±

    Mevi quickly darts into the gap, ¡°I am sorry. I will do my best not to displease.¡±

    The two were now in a more open room. A hallway of sorts winding around a large open space, held aloft several meters above the floor below. A pulsing light of a dim pink glows all throughout the floor below them. Giving the entire room, and the hallway the pair walked, a strange tint.

    As the woman continues their walk, unimpeded by awe or curiosity, Mevi¡¯s temptation wins and she asks, ¡°Ma¡¯am, what is your name? You are¡­ helping me, and I don¡¯t know what to call you.¡±

    The woman stops for a moment to appraise Mevi, ¡°Hmmm¡­ Ma¡¯am is fine, has a nice ring to it. But my name is Kalesi.¡± Her stride resumes immediately after.

    Mevi is emboldened, few have ever given her real responses or conversation, ¡°Kalesi, ma¡¯am, where is everyone else? We wonder these halls and I haven¡¯t seen a single other soul. I remember seeing several figures in the chamber before you retrieved me, unless I imagined them.¡±

    Kalesi seems to pick up her pace as they have made it to the other side of the large pink room, another door opens and they both walk through, ¡°The others are around. Most are below, with the Sentinels, doling out Mana. We haven¡¯t left yet, not until our supply is delivered.¡±

    Mevi isn¡¯t sure of the answer she received. She yearns to talk more, this Kalesi, seems to be mostly pleasant. At least she is respecting Mevi, however firm and commanding she is. Yet Mevi can¡¯t think of any clever conversations or additional questions. The overwhelming nature of the situation has her mind straining to come to grips with her surroundings. Mevi can¡¯t even fathom where they are or how they are there, she can barely comprehend the doors of this strange¡­ building? Could Mevi possibly be aboard the large ship that stopped above the colony?

    Before Mevi could gather herself for additional questions, they had already passed through several winding hallways and doors. The appearance of sudden entryways less surprising but each time making her flinch. Suddenly Mevi walks into a stopped Kalesi. Apologizing and backing up, she is steadied by Kalesi¡¯s firm hands grasping Mevi¡¯s shoulders.

    Kalesi looks serious and down at Mevi, who notices suddenly how she is quite a bit taller than her, at least two or three heads taller than her. Kalesi speaks in a hushed tone, as if sharing some important secret, ¡°Listen girl. Do well to listen and obey. Whatever the Magi says, is law. You must tell me you understand this.¡±

    Mevi is almost worried, ¡°I¡­ I understand. I won¡¯t disobey him.¡±

    Kalesi corrects her, ¡°No. Only obey. Do only what you are asked. Stand where you are placed. Speak when commanded to speak. Listen at all times. Do you understand?¡±

    Mevi is remembering the intimidating presence of the Emissary, now known as Falcier, ¡°Yes. I will do only as I am told¡­ But, what do I do when I go inside?¡±

    Kalesi shows kindness and care for the first time, looking down at Mevi like a small animal that is doing something adorable but silly, ¡°Just step through the door. Stand there, just past the threshold and wait for a command. Even if the Lord Magi isn¡¯t in the room. Wait and do not move. Try your best to not look around, and don¡¯t touch anything.¡±

    Mevi gives a short nod in understanding. Kalesi turns and places a hand on the blank wall in front of them. Her eyes dart back and forth as if reading or looking over something like they did before. After a few moments the maw opens wide, and a pitch black interior is revealed. The misting darkness almost seems to drain the light of the hallway. Kalesi looks to Mevi and gestures with her head for her to enter. A few steps forward and the door suddenly shuts, with a slam the others hadn¡¯t displayed before. Only unpierceable darkness remained.

 Chapter 5: The Maw, Part 2

    Mevi stood silent and still. Her initial reaction almost getting the better of her when the door slammed shut so suddenly. The darkness was all around, and entirely without any sign of potential light. Mevi darted her eyes, up, down, in every direction, she wasn¡¯t even sure if her eyes were open at this point. She could almost feel the darkness, her senses deprived of everything. There was no light, no sounds, no smells, no noise, even the air felt strangely blank. The shadows almost seemed to dance around her, but if that was her mind playing tricks or real Mevi couldn''t tell.

    Sounding somewhere within the room, and seeming to echo a million times around her, Mevi could hear a voice softly whisper, ¡°Your people often live their entire lives in darkness, hiding from the light.. Isn¡¯t that right?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if she should answer, and held true to Kalesi¡¯s advise, ¡®Do only what you are asked.¡¯ ¡®Speak when commanded to speak.¡¯ So Mevi responded to the question with silence. Not daring to open her mouth, her fear of the dark from so many years alone made her hallucinate and her mind race. Mevi thought she saw the abyss-faced entity, her now ¡®Lord Magi¡¯ directly in front of her. Looming overhead and about to engulf her.

    The whispering voice, as far from opposite the booming authority that oversaw the selection on the colony. Those whispers and murmurs echoed paradoxically silent, both booming in her ears but quiet enough no words could be made out. A barrage of deafening silence. The voice spoke clearly again, ¡°I command you¡­ Speak plainly. Do you enjoy the gift I have arranged for you? Your taste of home?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if this was a trapped answer, but did as she was told, ¡°My Lord Magi, Falcier. I am afraid of the dark, my Lord.¡±

    The voice feigned surprise, ¡°Oh! You are afraid? You don¡¯t seek out the darkness as your kin do? Then allow yourself to bask in the light.¡±

    Suddenly, as if emanating from the floor below her, beams of light shot out and tore the dark away. Slicing as if like a blade, pillars of light engulfed the room. For the briefest of moments, when the light shone like a star so bright her eyes began to close, she could see the room she stood in. Her mind must have played a trick, or been overwhelmed by panic, but the room looked as if it were a writhing mass of charred flesh and tendrils. Yet the room was quickly shed in light, and when Mevi¡¯s eyes opened, the Magi stood before her. Basking in the light, no the source of the light itself, the Magi emanated pure golden light in all directions. A jagged set of twisting wings rotating behind him, framing the being in a halo of energy. With the light shining so brightly behind the figure, his form and faceless mask looked all the more dark and sinister. This figure loomed close enough that it could reach out a hand and touch her if it so desired. But instead it stood, watching, the rays of light shifting and illuminating the room. Mevi, again remembered why she was called ¡®Small thing¡¯ by her house and family instead of her full name. She felt like an ant trying to fathom the sun.

    This being stood, seeming to revel in the awe and terror it produced in Mevi¡¯s soul. But it soon relaxed. The rays of light dimmed, and were left with the robe-clad entity with shadows in its mask. The room was visible, and it was strangely normal. A gray matte floor, high walls of marble that arched into a dome, with support pillars made of a yellow-gold material. The room naturally rounded, with a single round table on the center floor accompanied by two well made chairs of what Mevi thought was wood. Strange silver letters lined the walls, inscriptions and sigils that made no sense, but otherwise without additional decorations. The Magi gestured a beckoning hand towards the table, ¡°Please, Mevare. Choose a seat.¡±

    Mevi had been trying her best to not look in the direction of the Magi, preferring to stare at their shoes and flowing robes than gaze into the abyss once again. She took this gesture as her command, and walked as calmly as she could muster then sat in the nearest chair. Its squeak and scraping against the floor as she adjusted her position making her flinch for each tiny sound. In the few breaths that it took for her to walk and sit, she finally looked up and the Magi was already sitting across from her. Having moved silently, and now sitting tall with their hands resting in their lap.

    The Magi spoke again, ¡°Now then¡­ We must talk business, my little starlight¡­¡±

    Mevi was confused, and for a moment flattered, and began to formulate the words, but quickly silenced herself.

    A noise, that might¡¯ve been a subdued chuckle, escaped the Magi¡¯s mask, ¡°Good. You know where you¡­ Sit? Yes, you sit, stand, walk, and bend for me. But, in this room¡­ You speak. I command you. Speak freely, and speak when spoken to. Ignore the warnings of¡­ is Kalesi her name?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if this was a test of some kind, but mustered the courage to speak as this Magi seemed to be awaiting some kind of response, ¡°You¡­ May call me Mevi, my Lord Magi, if you wish. Very few people call me Mevare.¡±

    This strange creature¡¯s voice seemed to rise in excitement, ¡°Oh yes~! We can call each other¡­ What is it called? A nickname? You are a wonderful specimen. You may deign to call me how you please, or Magi will do¡­¡±

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Mevi was tense, but slowly relaxing with the strange one-eighty in character persona she remembered from the selection, ¡°Thank you, Magi.¡±

    While the creature bore no face or expression, Mevi got the distinct feeling she was being toyed with. Like the fake kindness some from her house played at to trick her into misbehaving. But until she was freed from this place, she would resign herself to do as she was told.

    Mevi¡¯s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the Magi¡¯s hand appearing on the table, drumming their fingers in place, ¡°Do you know what your father offered us as tribute alongside you? Something that is supposed to represent equal value to that of one of their house¡¯s children.¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t know, but understood she was meant to play along with the Magi¡¯s conversation, ¡°No, Magi. I do not know what was offered, it looked like a gemstone.¡±

    Their hands formed a steeple now, with their elbows on the table, their black gloves with silver talons seemed to stretch far down their arms, ¡°Oh yes¡­ A gemstone, at a glance perhaps. The item is a very rare material. One that even we Magi seek when we can. It is called a Star Stone¡­¡±

    Mevi had no clue as to what was being talked about, and accidentally tilted her head in confusion. Quickly amending her error she sat up straight again, regaining conscious awareness of her body and monitoring herself.

    Another strange chuckle escaped the Magi, ¡°Yes¡­ a Star Stone. A very magical name, don¡¯t you agree? Its properties can be¡­ empowering.¡±

    Mevi recalled her small gem, and disregarded her comparison of the gem her father had and her own as it never seemed to make her empowered outside of shedding light in her room.

    The Magi was suddenly gone. No longer sitting across from Mevi. Her instincts made her want to turn around and search the room for any sign of them. But the advise from Kalesi made her think twice, she willed herself not to react and stay sitting. From the corner of her vision, a silver glint moved closer and closer. A gloved hand placed itself on her right shoulder, the silver talons digging in slightly and sending a spiral of pain down her arm. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but react to the sudden stimuli, and flinched away from the grip. Her head turning around to find the thing that had grabbed her.

    The golden, and almost mischievous, form of the Magi was gone. In its place a darkening shadow like when she was gazing into its mask. But there was no mask, face, or body to speak of. A whirling pool of ink that reached out to embrace her. An echoing voice ringing loud in her head, ¡°YOU. WILL. NEVER¡­ Resist me again¡­¡±. The dark was moments from consuming her, the light from the room being swallowed as this pit engulfed what remained of the chamber. Mevi jumped back from her chair, and scrambled past the table and towards the wall. Her only salvation the light emanating from the domed ceiling. Quickly the shadowy form was gathering larger, and would soon flood past the table and towards her. Mevi desperately scratched at the wall, hoping it might somehow provide some salvation if she could dig into it deep enough. The all encompassing dark resembled her nightmarish fever in the selection and her dreams in the capsule, but now come to life and coming directly at her. The shadowy form slowly creeped along the floors, wall, and ceiling, eventually blocking out the light and dimming the room in more and more darkness. Just as the last of the light was breaking away, and the shadows almost reached her feet, the terrifying amalgamation was sucked back into a single humanoid form. The Magi, in all its almighty terror.

    The door Mevi came from opened a moment later. Heart pounding, Mevi desperately looked past the Magi and to the door. The Magi as well turned around and gazed at the intruder. As it turned, clutched in its hand Mevi could see what looked like the gemstone her father offered to it. The Star Stone, as the Magi called it. A voice was saying something in the doorway, but Mevi¡¯s heart was pounding in her ears and she collapsed to the floor breathing rapidly. She mustered herself enough to see Kalesi, and she heard the half part of their conversation, ¡°-been onboarded. We distributed the mana to all that provided their due tribute, and delivered the houses their governance supply. As you requested, we doubled the supply of House Bensari. We are ready to depart at any time.¡±

    The two were having some kind of logistical conversation, the Magi too quiet to comprehend. As her breath was caught, and steadied, the Magi looked back over to Mevi. She averted her gaze as best she could in her crumpled state. The Magi said, ¡°You may return this one and awaken the new supplicants. Initiate our undocking procedure and return us to The Barge.¡±

    Kalesi bowed deeply, and waited for the once-terror as the now ¡®normal¡¯ Magi turned and walked off. Another secret door opening and the Magi passing through silently. Once the Magi was out of sight, Kalesi calmly went to the other side of the room and helped Mevi to her feet. Silently Kalesi moved her to the hallway and began leading her back towards the chamber where Mevi¡¯s capsulated kin were kept.

    When they were far from the Magi¡¯s doorway, Kalesi looked down at the drained Mevi and cast a knowing glance, ¡°The Magi despise disobedience, in any form. Especially ones that might show them they don¡¯t have complete control.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s eyes were beginning to well in tears, and choking back sobs she asked, ¡°But..? What did I do?¡±

    Kalesi seemed to finally break, her face softened and she bent down to hug the small Mevi, ¡°Its hard to know sometimes. You will learn¡­ I will help teach you, I will be responsible for you and some of your friends now¡­ So try not to worry, okay?¡±

    Mevi, feeling the first real human touch that was kind, gentle, and loving broke down into sobs and fell onto the ground. Incoherent mumbling being all that could escape her mouth. Kalesi held her for a few moments, and tried to shush away the stress, but not seeing any headway she lifted Mevi in her arms as if she weighed nothing and continued her walk. As the two made their way down the long hallways, a little slower than before, Mevi calmed her nerves as best she could. All she could manage by the time they approached the capsule chamber was being set down and stopping the sobs, while tears still flowed freely down her cheeks. Before they entered, Mevi stood herself as tall as she could straighten her back and tried her best to pretend she was fine. The door not opening, she looked up to Kalesi who was watching her with worry in her eyes. Kalesi refocused as well and said, ¡°You know. I heard from one of the Sentinel when they returned. You almost broke free of the Magi¡¯s power. Could move around and everything! Best keep that mana power to yourself, don¡¯t want to surprise or upset anyone with being too special.¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t exactly sure what she was meaning, and assumed the Sentinel was one of the golden guardians she saw with the Magi, but she understood Kalesi was trying to cheer her up in some strange way. She did her best to smile, and Kalesi slapped her on the back playfully. Kalesi interacted with the door like she¡¯s done before, and the two stepped inside the chamber where others from Mevi¡¯s colony resided.

 Chapter 6: The Awakening

    Kalesi led the way back into the capsule chamber, Mevi following close behind. The room was as they had left it, save for the capsule Mevi was once housed in was somehow gone. Mevi almost made a move to ask Kalesi, but the tall fox-haired woman seemed focused in some kind of work. She was moving about with purpose around the room, walking up to and interacting with the various capsules the children were sleeping inside of. She moved her hand on occasion, as if interacting with something that wasn¡¯t there and her eyes were darting from side to side furiously. Mevi thought it was best to wait near the entryway and not touch anything or interrupt.

    As Mevi watched, she got her first real look at Kalesi. Her introduction being fraught with panic and confusion, in addition to still blurry eyes. The woman wore a long black suit of sorts that looked like a combination of a dress and a man¡¯s formal wear, with baggy a bagginess like that of robes. The top half looking like some kind of tunic and the bottom half being that of a long dress that stretched almost touching the floor. Yet covering most of her was a golden-laced tabard that hung just past her waist, on the tabard were many strange silver sigils. Kalesi, as she moved items and shifted strange equipment, also seemed to be extremely well built. She could at least carry Mevi without any issue. The woman seemed all too strange to her, especially for her waist-length reddish orange hair and a stature that made her taller than most men Mevi had known.

    Kalesi continued to work diligently, and suddenly looked in Mevi¡¯s direction as if she had forgotten something and was surprised to see her. Shaking her head as if to dismiss a silly thought Kalesi asked, ¡°So¡­ What was it like living on your moon? I have to adjust and activate this equipment. We might as well distill the air with conversation.¡±

    Mevi thought for a moment, not sure how to respond, ¡°I am not really sure. I spent almost all of my time within my family¡¯s manor not going outside due to the foul toxins.¡±

    ¡°That must¡¯ve been nice at least, a warm place to sleep and rest without the infection of foulness.¡± Kalesi was attempting to interact with a ajar pipe that was not in a position she seemed to like on a capsule.

    ¡°It was¡­ It was a life that kept me, in some way I suppose. I wasn¡¯t allowed to interact with most in my family. They raised me knowing I would be given away, I am told, so they gave me nothing and didn¡¯t want to risk becoming attached to me.¡±

    Kalesi stopped and looked sorry for a moment before sighing and returning to work, ¡°I am sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to offend, I didn¡¯t know it was an unpleasant experience.¡±

    Mevi, suddenly worried that Kalesi felt guilt for her, quickly responded, ¡°Do not be sorry! I found my own ways to keep my time and sanity. I learned how to clean, work, do labor, and function outside of what a noble does. I had my own treasures that I bring with me, since it is behind me I feel no regret¡­¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t seem satisfied with the response, and furrowed her brow, ¡°It still must¡¯ve been difficult.¡±

    Mevi was wishing to change the subject, to not dwell on the bitter memory of her own life, ¡°Kalesi, if it isn¡¯t a burden to you¡­ Where did you come from? Have you always served the Magi?¡±

    Kalesi allowed a small smile to creep over her expression, ¡°Ah¡­ I come from a very distant world, that at this point is almost hard to remember. A verdant place of green, and trees that could reach as tall as the Barge¡¯s tallest tower. Massive beasts fighting for survival. It was a good place.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t even imagine such a thing. Trees that large, and in abundance? Green, a color she only really knew in theory. It was a fantastical idea that sent her imagination aflame and made it wild. Mevi suddenly wanted to know more of such a strange and new place. Eagerly, and encouraged by Kalesi¡¯s growing mood, ¡°I have never dreamed of such a strange place! Did you like it there, how long has it been since you left it?¡±

    Kalesi thought for a moment, ¡°Oh¡­ It must have been about 50 or 100 of your standard years I think. It was a very long time ago, I have pictures in my space aboard the Barge. I could show you what pictures I could keep.¡±

    Mevi was shocked, ¡°50 years? Maybe 100? How could you live such a long life?¡±

    Now it was Kalesi¡¯s turn to look confused, ¡°What do you mean? Most people I have met that are given to the Magi live amongst people that can reach well into their several hundreds. I believe I am quite young compared to even the other Neophytes or Menials on this single vessel.¡±

    Almost scared to ask, Mevi dared the question, ¡°How old are you exactly?¡±

    Kalesi thought for another moment, even pausing her work this time, ¡°I believe I might be approaching my 200th year soon. My people usually live for almost a millenia, if we aren¡¯t killed by a beast. I know several others on the Barges whose people can live twice as long as mine. How long do your people usually live?¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t hesitate, she was uneducated in noble craft but knew enough from sneaking data texts and spying conversation, ¡°We might be lucky to reach 80, the eldest of us reaching 100.¡±

    Kalesi looked impressed in a strange way, ¡°How old could you possibly be then? When does that mean you become an adult?¡±

    ¡°I am 18, I learned, and I believe my people are determined adults at around that age.¡±

    A moment of silence creeped over the both of them. Processing the alien information and concept. How could any one creature live to several hundred years, Mevi thought to herself. It was an impossible count to say the least. The moon she resided on had little to no real dangers outside of extensive toxin smog, but protective masks were easily made. If large beasts roamed Kalesi¡¯s homeworld that could kill a person, that made even less sense a person might live several hundred years.

    Kalesi, as if suddenly having an epiphany, ¡°I believe I have heard that your world is poor. Or at least greatly lacking in resources. Does your colony not house any old age technology?¡±

    Mevi hadn¡¯t a clue what Kalesi meant, ¡°I don¡¯t think I understand what you are asking. I only know a few short stories of our history. We don¡¯t keep history or remember it past a few generations ago I think.¡±

    ¡°I believe, whenever your colony was founded, that maybe the old age technology might have been lost or damaged. On my planet, and many others from what I understand, we make our capital out of the corpse of what ship brought us there. Inside were old records of medical practices and technology schematics meant for building a colony. It could be that your moon is lacking that for some reason.¡±

    Mevi thought for a moment and recalled an old tale, ¡°I remember an old legend that our people tell to scare small children. I spied it when I would wander the halls during the light, when children should be sleeping. It is told that our people fled monsters, we having come from someplace else and running to the safety of our moon. That if children go out during the light, those monsters still lurk the halls and snatch them away to be taken outside of the colony into the vacuum of space. But most of that tale is fiction, I would like to believe.¡±

    They both thought for a moment. The strange ideas and revelations about a new culture dawning on them. But regardless Kalesi began finishing her work, with Mevi watching intently of the devices she couldn¡¯t understand. Eventually Kalesi waved a hand, and in the center of the rounded chamber a pedestal appeared, bearing a pearlescent orb atop it. Kalesi then began furiously searching in the air with her eyes again, after which turning to Mevi, ¡°Some other Neophytes will be arriving shortly. You should be quiet, and only speak if they ask you something directly. Some of the others can be quite rude, to explain them in haste. It is best to avoid contact if you can.¡± Mevi gave an understanding nod, and waited next to Kalesi.

    <hr>

    Four figures entered the chamber where Mevi and Kalesi anticipated them patiently. The first was a man, of decent build and only a head taller than Mevi, black hair cut short and extremely messy. Following was a woman, about Mevi¡¯s height, who reminded Mevi a little too much of her aunt, she was a hawkish woman that seemed elder to everyone else in the room, with graying hair that might once have been blonde. The other two figures looked almost identical, young men that might¡¯ve been in their twenties if not for the new information about age, both sporting bald heads with strange silver sigil tattoos and being of similar height to the first man. Mevi noticed, with some silent amusement, that Kalesi stood much taller than all of them making a strange assortment of intimidating auras.

    Stolen novel; please report.

    The five impressive figures all wore the same style of outfit, the only difference being the men wore shorter robes than the women, that hung just past their waist before baggy pants were revealed stretching to their ankles. Mevi tried not to release a silent giggle at the odd choice of dress wear, and hid behind Kalesi. All the four figures seemed equally surprised, concerned, and soon angry with Kalesi at Mevi¡¯s presence. The hawkish woman came forward without hesitation, ¡°Why is this one awake already? They should be awoken when we are all present! How dare you!¡±

    Kalesi¡¯s expression had seamlessly shifted to a stern glare since the group¡¯s appearance, and is unintimidated by the comparably small woman, ¡°The Lord Magi requested her presence. You will not question his will again. Now return to rank and await our command.¡±

    The woman, aghast at Kalesi¡¯s authority, bowed her head slightly and walked back to stand adjacent to the two bald men. Only the bad-hair-day man seemed to grin at the altercation, the two bald men showing no real expression beyond initial surprise then understanding. The five figures, outside of the man whose hair seems to look more messy and badly kept the more Mevi investigates, glare at each other in anticipation.

    In a sudden moment, they all look up slightly and begin investigating the air as Kalesi had done before. The strange practice becoming less alarming now that Mevi sees others do it as well. The group of them all gather in the center of the room, Kalesi at the head and behind the pedestal, the other four slightly behind her. The grinning man gestures to Mevi to take her place behind Kalesi, which she does immediately. Once the shuffling ceases, Kalesi places her hand on the strange orb atop the pedestal.

    The moment her hand touches the device, the bubbling Mevi remembers from her own capsule begins. Draining the strange blue liquid from the children¡¯s sarcophagus, and eventually the lid popping open with a hiss. The bindings release, and one at a time the children begin awakening and covering their eyes. The eldest boy steps out without hesitation, and squints to look at the five figures and Mevi. As the children become accustomed to the bright light, some of them seem to realize where they are for the first time and begin to look worried. It doesn¡¯t take long for the youngest boy, Kornal from house Demetra, to begin crying. Quickly following him several others of the youngest begin wailing for their parents that couldn¡¯t possibly hear them. The five figures remained stalwart, even the messy-haired man¡¯s grin disappeared and was replaced with a neutral stare. The children who didn¡¯t begin lamenting slowly approached the pedestal following the oldest boy, who was of short darker silver hair and yellow-green eyes. The group gather themselves up and begin helping the crying to their feet, and comfort them to be little more than sniffles and hiccups.

    The oldest boy looks over the figures, and seems to finally spot Mevi, ¡°You¡­ You are Mevare right? House Bensari! What are we doing here, and who are these people?¡±. The boy demanded an answer that Mevi honestly couldn''t provide. Mevi was unsure what to do or say so she tried her best to avoid eye contact and instead looked down at the heels of Kalesi. The boy gathered the children behind him, obviously fearing the worst, and frantically scanned the room for answers. The five mysterious figures seemed to just be waiting for something, not giving answers or even looking directly at the children but instead looking past them.

    After a few more moments, when the last of the crying had fully died and the children were instead thoroughly afraid, Kalesi spoke, ¡°Kin of Baes. Children of the moon. You are aboard our Lord Magi¡¯s vessel, The Unending Spirit. You, by rights, have been given to him and by extent the Barges In The Void. I will call your names, and you will step up to this pedestal and place your hand onto it. This device will determine where you will best serve us and you will be assigned to your mentor and leader, one of us five.¡± As if realizing what is happening, and remembering his own purpose, the boy in the front quickly bows to the figures in respect. Strangely, none of the children seemed to have any difficulties understanding Kalesi, unlike Mevi did. Some of the other children then follow suit the eldest boy, but most of them look confused and scared. Kalesi doesn¡¯t wait long before calling their names in no particular order, not bothering to list of what house they come from.

    First is the eldest boy, Marcus, and he tentatively approaches the orb and places a hesitant hand on top of it. The orb lights up a rainbow of colors and after it dims the five figures scan the air again, to the concern and confusion of the children watching who hadn¡¯t witnessed this before like Mevi. The man with messy hair gives a smile and tells Marcus to stand behind him, directly adjacent to Mevi. As the others begin being called, Marcus whispers to Mevi, ¡°What is happening, Mevare? Why are you standing with them and not us? What will they do with us?¡±

    Mevi looks up to Kalesi, who is diligently doing her duty of calling forth the children, then looks back to Marcus, ¡°I honestly do not know. I believe what mentor we are assigned to will determine what jobs we are fit for. I could not be certain.¡±

    Not satisfied with the answer, Marcus becomes slightly red in the face, ¡°Fine then. What were you doing with them? We don¡¯t know these people or how we may be used, why are you getting special treatment?¡±

    Mevi suddenly realizes what his temperament and concern was about, to him she must seem to be provided some luxury he wasn¡¯t aware of. Some advantage. On their home moon, competition with the other houses was everything, and the houses were more than willing to destroy each other in the shadows whenever they got the chance. He must assume Mevi has enacted some kind of plot to go above him in some way. Likely to his glee if he knew, Mevi had no real advantage she was aware of. Being intimidated by the Magi? Almost devoured by an unknown darkness in his rage? Hardly advantages to her, she thought.

    Mevi suddenly became reminded of her own house, and their mistreatment of her and felt fed up. Turning her head angrily back towards Kalesi¡¯s back, she ignored the young boy. He only wanted her to divulge information for his own gain, and would probably throw her aside any chance he got if she wasn¡¯t useful. She wouldn¡¯t participate in his game.

    Marcus didn¡¯t try a second time to get Mevi¡¯s attention, and the assembly was quickly concluded. Of the eighteen from the selection, each were assigned a mentor. The messy haired man received Marcus, two other older boys, and a rough-looking girl. The hawk-woman received three older girls. The two bald men both received five children, having a mix of the remaining young boys and girls. Kalesi didn¡¯t call for any to stand by her. Only Mevi stood behind her. This conclusion seemed to satisfy most, the mentors soon turning to face their collection of confused boys and girls. The hawkish woman looked especially pleased as she cast a haughty glance at Kalesi. Regardless, the ritual was over. After a few more moments the mentors interacted, in their own way, with their new pupils.

    Seeming to be dismissed, all the mentors instructed their followers to go with them out of the chamber, each being in turn surprised by the strange method of doorways on the ship. Everyone except Mevi and Kalesi, who stood unmoving and unfazed until the large group fully dispersed and distributed themselves further in the ship. Once all of them left, Mevi looked up, confused and concerned, and waited for Kalesi. Kalesi eventually buckled and let out a deep sigh. Turning and commanding the room with her hand, watching as the capsules are absorbed into the walls, Kalesi said to Mevi, ¡°Well, I suppose that serves me as expected.¡±

    Confused, and worried, Mevi did something wrong, ¡°What happened? Was no one fit to pupil under you?¡±

    Kalesi looked down to Mevi and sighed but smiled and patted her head for a moment, ¡°It isn¡¯t that easy. This device scans a person¡¯s aptitude, memories, talents, physical condition, and other ranges of details. Each child¡¯s information was sent to the Lord Magi, who then decided who got to mentor who. Each person¡¯s tasks and duties being different and each requiring as many bodies as they could muster. I have displeased Lord Magi on several occasions, not enough for him to discipline me but enough that this may be a punishment to me. Depriving me of what I needed.¡±

    Mevi, starting to see similarities to her own people¡¯s system of survival, asks ¡°Why do you need more people to pupil under you?¡±

    Kalesi suddenly looks like she is worried, ¡°Oh I am sorry. I don¡¯t mean that you aren¡¯t enough for me. I am glad to have you, especially if what the Sentinel said is true!¡±

    Mevi corrects her own statement, ¡°Oh! I didn¡¯t mean to sound hurt. I simply don¡¯t understand what it is any of you do for the Magi.¡±

    Kalesi looks to debate with herself exactly what to say, ¡°Well, since you will be as my sister now, I might as well tell you. I am a Neophyte Socialite. A Socialite is one that is in charge of understanding, talking to, and assisting many different Magi. Most people are assigned to just one Magi, and serve dutifully their entire life. A Socialite will serve many Magi as they work to become a Magi-Apprentice.¡±

    Mevi is suddenly interested in this strange system she has found herself thrust into, ¡°What is a Neo.. fight? And what is a Magi-Apprentice?¡±

    Looking down with a warm smile Kalesi turns back to her work and begins gesturing away more equipment and furniture save for the orb, ¡°This will be explained more once our arrival to the Barge is announced. Your learning will begin shortly after we have our tribute unloaded and most of this will be explained. After that, you belong to me haha! We will travel the Barge and serve many masters, but we will stay together long enough, I will answer questions after your education.¡±

    A little disappointed Mevi pouts, for the first time in a long time she felt she could pout about something, but at the new revelation she grins almost forgetting the trials she¡¯s suffered so far, ¡°Well then. Where should we go now?¡±

    Kalesi finishes putting away what remains of the chamber, actions that don¡¯t seem to surprise Mevi anymore, but the pedestal and orb remain, ¡°First. Before we leave, I never got a chance to see what could be scried from this device of you. I have fixed it that it won¡¯t bother the Lord Magi, and only I will see what data it may gather. I am curious if you will indulge me.¡±

    Mevi has no reason to not indulge Kalesi, she has grown fond of her in the few short hours of their meeting. Walking to the other side of Kalesi, Mevi places a hand on the orb. It lights up a brilliant show of color and spectacle while her hand rests on it. The Array of light shines longer than any of the other children, but Mevi isn¡¯t sure what that means. In only a handful of seconds the light show is over, and Mevi looks up to Kalesi a little confused. Kalesi scans the air for several moments and eventually meets Mevi¡¯s confused look with a smile, ¡°Very interesting if I say so myself! I think we will get along very well my new sister, we will make you the chief cleaning lady by the end of the week!¡±

    Mevi relaxes after her strange joke, and even giggles for a moment. Smiling up at her now ¡®sister¡¯, she follows after Kalesi as the last piece of equipment is absorbed by the floor and the two walk out the door. The strange bond between the two only recently being forged, but Mevi feels she wouldn''t want to replace it for anything in the world or space.

 Chapter 7: The Approach

    The remainder of the time spent on the strange ship, ¡®Unending Spirit¡¯, descended into familiar menial tasks. Kalesi and Mevi chatted away about various nothings, and seemed to get along as if Mevi had known the woman her whole life. The two received tasks, delegated by Kalesi, who finally explained why she and her fellow Neophytes interacted with the air so strangely. According to Kalesi, most servants under a Magi were given some kind of equipment that allowed them to see things before their eyes and no one else. A device that, as best explained by Kalesi, ¡®Is like reading a book and being able to do things by turning its pages.¡¯, a strange concept especially with how little Mevi has interacted with data texts and only ever caught glimpses of ¡®books¡¯. Regardless, this strange piece of equipment displayed tasks and requests for Kalesi and Mevi. Kalesi explained that certain peoples are ¡®above¡¯ her in rank besides the Lord Magi, and anyone of higher rank could delegate her tasks. So the next several hours were spent cleaning, moving boxes of tribute, and doing requests that were all too familiar with Mevi. While neither of them complained about the jobs they performed, Mevi wondered if someone was having them complete meaningless tasks just for fun or some kind of punishment.

    Mevi and Kalesi passed through a large portion of the ship, what felt like leagues of space covered in their endless walking back and forth. A few times sight was caught of the other children, always with their new mentor Neophyte. In most cases where Mevi saw the other children, they seemed to be relaxing or otherwise taking in the glory of their Lord Magi¡¯s ship and his great power. Mevi, however, never saw the Lord Magi Falcier despite the great swath of area she investigated during her new duties. She didn¡¯t dare to ask where the creature was, or what they were doing, trying her best to forget the events involving the Magi entirely. What felt like many hours was spent in menial tasks, and with Kalesi¡¯s guidance, powerful form, and Mevi¡¯s skills with polish and cleaning, the two were pleasantly surprised to receive their first notification they had no tasks left.

    The two finished their last task, of counting, organizing, and labeling the tribute to the Lord Magi, in what Kalesi called a ¡®Cargo Hold¡¯. Once they were finished, Kalesi took Mevi to a truly glorious creation. A strange sort of pillar, that Mevi soon noticed was spaced out throughout the ship to make them quite common, and by interacting with it you could summon a sort of hovering console. While Mevi couldn¡¯t read the strange scripture, Kalesi could, ¡°This device allows people, without certain controllability, to summon forth items of necessity. Including sustenance. While most can only create a small portion of what might be considered a meal, it can still materialize just about anything you could imagine.¡±

    Mevi was in awe of the technology, ¡°On Baes we have something similar, a Divine Provider, is what I called them. It creates water as if by magic.¡±

    Kalesi, still sweating from the labors they were tasked with, grinned, ¡°Exactly the same, with some differences. It can create food and other liquids besides water. It takes a small amount of energy to activate, so not everyone can use the terminals in the hallways or standing stagnant in a common room. Most people must use the devices within designated areas that have separate batteries.¡±

    Mevi is a little confused by Kalesi¡¯s use of the words ¡®terminal¡¯, and ¡®battery¡¯, but is eager to investigate the almost magical curiosity, ¡°How may we activate it? Can we use it without permission?¡±

    Kalesi began typing at the console, ¡°Since it uses a person¡¯s own energy, not the ship¡¯s, anyone with the appropriate amount of power can sustain it and use it. Permission is not needed unless you attempt to make complex items, or items that may be considered dangerous. I will create some drinks for us for now, and then I want to show you something.¡±

    Kalesi finished admitting her commands to the device, and soon, a small silvery-steel plate generated out of the pillar. On top of it, almost by magic, grew two white-porcelain cups. The containers were filled with a strange red liquid that was partially clear. It smelled fruity, a scent Mevi had only experienced the day before she left her home. Looking up to Kalesi, and seeing her gesture eagerly, Mevi took one of the cups in her hands and drank carefully. A wonderfully smooth liquid passed into her mouth and danced past her taste buds. It tasted similarly of a combination of apple, cherry, and possibly grape. The fruity drink was ice cold, a luxury Mevi didn¡¯t know existed. After carefully testing the flavor, she gulped down the rest and was thoroughly satisfied. Kalesi watched as a mother might her child who found something entirely new and wonderful to experience. Kalesi then gulped her own drink down in a single movement, the cup obviously small in her hands, and she created additional drink in their strange white cups.

    Kalesi and Mevi wandered out of the cargo hold, up a small ramp that led them again to a long tube hallway. Mevi carefully sipping away at the new luxury she has grown so fond of. As they walked, Kalesi led Mevi through the twisting labyrinth and spoke to fill the silence of their travel, ¡°The drink is called Mappa juice. It is a fruit from my home planet. I hoped you would like it.¡±

    Mevi, becoming more and more fascinated by this other-worldly place Kalesi called home, eagerly asked, ¡°Does your planet house many strange wonders? In no short time you¡¯ve told me of people aging several hundred years, large beasts, magical technology, and incredible fruits!¡±

    Kalesi seemed entertained by Mevi¡¯s innocent curiosity, ¡°Oh it was wonderful. I hope to return on assignment one day, but that likely won¡¯t happen. Most other planets are equally, if not more, wonderful than my own.¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t quite believe her, despite growing to trust the woman¡¯s word like it was law, and whispered, ¡°I doubt they have magical fruit that turns into water on other planets¡­¡±

    Kalesi only laughed. They soon stopped in a small, forward-facing, angular room that ramped slightly downward. The room being mostly bare all but a set of rails separating the flat entry to the ramped promenade. Two archways on either of the side walls were open and leading to other unknown adventures through the ship. But Kalesi activated something along the wall behind them, where the door once opened. As Mevi turned around, sensing a sudden light and warmth, she saw the ceiling opening above her.

    The ceiling seemed to stretch open along a vertical split, a seam cutting it in half and allowing it to retract into walls. The light of Baes, the blue-purple star with pulsing rings of light, burned in all its glorious fury. The light somehow not blinding Mevi, who moved to cover her face but realized she could watch the elegant dance of the star¡¯s surface without threat. As she gazed at the brilliant display of light and power, she scanned the horizon directly in front of her. The ship was heading in the direction of the void of space. Resting calmly and quietly was the Barge. The brilliant shining golden-orange aura framing it against the endless black, making the massive ship out to be almost like a second star in Mevi¡¯s small system. It has taken a fully solid form, even compared to its finished transformation when she was on the colony watching in horror. The ship is angular at the front, with two smooth blades stretching out like an avian beak partially open. Its body was mostly curved, with indents where large round devices nestled themselves, and the end tapered off into two caudal fins angled downward. It resembled a strange type of fish in a way, one that might¡¯ve been the aquatic life inside the data libraries Mevi has spent hours browsing the pictures of. The top side of the ship was entirely in view, and what once looked like a completely barren, dark, flat platform that stretched as far as the ship was long was now also transformed. Spikes along the edges of the ship angled in jagged growths, the towers that were there before now resemble a scaled hide protecting an angry tendril. Several stretching tendrils grasped the void, sprouting from many different areas in seemingly random places, swaying as if being brushed by wind. The once-flat surface was now additionally rocky, without any clear flat area, resembling cracking earth that cannot settle in place.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The massive ship stood still and silent, the only evidence of any kind of life were the many thousands of tiny windows breaching the golden hull of the supermassive vessel. The ship Mevi was being transported on was heading directly for this alien construct of massive proportions. Its size from the angle of her moon made it look small in comparison to its overwhelming shape so close to her. The distance from the ship was unfathomable to Mevi, but she regarded it in growing fear regardless. Looking to Kalesi for comfort of some kind, she saw Kalesi watching them approach the behemoth with a look of content neutrality. Mevi couldn¡¯t see the vessel the same way as her companion it seemed, its strange and alien form was frightening to her and the concept that Magi like the one she encountered populated such a construct was additionally terrifying. Mevi noticed then that she had unconsciously grabbed for the sleeve of Kalesi¡¯s robes, Kalesi didn¡¯t seem to care and allowed the grip. The two sat there, basking in the awe of the ship in their own ways, as their own vessel approached it closer and closer.

    After their view grew to the point of not being able to see the dark charred deck of the Barge, Mevi calmed. The ceiling slowly began to close in this moment as well, as if sensing the proximity to their mothership. Kalesi seemed to have broken from her own viewing of the Barge and was receiving more directives from her strange invisible device. After a few moments Kalesi gestured for Mevi to follow her and the two finished their drinks with Kalesi placed them against one of the pillars that was pointed out earlier. Growing impatient to have her hands moving again, Mevi asked, ¡°What is our task now, Ma¡¯am?¡±

    Grinning at the smart comment, Kalesi responded, ¡°We have no task. We are to await the City of Light in the Slipaway Connector.¡±

    Mevi thinks she shouldn''t be surprised at how often she is confused or doesn¡¯t know what something is but asks regardless, ¡°What is the ¡®Slipaway Connector¡¯?¡±

    Kalesi, slowly regaining what Mevi dubbed the ¡®professional¡¯ look, responds, ¡°The Slipaway is a sort of¡­ Ship dock. Small vessels like a Magi¡¯s Yacht, what we are on, attach to the Barge on a Slipaway. It docks and holds a vessel when it isn¡¯t being used, and propels it at high speeds into space when it needs to be activated. The connector is just a walkway that allows crew and passengers to enter the Barge.¡±

    Mevi understands a little better. But the concept and visualization of the ideas was next to impossible for her. She followed her mentor regardless as they made their way through the hallways. Mevi noticed, as they walked, a few other individuals she didn¡¯t recognize walked alongside them. Most had silver hoods with darkened faces, as if in the style of their master, Lord Magi Falcier. Few had uncovered faces. But soon, as the two exited the twisting hallway into the large rounded pink room, Mevi saw the children from her colony. Yet their mentors wore the silvered hoods, without face masks for the most part, and their mentors were handing out and fitting small bronze cloaks with hoods to their pupils. Just as Mevi was becoming curious, Kalesi went over to a nearby wall, under the overhead raised hallway and away from the main group. She removed a backpack that Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed was on her person the entire time, its presence entirely shrouded by the natural features of her robes and curly hair. From inside she produced a blue hood, with a mask hanging attached to the side, and a smaller blue hood with no mask but a small cloak attached. She handed the maskless hood to Mevi, and put on the other. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what to do but figured she should wear the hooded cloak. Mevi fitted the piece to herself easily enough, but felt silly having it drape over her shoulders and hump over her own bag of personal treasures. After some nitpicking from Kalesi about position and cleanliness, the two wore matched fashion and stood slightly apart from the main group. Mevi quickly noticing that most of the figures assembled wore either silver, bronze, or a mix of colors. Only Kalesi and Mevi stood with their unique blue.

    The party of individuals stood in the dim pink light for a while. When suddenly the light began to drain from the room entirely. Replaced by an eerie monochrome dimness. The light not being entirely sucked out of the room, but instead being replaced by a lack of color filling the space. Only silvers, golds, bronze, and the blues showing any real sign of their own vibrance. From above them, just out of sight, one of the doors on the upper hallway platform opened. As it opened, a ramp formed out of the floor to meet the upper hallway. At the top stood two golden guardians, Mevi assumed to be the ¡®Sentinel¡¯ Kalesi talked about. The two descended the platform and flanked the bottom edge. After they stopped at the bottom all the figures in the room descended to a single knee, looking down. It took a few moments of confusion for Mevi to follow suit, as well as some of the other new children. Soon the figure of Mevi¡¯s dreaded terror appeared at the top of the ramp. Slowly shedding his brilliant golden eminence across the entire room. Filling it with color and light. Many of the new children needing to block their eyes from the light due to its power. Mevi and Kalesi were far from the main group, near the outside edge of the room, but even where she stood the light was almost overpowering her. She took solace in staring at the ground, its partially reflective surface not bright enough to shine the light of the Lord Magi into its full terrible brilliance.

    The Magi descended the ramp, his brilliant light slowly dissipating to just enough to fill the room. At the bottom he gazed across the area, appraising his newest acolytes. The Magi proclaimed, ¡°My children! We are soon to arrive at the City of Light! Our holy place, and wondrous salvation! I personally welcome you into our fold, and can only foresee your success amongst our kin. Your kin. We are one.¡± After his speech ended, everyone in the room repeated ¡®We are one.¡¯ in a disturbing monotone. Not even Kalesi spared herself the statement. As the reverb of so many voices chanting as one echoed across the room, a loud clank and click could be heard pounding across the vessel¡¯s hull. As if something was locked into place. Directly in front of where the Magi stood, past the many heads and bodies, on the other side of the room a circular seam appeared. A hole was bored into the wall, as the surface retracted into itself, and on the other side was a long tunnel lit by a golden-orange light. Without hesitation the Magi began walking through the crowd, everyone standing and making way to not be in his path.

    As the Magi entered the tunnel, followed by his two Sentinel, the other figures in the room slowly regained their composure and some made their way to the tunnel and began their own walk through. Several stalked and meandered back into hallways deeper into the ship, and the children spoke with their mentors before the four groups made their own way into the tunnel. Mevi looked to Kalesi, who had stood up when the Magi began moving, and stood up to match her mentor. Kalesi let out a sigh, and looked down to Mevi, ¡°So my new sister. Would you like to go home?¡±

 Chapter 8: The City of Light

    The two newly bonded sisters followed after the last vestiges of the gathering. Mevi, not sure what to expect, followed closely behind Kalesi who led the way without hesitation. The tunnel was brightly lit, with glowing orange illumination shining from hidden sources. The floor was the familiar gray matte material, that seemed like a type of stone, observed before in the Magi¡¯s personal quarters. The walls were lined with white marble containing veins of gold swirling in bubbling spirals. The tube was quite long, and seemed to somehow warp distance and sight to be perceived as much longer than it was. At the end of the long distance was additional bright shining light, as if a star itself was at the other end.

    Kalesi didn¡¯t seem hesitant, afraid, or any amount concerned about the approach to the strange new world, but Mevi was concerned. As she approached closer to the exit of the tunnel, she felt strange. The dread, and natural fear, she had towards the Magi, even before he used any kind of shadow-like influence, was seeming to grow stronger and stronger as she walked. The peculiar and unnerving feeling of unsettled confliction and wariness washed over her in waves. Mevi couldn¡¯t exactly place what it was, or why she was experiencing such strong emotions as she walked, but something felt wrong about this ship, or its inhabitants.

    The two emerged out of the tunnel and were engulfed in glorious light and splendor. From their vantage, a large open area spread out at least a kilometer and was filled with many strange faces, masks, cloaks, clothes, robes, and all kinds of finery. A brief stair ascended the two onto the platform above, made out of the gray stone. The walls, that curved into twists and bends beyond sight, were made entirely of the marble but also had sigils and icons of gold carved or sticking out of their face. The ceiling was slanted, and started a few meters above their heads, growing tall and many meters high at its crest towards the back of this large expanse of a room. The platform didn¡¯t seem to faze Kalesi, and as Mevi marveled in the strangeness of the place, it didn''t¡¯ even seem to be Kalesi¡¯s destination.

    The two quickly moved and Mevi noticed, as they departed, spaced out a hundred or so meters apart every so often was an additional tunnel. These other tunnels were spewing forth their own passengers, those wearing bright whites, soft green, deep purples, and any combination of silver, gold, bronze, and some strange identifying color. Several figures walking on the platform even bore their own blues without identifying icons in similar make as to Kalesi and Mevi. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but wonder what this strange place was, and was growing concerned about the eerie feeling surrounding the golden-shining splendor.

    Looking up to Kalesi, who was making her way across the platform at a slowed pace for Mevi¡¯s sake it seemed, Mevi asked through the clamor, ¡°Kalesi, who are the other figures that wear different colors? I don¡¯t recall them on the ship.¡±

    Kalesi seemed to hear the small voice despite the din and loud murmur, ¡°They are disembarking from their own vessels that visited the other parts of your colony. They serve a different master than Lorg Magi Falcier, so they bear their master¡¯s colors.¡±

    Perplexed, Mevi quickly questioned, ¡°What do you mean the rest of my colony? Our one home is all we have, and it was visited by only the one ship as far as I could tell. From my house¡¯s dwelling one could easily see each end of the colony¡¯s protective shield.¡±

    Kalesi seemed to realize something amusing, she almost chuckled, ¡°Mevi, I suppose you and your people wouldn¡¯t realize it due to your isolation. But there were other colonies on the moon you resided on. Several others in fact. I think twelve Magi were dispatched to accept tribute across your home. However, two of them went in the same ship, I believe.¡±

    Mevi was stunned for a moment, but quickly followed Kalesi¡¯s pace once again. Before she could question the revelation, Kalesi stopped. Ahead of where she stood was what seemed to be a line of people, each assembling with similar motifs as themselves. The two of them stood in a relatively short line, compared to what looked like one hundred or more in any other given line, and seemed to be waiting for something. Always keeping one hand grasping Kalesi¡¯s robes, Mevi ducked her head out of the formation of bodies and looked ahead. There were many people, and some children too, of mixed motifs but all held common their blue hoods. There might have been a coupe dozen figures idling in line, in front and behind, with a few more slowly making their way towards them. In the very front, there seemed to be strange devices guarded by a golden Sentinel. The contents of what went on at the front were hidden, as Mevi didn¡¯t feel safe enough to step out of line and instead kept a firm grip on her mentor¡¯s robes.

    Kalesi waited patiently, as the two slowly approached the Sentinel guarding the strange equipment that blocked their passage. Mevi was becoming worried, unsure of what was going to happen, or what she should do. Kalesi quickly picked up on Mevi, who seemed to be trying to absorb herself into the taller woman¡¯s back. Kalesi, held a hand on Mevi¡¯s shoulder and reassured her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The Sentinel investigate every new acolyte and their belongings. If anything they find is strange or potentially dangerous they simply destroy it. We are in no danger.¡±

    Mevi heard the words, but was not reassured. She held many things that were ¡®strange¡¯, her staff could be a weapon probably? What about her stuffed mouse, it was called hideous by her family in the few instances they saw it. Worst of all, her gem. Her golden glowing hope. It would plainly be seen as strange, and Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what was considered dangerous. Could it be blasphemous? Mevi knew so little about the Barges and their Magi, even less of their creed or values. Mevi wished she knew before, so she could have Kalesi check her items and get forewarning about what is or isn¡¯t allowed.

    Mevi was quickly becoming overwhelmed with worry and fright. She recalled her gem, its loud and obvious glow with only the slightest of real effort to concentrate. She wished beyond her abilities that she could make the Sentinel guardian ignore her and her things. That they would simply not notice the small pouch and her tiny amount of belongings. Her worry intensified as she realized her place in the line was next to be investigated. She watched in horror as the two acolytes in front of her had their bags turned inside out, and almost ripped apart, by the rough hands of their investigators. One finding what looked like a knife, a small thing, and throwing it in the device it guarded not to be seen again. Mevi was almost pushed from behind as those in front departed, cleared to pass, and those behind her were eager to enter their holy city.

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    Kalesi spoke briefly with the Sentinel, saying something like ¡®I only have one pupil, she carries a small bag¡¯ and gesturing to Mevi to reveal her belongings. Mevi hesitated, hearing the loud surroundings echo feverishly, and could only worry more about her few treasures. She slowly removed her small satchel that looked less like a carrying bag and more like a purse, compared to what some others apparently took with them. She hesitated for only a moment, staring dreadfully at her own items, and the Sentinel snatched them from her grasp. Investigating quickly, and placing the satchel on a nearby pedestal, the Sentinel eventually seemed satisfied. It turned to Kalesi, and spoke, a Sentinel spoke for the first time near Mevi, a deep and almost echoing voice emanated from the fully armored golden figure, ¡°There is nothing but a staff, blanket, and a stuffed toy. She may pass.¡±

    The satchel was handed back to Mevi, who was baffled, and was quickly ushered out of the area. Following close behind Kalesi, she suddenly processed the words the Sentinel spoke. Afraid of the worst, Mevi stopped walking entirely and checked her items. But, to her surprise, her collection was intact and was sitting silently next to her small pouch that contained her miniature hope. Mevi closed the bag, and adjusted it to her robe¡¯s back, and saw Kalesi waiting patiently. Kalesi said in an understanding tone, ¡°I suppose I could have warned you about this. But I am surprised you brought so little, just a staff and a stuffed toy? You must not have wanted to take much with you.¡± Then she continued to guide the girl, in her confusion, across the platform.

    At the end of the long walk, that was far and almost out of sight as it framed itself against the curving walls around them, was a large wall. Like the ceiling, it reached quite high, and its formation and style made it look like it was not even there from a distance. Giving the entire area a view that seemed much longer than it actually was. The reflecting light creating a strange sort of mirage. As they finally reached the end, that wasn¡¯t as far as once thought, the still-massive room¡¯s end curved into a hallway like a crevice. The ceiling is tall and long, but meets the stretching walls as they slowly curve and eventually steeple. The hallway looks to be too far long to see the ends, possibly curving or potentially running across the entire length of the behemoth vessel. Mevi is taken aback, and in the largeness of just the hallway, for a moment she forgets the present feeling of unease. Yet as she continues to journey and immerse herself deeper in the ship, the strangeness of the place and her own unease slowly fades. Her nerves tell her something is badly wrong, but she can¡¯t place what it is, and the feeling slowly begins to lessen. The brightness of the place helping, as dark and void seems far away in such pure brilliance.

    Leaving her unease aside, Mevi followed closely behind her mentor. If she ignored the strangeness of the place, only brilliance and curiosity remained. All the people, and some she might call creatures, in this new realm were strange and new. Each having strange and decorative bodies under their extravagant fashion. Most seemed content with golds, silvers, and whites, but there were some who broadcast their bodies with strange neons, lights, pearlescents, and any number of peculiar medallions or hanging jewelry. Indeed, jewels and their products seemed to adorn most individuals that deigned to wear anything beyond basic robes and a mask. Some strange and alien creatures sporting new and impressive ways to label and brand your loyalty to whatever powers they served.

    The travel across the never ending hallway wasn¡¯t long before Kalesi turned to Mevi just before an intersecting corner, almost excited or eager she paused Mevi just before view of beyond could be glanced. With a smile, and an expectant look, Kalesi wordlessly pushed Mevi ahead as she had them turn the corner into a more open space.

    Mevi almost fell over as she gasped and took in the extremity of the world she entered. The corner she took a slight turn upon seemed to portal her into an entirely new reality. Towering buildings, reaching high into the above, adorned with inscription, light, and glowing windows. Large cathedrals, floating in the skies above with glowing thrusters to keep them adrift in the empty expanse. An endless road that branched into likely hundreds of connecting highways and alternate routes, all lined with buildings of enormous size. All throughout the system of strange, sometimes interlocking, buildings and structure were many small ships darting above them like bugs flying to and fro. The reality of what size and scale the Barge was couldn¡¯t be perceived from the outside. Its faroff structure framed against the endless void and impossibly large stars, planets, and asteroids. But from within, and especially on the ground, the ceiling was endless. Its stretch didn¡¯t seem to cease for any length, in actuality clouds could be seen through the glimpses between the towering skyscrapers of golden pillar and marble walls. While not all buildings were made of the same material, the majority shone and emanated bright power, if not from illegible signs instead from many thousands of windows. Hundreds of cultures seemed to smash and attack themselves, into an amalgamation of art and conception. Even from her small vantage, Mevi could see the structures changing and morphing the farther they get from each other and becoming more and more different, diverse, and entirely alien.

    Shocked and in awe of the sight, the sheer intimidating presence that this ¡®city¡¯ produced in her, Mevi partially fell to the floor. She quickly became dizzy attempting to follow the highest of buildings as they passed above the strange cloud layer, and her neck could not stretch far enough to trace its advance into the highest unknowns. It only increased her growing headache to see so many more structures that loomed far past the clouds and breached whatever was above that length. Mevi sat and covered her eyes, finally removing her hand from Kalesi and placing it against the smooth ground in an attempt to stabilize herself.

    Kalesi seemed to enjoy her confusion, shock, and bewildered state for a moment, but as she realized Mevi¡¯s state she abandoned her mirth. Kalesi quickly helped Mevi calm herself with a gentle hand stroking her back soothingly. Mevi eventually regained herself to a degree, but couldn¡¯t open her eyes and if she felt overwhelmed by the sound in the incomparable quiet of the previous docking platform, she was entirely consumed by the massive wall of noise this new world produced. The two slowly, and blindly for Mevi, made their way, and at some point realized they might have entered into a vehicle of some kind. Her vertigo increasing as this vehicle took off in dazzling speed. Refusing to open her eyes again, until the two stepped out into a comparably quiet place.

    With still shut eyes, and weary steps, Mevi was guided into a dim place, where the noise was all but silent. Muffled by what Mevi thought were closing doors behind her. She was eventually led to something soft, and before she could regain her senses her body gave up and released itself into sleep. The confusion, surprise, and terror of this new entity ¡®The Barge¡¯ overwhelming her senses time and time again. She slipped into rest, and into the dark and quiet of her own mind.

 Chapter 9: To Work

    Mevi, for the first time in a while, has a peaceful sleep. Her dreams of nothing important. No consuming darkness and no recurring nightmare. A simple, and restful, sleep. She slowly rouses awake, and finds herself in a strange place. As she sits up, after laying on a maroon colored couch, Mevi realizes her assumption of being in another strange and unknown place wasn¡¯t entirely correct.

    The room Mevi resided in was dimly lit, and the only real light was seeping in from a large window wall connected to a balcony that was on the other side of where she rested. The couch sat at the bottom of a circular pit in the main room, accompanied by other comfortable looking seats and strange cloth balls, a small floor table sat low to the ground in the center of the collection of seats. The pit was only a meter or so below the rest of the domicile¡¯s floor, and had long steps leading up and down it on all sides. The room was quite spacious, and outside of a few standing poles that looked like lamps of some kind, the only other features were the hanging curtains that were pulled open revealing the windowed balcony. Two side rooms, or at least hallways, were on either side of the room leading to other parts of this strange living space.

    Mevi looked around herself and could not spot any people near, outside of the distant darting flying vehicles out the window and past the balcony. Not even Kalesi seemed to be present. Mevi rose from her rest, and additionally realized her satchel holding her belongings was not tied to her robes as they had been before. In a silent panic, Mevi made her way up the stairs from the lounge area, standing in the middle of the room. The two hallways were her best bet. Left or right¡­ To the left she could see a dark walk, with what looked like doors lined along the walls hinting at further rooms. To the right she could see a faint light, as the hallway led straight and a closed door stood on the far end, one door closest to Mevi stood open and released a glowing light into the hallway. Mevi made her decision to investigate the only source of activity.

    Mevi crept towards the glowing light, and crossed the threshold of the large room into the hallway. Slowly poking her head around the corner, Mevi spotted movement. On the other side of the open door was a strangely clean and white workshop of sorts. A central island table in the middle of the short space, and devices of strange design lined the left wall. On the right were short pits with a tubed nozzle jutting out and curving to point at the below pit. The movement Mevi sensed wasn¡¯t inside. But just then a small clang was heard behind the central island, out of Mevi¡¯s sight something was stirring. Without any other real choice, she crept into the white experimentation workshop, the strange things that happened in this peculiar place Mevi could only guess at. Mevi carefully rounded the island, and saw the source of the noise.

    On the floor, dressed in what looked like a handful of rags, was the large form of the fox-haired Kalesi. She dug through what looked like a cabinet positioned inside of the island in the middle of the room, and she made a ruckus as she did so. As Kalesi finally seemed to find what she was looking for, she stood up to her full height.

    Kalesi was wearing what Mevi could only describe as lounge clothes, a baggy white long-sleeved top, with white pants that dragged under her feet to match. Kalesi stood, holding what looked like a canister of some kind. Kalesi didn¡¯t skip a beat after noticing Mevi, ¡°Oh! You are awake! I wasn¡¯t sure how tired you were, I realized after the fact that the scene might be a bit overwhelming. I was a bit too eager to show you the spectacle of our great city. How are you feeling?¡±

    Mevi was still processing the last few events she could remember, and panicking about her belongings missing, ¡°I am¡­ I am fine. Have you seen my bag? I woke up without it, also, where are we?¡±

    Kalesi set the item she excavated from the cabinet on the island, ¡°We are in my Magi¡¯s Blessed mentor¡¯s suite! I had hoped for more pupils so when I chose it I picked one that might be a bit too large for us two. But we will make due, nothing wrong with extra space.¡±

    In realization and some curiosity, Mevi followed as Kalesi exited the strange room, ¡°This massive place is for just us two? This is much larger than even my grandfather¡¯s personal domicile inside our house¡¯s mansion.¡±

    A grin spread across Kalesi¡¯s face at the indirect praise, ¡°Of course. I also relocated your belongings to your room. Once you get acquainted and cleaned up we will head out to our first job. No rest for us quite yet!¡±

    Mevi was baffled by the idea of a personal room and immediately thought of her small area in the mansion. She followed Kalesi across the lounge and into the opposite hallway. Kalesi pointed out her own room, the first door on the left. Inside was a vast expanse compared to Mevi¡¯s experience of what a ¡°room¡± meant. It was easily seven or eight times larger than Mevi¡¯s old living space. There were gold icons with various gems encrusted into them hung proudly against the walls. The center held a large bed that could easily hold four people, on either side of the walls were tall wardrobes. At the end of the bed lay a long chest of sorts. All the furniture seemed to be made out of a white plastoid material. Despite the lack of other items in the room, it was impressive regardless. Mevi was overwhelmed by curiosity while she investigated the room, ¡°Kalesi? What are the icons on the walls?¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t hide her own pride, ¡°Those are accommodations! As a Socialite, we work for many different Magi. To increase our rank, prestige, and benefits we may be given, we must be given accommodations from Magi we serve or their representatives. I have collected nine in total, and display them with pride.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t quite understand, but was still extremely impressed that Kalesi had somehow pleased even one Magi as they seemed impossible to understand let alone please or make happy. The two didn¡¯t idle long in the room, but Mevi cast a few more glances at the strange icons hanging from the walls. The pair went to the next door in the hallway, on the right side. Opening the door and helping Mevi inside, the two investigated this new place. The room was about half as large as Kalesi¡¯s, but by comparison to what Mevi¡¯s entire living space was before, it was still leagues over in quality. The bed was about half Kalesi¡¯s size too, but still extremely large and more than enough to fit Mevi¡¯s small body. A single wardrobe stood against the left wall, and a small chest sat next to that. But best of all, Mevi saw her small satchel, staff, and her collection of items laying on the bed. Her pouch and mouse probably still in the bag, but her blanket and staff unattached and neatly placed on the soft bed¡¯s sheet.

    Mevi immediately moved, clutching the blanket and satchel as if it were a long lost friend. But then realized a question, why was her things in this wonderfully luxurious room? Mevi looked up to Kalesi as if to ask a question but Kalesi was prepared to speak before Mevi could let loose any words, ¡°It is yours Mevi. You can sleep here now, when we don¡¯t work long distance at least.¡± Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how to feel. She felt happy, confused, worried, and scared all at once. A place to herself? A home she can live in? Yet both in the strange and terrifying realm of the creatures called ¡®Magi¡¯. She processed the gift as best she could, and decided to forgo any notion of this being a bad or scary thing. She was given a home! An entire room to herself, and her treasures were safe within. She had a wonderful new friend who had protected, comforted, and been there for her more times in the last day or so than any person Mevi had known ever before. Without words mevi smiled as best she could muster under the rush of emotions at Kalesi, who seemed to be embarrassed over the small affection. Kalesi turned to leave the room and Mevi started to get up, but Kalesi spoke before the small girl could escape, ¡°You may rest for an hour or so. Get comfortable in your room, clean up if you would prefer. I can show you how to use the bathing room and introduce you to its various functions. But relax a bit, you have been through a lot and I don¡¯t think I helped with our introduction to the city! I¡¯ll come get you later when we need to leave, your current clothes should suit us fine in case you are worried.¡±

    The woman left and carefully closed the door behind them. The dimness of the area comforting after the memory of the bright outside. Mevi did as she was ordered. She clutched her blanket and other treasures and laid in her bed. The concept of calling it ¡®her¡¯ bed making Mevi giggle with excitement. She had an entire hour to herself? Mevi was almost eager to get to work, she felt she wanted to thank or repay whoever gave her such glorious gifts and fortune. Even if those that allowed this haven were the Magi, Mevi was eager to become useful as fast as possible.

    Stolen story; please report.

    <hr>

    Mevi, with help from Kalesi, introduced herself to the bathroom and cleaned herself and clothes. Wanting to become as ready as possible for their departure. The hour that was given to her was mostly spent in anticipation and excitement to see what strange duties Kalesi and she would soon perform. When the call came to get ready to leave, Mevi found herself jumping out of ¡®her¡¯ bed, and left everything behind but her robes and eager attitude.

    Kalesi led Mevi to the other hallway, past the strange room that Kalesi called ¡®a kitchen¡¯ and to the door at the end of the walk. Introducing the other doors as the bathroom, whom Mevi had become acquainted with already, a synthesizer room for food, clothes, items, and most other things, and the last room before the end being what Kalesi only said was a ¡®Personal Charger¡¯ station. Regardless of the utility rooms, the door at the end of the hallway was the strangest. Instead of being, well a door, it had a panel outside that had various buttons to input commands. Kalesi quickly typed away on the device, and soon the door opened by sliding upward into the ceiling. Revealing a small dark interior housing one light that shone above their head, the two entered. As they walked in, Kalesi affixed her blue hood and attached the silver mask to cover her face, but Mevi was still without her own hood she was given before.

    Mevi disregarded her own fashion and investigated the strange square room. The small room could comfortably fit Kalesi and Mevi, but with any additional people it might have become more cumbersome. Another panel was housed in the room, which glowed slightly to illuminate the device once the doors shut. Kalesi interacted with the thing for a few moments and then Mevi felt her world shifting and suddenly jerking downward. Falling to the floor and grabbing at the tile, Mevi assumed they were in danger, and looked up to Kalesi in a panic. Kalesi only laughed, but tried to hide it as a cough, ¡°This device allows us to traverse the building we are housed in. We took it when you fainted but I don¡¯t think you noticed. It can be a little jarring.¡±

    Mevi spent the ride sitting on the ground, if she tried to stand her legs would fall out from under her as the room shifted directions. The ride was thankfully brief, and the doors opened again as Mevi was thinking she might not be able to stomach more of the jostling. As the two escaped the strange device, they were back onto the ground again. The bustling walkways packed with many individuals of strange concepts. Not all, Mevi noticed, wore robes or fanciful garb to mark their loyalty. Many seemed to be wearing almost what she would consider ¡®normal¡¯ clothes. While even the lowest of people here seemed to sport extravagant goods and fashion, compared to her own people.

    Mevi was more prepared for the overwhelming sound and sight from the ground, having already experienced it once. She prevented herself from looking up too high, and kept herself grounded and her stare squarely on the ground beneath her feet. As she investigated the floor, it seemed like it was almost natural. While it was obviously carved into a sort of cobbled walkway, it seemed like it was grown or naturally formed. The road was divided into two halves, a small rocky wall about to Mevi¡¯s knees keeping the two paths separate. They seemed to be going in different directions, and the foot traffic followed their path diligently.

    Kalesi navigated the two into the crowd and ensured Mevi walked next to her at all times. They traveled quickly through the crowds, many individuals actually avoiding and making way for them. It was only until Mevi thought Kalesi might be of high rank, or Socialites get special privileges, did she decipher why the two seemed to receive special treatment. Regardless, many people seemed to avoid them, and eyed Kalesi with mixtures of caution, respect, and even hostility. Mevi had a hard time understanding how simply wearing a hood and mask could possibly elicit such a variety of opinions, and hoped she could learn all she could under Kalesi.

    The two seemed to walk quite a while, but the farther they traveled the less foot traffic there was. Mevi even noticed some of the buildings began becoming smaller and more artistically designed, still massive beyond her own colony¡¯s comparison but still much smaller than the cloud-breaching towers. Some of the strange buildings held more space for their foundations, and used every inch to create vast pieces of wonder that still somehow functioned as structures and buildings. Curving pieces, long almost gravity-defying towers, inverted domes, towers with levitating attachments. There were too many styles of mind-boggling designs for Mevi to even begin to understand each one. When the buildings were at their strangest, the two turned onto a new road and began their trek slightly uphill. Mevi marveled at the sight at the end of the road they traveled. A massive cathedral of gold and marble, towering buttresses supporting a long facade that¡¯s length breached the clouds above. With only the front visible, the imagination of the rest of the building ran wild. The stairs leading up to the massive building seemed to be so wide that not all could be seen, likely many roads led to this destination. The beauty was insurmountable, it gave off the same orange glow the Barge emanated from its thousands of windows, but instead of glowing from obvious sources the gleam seemed to extract from the ambient light of the city. The building was made with spiked towers, hundreds of long windows, and many massive elaborate entrances.

    Kalesi seemed to be leading her to this monstrous building and its intimidating exterior. Kalesi seemed deep in thought for the last several minutes, milling something over in her mind. Mevi diligently followed without any words or complaint. As they approached the bottom of the many stairs leading upwards to the cathedral, Kalesi spoke as if finally reaching her conclusion, ¡°Mevi, I will be leaving you here for the day. I¡¯ll introduce you to who will ensure you go to the right lectures and not get lost in the halls.¡±

    Mevi was confused, she thought they were going to work together, ¡°Will I not go with you today?¡±

    ¡°As per your introduction, after a day of rest, new initiates, acolytes, and tributes will be sent here. This is the Education Forum. They will help elaborate your confusions, concerns, and what duties you are expected to perform.¡±

    Mevi was genuinely curious, but still disappointed to be potentially separated so soon, ¡°So is it a type of school?¡±

    Kalesi seemed to agree with that idea, nodding before explaining, ¡°In a way, yes. You will only come here for the first few days. You will only be here the first day if you are diligent, and some might spend a week or more before they are fit for any duties. As a Socialite you are expected to undergo a more extreme education than most new acolytes.¡±

    Kalesi spoke as if she was explaining everything, but her words only drew new questions. Mevi asked, ¡°You speak of initiates, tributes, and call me an acolyte. What does any of that mean?¡±

    Kalesi grinned as if waiting for a question like that, ¡°Well you may be in luck. This place is where you will learn all you need to know about our society. In fact, I see the fool that will manage you today.¡±

    The two crested the tall stairs, and Kalesi removed her mask and waved to some figure idling near the entrance.The tall figure wore all black robes with a gold tabard and silver letterings, the markings of Lord Magi Falcier. Around the figure was a collection of shorter robed individuals, all without hoods or masks and revealing white-silvery hair of Baes.

    The group waited for Mevi and Kalesi, and Mevi regrettably realized who one among the acolytes was. Marcus, the two young boys, and stern-faced girl waited outside the wide entrance to the Forum. As they approached the tallest figure, a well built and now even holding what seemed to be a large bladed weapon at their hip, spoke down to his pupils and pointed in the pair¡¯s direction. Faces that seemed to hold eagerness quickly reverted to disappointment, the group of children and Marcus not taking kindly to noticing Mevi. Mevi thought that Marcus must have spoken poorly of her to his fellow pupils.

    Kalesi and the messy-haired man clasped hands in a firm greeting. Both smiled, but the man¡¯s grin was wide and thoroughly plastered onto his face regardless of mood. Kalesi quickly introduced Mevi to the man, ¡°Naazir, this is my pupil I contacted you about. Mevi, this is Naazir and his group will help introduce you around the area. Naz and I have business that requires both our attention, so the five of you will help each other in the Forum.¡±

    The ever-happy and messy-haired Naazir echoed Kalesi¡¯s sentiment, ¡°Indeed! Kids, Marcus, you¡¯ll be helping Mevi around. I showed you all the grounds already, so try to guide her if she needs it!¡±

    As Naazir finished his statement some of the acolytes seemed to try and contest his request, but the large hands of their mentor tussling Marcus¡¯s and the girl¡¯s hair put down any rebelion. The two Neophytes gave their goodbyes, and walked off as they chatted. Kalesi gave a secret glance back to Mevi before the two walked down the steps leaving the children in silence.

    The four black-robed acolytes made a huddle. They actually locked arms together and whispered to each other as if planning out a strategy. Mevi chuckled as she saw the large man¡¯s influence already eroding the haughty attitude of the Baes nobility. The group turned, and Marcus approached as their representative. The boy, carefully illuminated by the Forum¡¯s radiance, looked the peak of Baes nobility. Dark gray hair, piercing yellow-green eyes, and a proud countenance. Marcus worked the words around in his head before deliberating with the patient Mevi, ¡°Our master, Lord Naazir, has tasked us with allowing you to accompany us. While we have our own duties and studies within the Education Forum, we will permit you to follow and learn from us. We have no intentions of being friendly, we are strictly following our Master¡¯s orders.¡±

    The group turned and began their way up the stairs into the open gates of the Forum. Mevi followed after, less than impressed by their practiced attitude that held just enough respect to almost hide the contempt they obviously felt. Mevi didn¡¯t know what to expect within the grand building, but doubted she would enjoy much of it in the presence of her fellow acolytes.

 Chapter 10: Education, Part 1

    Mevi followed the four black-robed acolytes. The massive gilded gates swung eternally open, their height reaching well over twenty meters. Intricate designs of hundreds of masked faces emblazoned on both sides of the gate¡¯s ajar doors. Likely in the likeness of the Magi, each mask shone with a unique light and almost looked like a living being could be housed under. The decoration seemed significant in a way Mevi couldn¡¯t place, but her attention was drawn forward to the group of Naazir¡¯s pupils. They didn¡¯t bother to wait as Mevi soaked in the sight of the cathedral. The four of them walked through the wide entryway and began their way through the vast interior.

    The interior was no less extraordinary than the facade¡¯s glow. The halls spread like a cross, with their ceilings held hundreds of meters high in the entryway alone. Directly in front, a wide set of stairs climbed further into the great structure, while the left and right skirted the perimeter and led to additionally vast expanses beyond Mevi¡¯s sight. Naazir¡¯s pupils seemed to know exactly where they were going. As Mevi followed from a distance behind them, she was forced to finally study them. Each seemed strangely well built for their age, Marcus being the most impressive of the four. The girl was about the same height as Marcus, who both were only a head taller than Mevi at best. The stoic girl was obviously well toned, similar to Kalesi, and their robes seemed slightly too small for her and their forearms stretched past the sleeves to reveal their intimidating definition. The girl¡¯s hair was a striking platinum blonde that shone like glittering silver and gold when light reflected from the illumination above. The other two boys, who were about Mevi¡¯s height, were the most normal of the four. They both held strikingly defined faces, and almost resembled each other like brothers, but one was dark gray haired while the other held almost an icy sheen. The group of them made for an intimidating posse, their noble poise holding them additionally higher than Mevi. They were likely the pride and joy of their houses on Baes, but Mevi wondered how they would be treated here. Mevi also wondered how she would be treated here.

    The group walked silently through a large arch that led down the left of the main gate. Mevi was now noticing, as she could see more clearly on closer inspection, gargoyles. Strange animalistic statues depicting angry watchmen who glared at trespassers below. Some of the more extravagant and eldest of structures on the Baes colony held recovered, or otherwise excavated, treasures in old gargoyles. Ancient icons of monsters and creatures long past and forgotten that could strike fear in the hearts of those that might approach a noble house¡¯s estate. The stone, metal, and marble watchmen seemed to be scattered about sparingly along the walls. The interior buttresses housed several, but there didn¡¯t seem to be any rhythm to their placement, but instead placed in grotesque poses in seemingly random elevations and positions. Mevi tore herself away from the high walls and ceiling, the statue¡¯s eyes almost seemed to follow her and she didn¡¯t want to risk losing herself in the architecture.

    The five of them walked in silence for a while, their journey showing no sign of ending. Mevi eventually decided she was tired of being ignored and wanted to strike conversation, ¡°Marcus? May you introduce me to your fellow acolytes?¡±

    Marcus turned and looked scornfully towards Mevi, like he was staring at an animal that won¡¯t stop following him, ¡°Fine. But if I do, you will refrain from addressing us for the remainder of our Education.¡±

    Mevi suddenly remembered why she decided to ignore him on the Magi¡¯s ship, his haughty and imperial attitude held himself higher than her, ¡°I think that is hardly fair. Didn¡¯t Naazir say we were to work together?¡±

    The group of them seemed almost offended at the mention of their mentor, Marcus shot back with venom in his voice, ¡°You will address him as ¡®Lord¡¯ or ¡®Master¡¯. Do not presume to use his name so loosely.¡±

    Mevi was confused now, her own mentor was very cordial with her and Naazir didn¡¯t seem so strict himself, ¡°Why? I call my mentor by her name, she seems to prefer it. Kalesi even called him by a nickname. I never understood it to be that important?¡±

    Marcus and his posse stopped their walk to fully face Mevi, he seemed almost concerned and bewildered by her words, ¡°Do you know nothing Mevare? Would you dare to call those above us by anything but their Magi-given titles? How badly do you wish to offend those around you?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how to respond, trying to think of a clever retort was difficult. Mevi even thought he had a point, was her way of addressing Kalesi wrong? She called Mevi sister, and seemed so eager to become comfortable with her. Seeing her confliction seemed to satisfy Marcus to a degree, and their group began walking again. Mevi quickly caught up and was now conflicted with herself. She was never taught proper etiquette, how to hold herself like a noble lady, or even what is or isn¡¯t allowed. Mevi realized suddenly, had her actions and lack of knowledge led to her mistreatment by the Magi? Could she have offended him in some way due to the way she spoke and presented herself? The lack of help from her own family struck her again, the lack of knowledge or useful skills affecting her new life. Would she never be rid of their malicious influence?

    Marcus and his fellow acolytes paused, a precession was passing by them through a rounding hall. The intersecting hall leading further into the cathedral, and being walked by some hundred or so robed and masked individuals. The large herd of figures wore uniform robes, pure white, with no blemish or hint of impurity, silver lining the hem. Their masks were made of a pure marble, with swirling blues in unique and strange conglomerations. Each individual seemed to wear an entirely unique mask, the blue markings swirling in different and new ways, contrary to what Mevi had observed of other loyalty masks. Mevi noticed, while she marveled at the procession of individuals, all others in the hall bowed deeply and knelt to one knee. Mevi picked up on the que much too late, but dropped as fast as she noticed the mistake, she still peaked and watched the movement of bodies deeper into the cathedral. Eventually they were out of sight, only the echoing of their rhythmic walking sounded in the tall halls around them.

    Eventually Mevi¡¯s group, and others in the cathedral, rose and resumed their tasks and travels. Marcus seemed to smirk, reveling in Mevi¡¯s mistake. Scoffing as he brushed his robes and continuing down the hall. Mevi was enjoying the presence of this boy less and less.

    The group of them continued in silence for a while. Mevi wondered if their education was ¡®How to walk long distances¡¯ or if Marcus was just hoping to lose Mevi in the vast maze. From out of the silence, the stoic girl spoke up in a surprisingly soft and ladylike voice, ¡°I am Nessia, House Clares. If my house means anything anymore.¡±

    Mevi, excited to speak to someone other than the bad-mannered boy Marcus, turned the entirety of her attention to Nessia, ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you, and finally be introduced. May I ask why you and your group call Naazir ¡®Master¡¯ and ¡®Lord¡¯?¡±

    The boy with icy hair spoke up now, ¡°Do you truly not know? Did your house not teach you etiquette for when dealing with our Lords? I am Maruval, House Khast, by the way.¡±

    Mevi almost felt ashamed to admit the disability that was her family, ¡°No. I wasn¡¯t taught or instructed in any way really. I can barely read basic words.¡±

    The dark-gray haired boy introduced himself then, ¡°I am Jenu, House Jarl. If you don¡¯t understand how to hold yourself, you might as well dig a grave. Any tales I have heard are of a Magi¡¯s wrath being unparalleled. To show any disrespect, even indirectly or by accident, would likely be a death sentence.¡±

    Mevi decided to keep her interaction with their Lord Magi to herself for now, but Nessia spoke up again, ¡°We can help you I think. Our Master instructed us to help you if we can. You don¡¯t seem a threat, less than a nuisance even.¡±

    Mevi laughed, not sure if she was being complimented or insulted, ¡°A threat? Why would I be a threat?¡±

    The group looked at each other a little confused, and Marcus spoke then to break his own solitary silence, ¡°You are a Socialite. Or at least will be. We know at least that much, our Master and the other Neophytes gave us brief instruction before we were docked. The Socialites steal favor and attention away from our Great Lord Magi, and threaten our own advancement in society if they perform too well. Depending on how reliable, one Socialite could apparently be worth any number of tributes or favors to a Magi wishing to expand their reach.¡±

    The other acolytes agreed and nodded in confirmation of Marcus¡¯s words. Mevi hadn¡¯t thought of it that way, as she barely even knew what a Socialite was. She and Kalesi a threat to other Neophytes and their pupils? Mevi hardly thought that a fair label, they could only do as they were asked. She didn¡¯t choose to be a Socialite, and doubted Kalesi did either. But now Mevi wondered what their lives would be like under just one lord, and recalled her and Kalesi¡¯s lavish home. She wondered where or how the others, under Magi Falcier, lived. If the benefits of being wanted or having unique skills were really that worthwhile? Mevi at least was sure, she would likely never deprive others of opportunity as her own skills revolved solely around cleaning, maintenance, some mechanical knowhow, and being quiet. Those skills learned from being self-sufficient and needing to repair and understand the scarce equipment she was permitted to interact with.

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    As Mevi processed this information, the group entered upon a large open expanse. A massive auditorium, or more like a stadium, stretched beneath them. Deepening below with a central platform for some object of importance to sit when required. The five acolytes filed down the steps and found stone flat seats carved into the ground, no chairs or padding but raw flat stone like an individually massive step. Close to the front the five sat together, less apart than they had walked after the others determined Mevi no longer a threat. Many other children, acolytes, and people of varying colored robes filed in. By a few minutes the area was filled with at least a few hundred individuals, all seeming to be confused or in some way new to the Barge. Likely they were all sacrifices, but seeing so many made Mevi¡¯s thoughts wander. There were only eighteen given to Lord Magi Falcier, how many other colonies on their moon could there have possibly been? For the first time, the other four seemed to be curious and confused as well while they probably thought the same thing as Mevi.

    Before Mevi¡¯s thoughts could run too far, the center stage began emitting a slowly growing light. Pure and white, the stage was aglow with silvery splendor. At the edges of the stadium a vague mist of light blue rolled in, filling the edges and covering the doors. The grand insurance that all would focus on whatever appeared in the center Mevi thought. Eventually the center stage hallowed in a circular motion, opening and revealing a pit. Soon a platform rose out of the pit, and completed the stage again. Standing in the middle was an unmasked individual, wearing all white with silvery hemming, standing proud and basking in the amount of souls watching them. Light murmurs in the crowd sprung up as the figure stood, the individual examining the collection of people looking down on them.

    The figure opened their arms wide, welcoming the crowd around them, and spoke loudly and clearly with their voice booming around the room regardless of distance, ¡°Welcome, children of the moon! I welcome you in the stead of our Lord of Knowledge, Lord Counselor Maphet!¡± The murmuring of the crowd ceased, and the man bowed deeply. A confused, yet enthusiastic, applause echoed alongside the individual¡¯s still ringing voice. Their voice was enhanced with such authority and boom that it was difficult to determine their gender, and the figure was too far away to make out any significant features. The unnamed enigma continued their speech as the applause died down, ¡°I, in representation of my lord, am here today to assist you in understanding your role in our society. In addition, I will be your director of education. In essence, we here will teach you all you must know before assimilating into our Holy Barge¡¯s ecosystem. I will explain where each of you will go based on your assigned roles, these roles should have been explained prior to your coming here. There will be terminals outside charged for public use, with them you may research yourself, or your mentor, to understand where you should go.¡± The crowd seemed to absorb the figure¡¯s enthusiasm, and were eager to hear the words that promised to explain away the many questions all must be holding.

    The figure began to explain, while speaking they moved their place very little but spoke with many gestures and large hand movements, ¡°You have been summoned for a noble duty, to serve your given masters, our Lords Magi. Our society is administered by the wisest, most noble, and powerful of the Magi. My own lord is among those on the counsel, with my lord there are nine other Magi who sit on the counsel. While none of you are lucky enough to be under their majesty, your own great lords are the arms, legs, and eyes of the counsel. Only one figure is above all others, the Magi who knows no servants, none owe fealty towards, and is our protector and caretaker of the heart of our Holy Barge. The Grand Lord Magi, Mammon the Caretaker. With our Grand Lord Magi at the top, their voice advocates the needs and requirements of our home, while the counsel governs our fair City of Light. They shepherd us into the void, as we spread our wealth to all places willing to receive us. We exist to enhance and alleviate our Lords Magi, while they need no help from us we provide it in any way to remove some of their great burdens. For without our lords, we would be lost and dying. We work and strive to help our lords, and for our efforts they reward us. Our titles represent our contributions to our lords. At the top, and being the direct assistants or representatives of our Lord Magi, are the Magi-Apprentice. I myself am a Magi-Apprentice, it is our job to convey the will and desire of our lord. Below that are the Neophytes, the aspirants of great worth and dedication. Your own mentors and masters would be newly achieved aspirants reaching the rank of Neophyte, and your success will give them success and the potential to become Magi-Apprentice! Yet before one may become a regal Neophyte, they are first a Steward. The Stewards maintain, manage, and help with the functions of their lord¡¯s property. They are often in charge of running the functions worked by the newest of followers. Finally, we have all of you! The acolytes, initiates, and tributaries. Each of you have your own roles to play. Whether you are an acolyte given in supplication, an initiate freely submitting to our lords, or a tributary who was levied into our service. Each of you have your roles to play and will become crucial to our society! I welcome you!¡± The figure had roused the crowd¡¯s emotions to hang on each word, and an applause erupted as they took a deep bow in reverence directed at the crowd. Even Mevi strangely found herself swept away in the emotion, while she could prevent herself from getting carried away her hair stood on end in a strangely excited state. The air seemed thick with excitement and anticipation, each person losing themselves in the words of their announcer. While watching the performance, Mevi attempted to tear her eyes from the figure and look to her neighbors but her own body seemed to fight her desires. The strange memory of the selection flooded back, the creeping sensation of her nerves and will being overturned by some foreign influence. While the influence wasn¡¯t as strong, and a few deep breaths quickly regulated her, the realization made Mevi all the more cautious.

    Mevi turned to her neighbors, Marcus, Nessia, Maruval, and Jenu seemed entirely caught up in the performance. Their eyes slightly glazed over and pupils dilated more than they had any right to be in the extremely bright stadium. Mevi sensed the similar overriding presence she felt those few times before in the presence of the Magi Falcier. Remembering its wrath and rage at her disobedience, Mevi quickly corrected herself. While not allowing the influence to overtake her, she diligently listened to the figure speak and applauded when the rest of the crowd seemed to be unconsciously ordered to do so.

    The figure began to finalize their speech, having spent the time during Mevi¡¯s inner turmoil rousing the crowd with fanciful proclamations of the Magi¡¯s greatness. The crowd¡¯s roar died down, and the figure was able to broadcast their voice across the room again, ¡°The pleasure I feel among such dedicated individuals brings me to tears. I hope for all of your success in whatever positions you are assigned. Of those, there are five realms where your studies and mentors will bring you. Of our most honored and treasured position, the Custodians. Our Custodians maintain, manage, and protect our Barge¡¯s lifeblood, mana, and help in its production. To guard our custodians, maintain peace, and potentially join the ranks of the Sentinel, are our Legionaries. Those of you who join the legion will be our fervent defenders and protect the weak from forces beyond our society that seek to corrupt and destroy. The honor of building what is broken, repairing what might be sundered, and expanding our forever growing city, are our Aedifexi. The order of Aedifex construct our city, maintain our arsenal, and ensure our way of life continues with the functioning of our necessities. To ensure all our people¡¯s needs are met, and our orders be given, our Socialites work to continue the cooperation between our Lords Magi¡¯s followers and other populations in our own city and beyond our Holy Barge. Without their diligent diplomacy, and expansive skillset, our Legions would not know where to patrol, our Aedifex would know not what to build, and our Custodians could not find faults to fix. Finally, to the rare few of you there may be, some of you may join the order of Magicae. A select order of individuals who receive the honor of working directly with our Lords Magi. These mysterious figures help control the flow of mana and may work miracles on behalf of our great lords. Their ranks are made of the best of all the followers our lords may offer, and truly showcase the best our efforts might achieve¡­¡± The figure seems to sigh, and the room seems to dim for their mood. The figure gathers themselves once again, and looks out to the entire crowd, ¡°It has been a great pleasure to help welcome you into our fold. May you grow and prosper! I am eager to hear of your exploits wherever their tale may be told!¡± As the figure¡¯s speech drew to a close, the platform they stood on slowly began to descend. The crowd throughout the stadium applauded and rose to their feet, cheers were sounded from the most feverish of supplicants. While the figure¡¯s form descended and disappeared into the platform, and as it closed after them, the din and excitement from the stadium seems to die down. Mevi¡¯s group returns to some of their senses, and is able to free look about themselves again, but seem none the wiser to the influence that looked to overtake their own will.

    With the event concluded the group filed out of their seats and began making their way outside, the fog having cleared fully from the edges of the area. Mevi still not entirely sure what to think of the event, and past events, but following Marcus¡¯s group regardless. To the figure¡¯s own words, Mevi would need to find a terminal and figure out where she must journey to next. From the sounds of it, Marcus and his group were likely training to become Legionaries and had different studies than her own. The group exited the room, and all but Marcus pointed out an empty terminal for Mevi to investigate. Nessia spoke before Mevi could depart, ¡°Mevare, Lord Naazir instructed us to help you as needed. While we must split from here, our own studies should end in only a few hours. If it is easier to navigate together, might we meet here once we are both finished? I will ensure Marcus waits for you if we arrive before you.¡±

    Mevi is slowly growing to enjoy the company of the other acolytes, outside of Marcus, and gives Nessia a genuine smile, ¡°Of course! I will endeavor to make my way back here after my own studies conclude. By the way, you may call me Mevi if you¡¯d like. Few people call me Mevare without disdain.¡±

    The stoic girl, still stern and mostly quiet, gives Mevi a nod. The group parts ways with Mevi, and they separate until their studies finish.

 Chapter 10: Education, Part 2

    Mevi makes her way to the terminal nearby. A capsule of sorts that is reminiscent of the devices Mevi and the other children were kept in. While most of the audience seemed to know where they should go, a few were interacting with the various terminals. Mevi tried to copy how they used the strange device, and approached the front that had a piece carved out for a flat surface. Mevi saw the others tap on the flat portion of the person-sized cylindrical device, and hoped doing the same would produce some effect. As she tentatively tapped the surface, the flat area lit up with a blue screen. Symbols, words, and icons Mevi couldn''t read or understand filled the strange screen.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what to do, she honestly didn¡¯t think she could have even managed to turn it on. She idled there, hesitant to touch any of the buttons for fear of breaking something. So few of the words Mevi could read, she could understand some of the letters but not how their words sounded and even less what the words actually meant. As she continued to idle in front of the device, not certain of what to do, a robotic voice pierced her internal dilemma, ¡°Please use the provided panel, or voice commands, to insert your query.¡± Mevi looked around herself, surprised someone was talking to her, but no one seemed to be looking in her direction. In fact most of the audience had already filed out, and only a few individuals remained using the terminals or waiting for their companions. Mevi could have imagined the voice she thought, since she had been through a lot in the last¡­ Day? Mevi was suddenly drawn into a new thought and realized she wasn¡¯t sure how much time had actually passed. It couldn''t have been more than one or two days, depending on how long she was kept asleep in the capsule device. Suddenly, as Mevi¡¯s thoughts wandered away from her, her attention was drawn back to the present, ¡°Please use the provided panel, or voice commands, to insert your query.¡± The robotic voice rang out again, but this time Mevi thought it was coming from the terminal itself.

    Mevi curiously investigated the strange device. Looking around the sides for some source of the voice. The device itself could have made the voice, it wouldn''t be the first odd occurrence, and not the strangest of things, after being abducted by the Barge. Mevi worked up her courage and spoke to the device awkwardly, ¡°Excuse me? I need to know where to go for my studies.¡±

    The panel seemed to be working on something now, processing what Mevi had said before it responded, ¡°Please state name, position, and rank.¡±

    Mevi was surprised by the progress she had suddenly made, eager to encourage this device to help her she replied, ¡°Oh! I am Mevare Bensari. My position is Socialite I believe. My rank is Acolyte, I think.¡±

    The device¡¯s panel seemed to process the information again, changing the symbols and icons on the glowing screen quickly as if searching for something, ¡°Please state mentor or Overlord Magi.¡±

    Mevi had already given the device most of the information she knew, but cooperated, ¡°My mentor is Kalesi, I don¡¯t know her by any other names. I don¡¯t think I have an overlord?¡±

    The device didn¡¯t seem to like her answer much, it processed for a long time before responding, ¡°Please state desired course.¡±

    Mevi had no idea how to respond, she was using this device to know what she needed to study and where to go, ¡°I don¡¯t know what ¡®course¡¯ I have. Or where they are.¡±

    The device didn¡¯t seem to budge, ¡°Please state desired course.¡±

    Mevi had lost her eagerness with the device, ¡°I don¡¯t know. What courses are there?¡±

    The device seemed to think for a moment, ¡°You have twelve available courses. Please state desired couse.¡±

    Mevi was trying her best with the strange device, but its stubbornness wasn¡¯t conducive to a productive conversation it seemed, ¡°I don¡¯t know what these courses are, but I need to know where my studies are supposed to be held.¡±

    The device returned its response, ¡°Please state desired course.¡±

    Mevi wished now more than ever she understood how to read better, the panel seemed to have interactable functions but for fear of breaking her only hope to learn she left it alone, ¡°Can you choose one for me? I need to know where to go.¡±

    The device seemed to like that question, it processed for a few moments before responding and bringing up what looked like a map, ¡°Applied for course. Please follow map instructions.¡±

    Mevi was surprised it had actually found something. The device¡¯s stubborn method of interaction was difficult to use unless you already knew where you were going and what to do. Mevi swatted away her frustrations, glad that it had worked anyway. The device displayed what looked like the main hall running along the edge of the cathedral. She recognized what looked like the main gate she and Naazir¡¯s pupils walked through. The device showed a red line along the blue map interface, emanating a few hallways below where the main gate was. The red line started to draw from next to a large round open space, probably the stadium-like auditorium, and traced along the main hall well past the main gate. The line then turned left suddenly, went further into the cathedral for a while, before turning right and seeming to arrive at its destination. Mevi was glad to have some kind of hint, and quickly counted the intercepted hallways she had to pass after the main gate. Three large hallways, then turn left on the smaller one, pass by two crossroads in the new hallway before turning right into a side room. The directions didn¡¯t seem too difficult to follow, but walking the paths might be more difficult than seeing it on a map. Mevi looked off towards the direction she had come from, the opposite way Naazir¡¯s group went, and before she left she waved at the device and thanked it regardless of its stubbornness. Almost in reaction the device closed the map and as she walked away it said, ¡°Blessed be our lords.¡±

    Mevi made her way down the long hall, the grandness of the place still as brilliant as when she first came in with a group. The gargoyles seemed more populated now, or it might have been that Mevi hadn¡¯t looked at the ceiling in so long to not get distracted. Regardless of the architecture¡¯s subtle changes, Mevi started making her way.

    The walk back to the main gate took a little longer than she remembered, Mevi assumed it was due to the lack of any conversation. Walking these long corridors alone was almost intimidating, where before the building was glorious and powerful it was now lonely and filled with shadows. While still fully illuminated, when walking alone, Mevi could see the slight shifting shadows cast by the gargoyles, parapets, buttresses, and spiked motifs lining the walls and ceiling. Mevi realized that she was beginning to feel the stress of being lonely again, the ever present silence that forced you to be with your own thoughts in an echo chamber of fear and dread. She hadn¡¯t realized how much she enjoyed being in the presence of others so often. Since she was selected she had been with someone at all times, but she was so soon on her own again. The vast expanse reminded her of the large mansion her family lived in. The months and years spent hiding or avoiding others, for failure to do so would inevitably lead to yelling or worse. Mevi shook away the memory before it could fully take hold. She might be by herself now, but she isn¡¯t alone anymore. If she knew anything, she had Kalesi. But she felt lonely regardless, wondering what Kalesi had to do with Naazir.

    Mevi had since passed the main gate, and all its hundreds of glowing masks, while deep in her own thoughts. Keeping track of the endless corridors passing by to remember where she was and where to go. As Mevi hushed her own thoughts, and distracted herself with the study of architecture, she counted the last intersection before her own turn. Eager to arrive at this mysterious place that should teach her¡­ something! Mevi quickly picked up her pace. A slight jog, and probably barely a fast walk for Kalesi. The thought of Mevi running fast and Kalesi¡¯s long legs allowing her to almost walk normally next to her lightened her mood.

    Mevi turned onto the intersection she remembered would lead to her ¡®course¡¯ as plotted by the device. Slowing her pace, as the entrance should be soon after, Mevi tried to calm her nerves. Becoming excited and nervous for the thought of learning, potentially with others from different hidden colonies on her moon. The amount of questions she had for both subjects, her own estranged people and about the society she found herself in, she would likely run their patience dry with curiosity. The turn into the side room on the map appeared. A four meter tall door swung open as if to welcome visitors.

    Mevi made herself ready, and ensured her robes were still in a fit state, then finally prepared and was ready to head in. Mevi stepped into the large doorway, revealing a stretching chamber. The lowered ceiling was actually entirely visible, yet still incredibly high, and the walls were simple and with only a few decorations or architectural flair. The room itself could be easily traversed in less than a minute of walking, something almost new to Mevi with how grand and large everything is made on the Barge. The room had sporadic tables with strange tools and devices sprawled across them. At the front of the room an individual with a white robe with silver hemming stood, without their mask attached but hood firmly covering most of their head. There were about thirty silver and white haired heads total in the room, half already spreading into the various tables and working on strange devices with their equipment. The other half diligently sat like children looking up to the robed individual, who seemed to be explaining something to them. Mevi¡¯s entrance was barely noticed, the robed individual not faltering in their explanation, ¡°--while you Aedifexi are responsible for most major repairs and the creation of new devices, some orders intersect into your realm of work from time to time. Both Socialites and Custodians can be in charge of repairs, or sometimes brought on for additional support if the need is dire. In most cases a Socialite is brought on for assistance with a specific skill, or due to the conflict of territories you might come across. If something is broken in one Lord Magi¡¯s territory, but the fault and thing to repair is in another, a Socialite can be hired to deliberate or outright fix the problem. In a different concept if there is ever a question of Mana, or the ley lines Mana travels, Custodians will always be involved. In most cases directly. While an Aedifex will usually find the fault, and sometimes attempt to fix it, a Custodian is required to investigate why something broke down or at least confirm it has been repaired up to standard.¡± Mevi was idling in the doorway, listening intently to the explanation of duties. She wondered if she would ever be tasked with being diplomatic, or even repairing something, the likelihood of that was low she thought. Mevi had only repaired a few machines in her time with her house, most of her repairs were hitting something until it worked or putting bolts where they fell out.

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    When the teacher seemed to finish their explanation of duties, they looked up to see Mevi standing in the door. A clear view of their face could be seen, a woman who was of kind disposition. The woman seemed surprised to see Mevi and began anew, ¡°Oh welcome! We were just talking about Socialites. You are here to get your introductory skills in mechanics and repair, correct?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if that was true, but the device led her here so it must be, ¡°I was told to come here when I used the terminal.¡±

    The woman smiled and gestured for the others to return to their tables, walking over to Mevi she spoke slowly but deliberately, ¡°Good. Socialites need to understand how to do basic repairs, or at least use tools that may do it for them. We are glad to have you. All of my students here are Aedifexi, so most are naturally inclined or experienced in mechanics and devices. I am sure any could help answer your questions.¡±

    Mevi was glad to be received so kindly, after hearing from Naazir¡¯s pupils what they were told about Socialites, Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how people would treat her. But as her eagerness started to build, Mevi looked out to the other students. Her eager attitude was replaced with a pit that had been forming since she first heard about how Socialites were viewed. Almost all of the students were staring in Mevi¡¯s direction, and most had firm glares and scowls directed clearly at her. The woman who was being kind to her didn¡¯t seem to notice or care about the other student¡¯s disgruntled attitude to their new addition. Regardless, Mevi readied herself to work alone again.

    The woman assured Mevi the others had their tasks and duties already explained, and that all her attention could be given to her. While Mevi was grateful, as she needed a lot of assistance, the other students seemed less pleased by this development. The time spent was mostly introducing Mevi to various strange tools, most automatic or otherwise powered in some way to move on their own. The most important of tools, according to the woman who simply wanted to be called ¡®Teacher¡¯, was a device called an Intellecoder Engram. The device¡¯s name was self explanatory, according to the teacher. It identified an object that you scanned, and determined if it had faults or otherwise was broken, depending on the task and how difficult it even showed ways to perform simple fixes. Some other devices, a stick that glowed red with heat and could ¡®weld¡¯ metals and stone together, a small hammer that could apparently shatter almost anything in a perfect circle, and various other items of strange quality. The Teacher explained that the ¡®Intellecoder¡¯ could remind anyone what a device¡¯s functions are and how to use them, if you ever forgot. Beyond the safety precautions and general uses of the items, much of the time was spent explaining what Mevi had already eavesdropped on.

    The duties of a Socialite when it came to repair, creation, or identifying faults. In general Socialites seemed to be the ones who negotiated the ability to repair things, since so many territories of various Magi were so close to each other and jurisdiction seemed a vague concept. If a resolution between a Magi¡¯s followers couldn''t be found on their own, and either were still unsatisfied, a Socialite was called in to deliberate or fix the issue on their own.

    The studying of the devices didn¡¯t last as long as Mevi had preferred, still not understanding how or when to use certain devices. Her deftness with the finer of tools is almost nonexistent, and other skills still needing practice. But regardless of Mevi¡¯s questions and desire contrary to her Teacher¡¯s, the woman declared that Mevi was finished with the course. As long as Mevi had an Intellecoder, she could meet standard requirements. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if this was due to her having some hidden talent or proficiency, or if the Teacher and her students simply wanted her to leave them be. Before Mevi realized, she was thrust out of the room with the door closed behind her, holding a cluster of items she was apparently expected to keep on her and maintain. Mevi didn¡¯t bring her satchel, and it wouldn''t have been big enough for the weird device pile, so by tying together a portion of her own robes into a sort of carrier pouch, she deposited her equipment. Thankfully she had two layers, as the blue cloak that was meant for warmth prevented her from looking too unsightly with the left half of her cloak tied into an inefficient bag.

    The woman mentioned, during her haste to have Mevi exit, that this cathedral was meant to allow new acolytes and initiates to test their skills in various ways. The last portion of Mevi¡¯s test to see how well she might work, and to find something broken then attempt to fix it. Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed anything out of place or nonfunctional on her way in. Mevi thought that the terminal was rather stubborn, could that be something she is meant to fix? The entire idea of profaning the Education Forum was a horrifying thought, but if told by her Teacher how could she not follow directions? Mevi finished gathering herself and ensured her robe-pouch was secure enough to walk, then set off to find the stubborn terminal.

    Mevi didn¡¯t walk far, in the hallway her course was attached to, before noticing something out of place. Now that she was instructed what to look for, Mevi did notice some odd pipes or ajar structure. Near to the door of her course there was a pipe that stuck out where it shouldn¡¯t, it obviously should have been connected to another pipe that was open ended as well. Mevi approached and confirmed that there was nothing dangerous about the objects, then additionally confirmed nothing was coming in or out of them. With no better alternative, Mevi removed her Intellecoder Engram and scanned the area of the wall. The device chirped after a moment and confirmed structural damage. It also showed her how she should fix the issue, directing Mevi to use the hot-stick and hammer. The hammer can apparently be set to different settings depending on desire, in this case it just needs to heat up the pipe enough for it to become mobile. Mevi went to work, and while not an elegant fix, the pipe was realigned. Before Mevi could turn to leave she saw something strange, the pipe glowed along the weld she had made and cut itself then proceeded to heat itself to force its bend back to where it was. The process made it look exactly as when Mevi had first interacted with it! Mevi was bewildered and interested in the response, she quickly fixed it again and the pipe rearranged itself once more. The structure here must be redundant and made to break itself after a successful repair. Mevi was amazed by the strangeness of the Barge yet again.

    Mevi decided to leave the pipe alone, one could only fix it so many times before you crave a new challenge. She walked deeper into the hallway rather than returning to the terminal, assuming she would fix a few more things then return to wait for Nessia and her group. A few parts of the structure were bent, some stonework was chipped or cracked, and any number of metallic parts were bent or cut to not connect where they should. Mevi went from task to task, refining her crude skills, and felt some strange amount of satisfaction in the practice. Mevi told herself she would fix one more fault then return to, the probably waiting, Nessia.

    Mevi identified what looked like a fault, a panel in the wall that had a section bent out of place. She was quite deep in the hall, far enough she couldn''t see the intersection that led to the gate, but knew her way back well enough. This broken panel would be her last task before returning. A quick scan of her Intellecoder told her the panel¡¯s structural integrity was dangerously low, a support strut on the other side had snapped and the wall might crumble if not fixed. Mevi began checking for dangerous elements, or signs of exhaust of some kind, when she found none she began removing the panel. Using a different hot stick than her welder, a cutter, she carefully cut the panel where her Intellecoder directed. The panel popped off, and Mevi caught it without trouble, placing it next to her workspace she then investigated behind the panel.

    Behind the panel was indeed a snapped support strut, a thick piece of stone that stuck out in two places to keep the wall stable had snapped and looked like it was shifting slowly. The more difficult part of the situation was what wasn¡¯t there. Behind the panel was hollow and a deep, dark, hole descending below the support beams and struts. Mevi figured she would need to lean into the hollow wall to reach the fault line and begin welding it back into place. Mevi thought of a good idea that would help her stay safe. She placed all of her unneeded items in her robe¡¯s pouch, and anchored one of her legs to a nearby pipe. The weight would keep her center and the pipe could hold her in case she lost her grip. With safety precautions made, Mevi began to work.

    Mevi worked away, shifting the pillar with a feature on the strange hammer, and beginning to weld the fault. The fault was just barely too high up and out of her reach from her position attached to the anchoring pipe. She had to loosen her foot¡¯s grip to stretch a few centimeters further, her tools just barely out of reach due to her small body and short arms. Regardless she reached the fault and began slowly activating her welding stick, searing the stone strut to its lower half. As she worked some of the sparks occasionally sputtered out and clanged against the metallic wall, clinking down into the dark pit below. Due to the safety measures in the hot stick, it didn¡¯t produce much falling residue, but occasionally Mevi would need to doge a particularly large globule of melted stone.

    As Mevi worked diligently, and was reaching as far as her arms could around the strut, she was nearly finished. The back end of the strut was all that was left, and her legs and arms were getting tired from the awkward position. As she reached with all her might to finalize her weld, she missed her mark and rapidly melted a large chuck of the metallic wall. The molten material flew down and was about to hit her face, but Mevi dodged out of the way by swinging to the side. As she did so she lost her grip on her hot stick, and it began to tumble past her. She desperately grabbed for the device, reaching down the pit but missing her mark. As she twisted her body to be stomach down, in an attempt to catch her loose device, then her foot came loose.

    Mevi felt her world shift as she fell into the hole. She grasped behind her, desperately sprawling her body to catch the ledge of something. Her arms reached past her legs, and her legs clanged against the now less-distant wall. Her left hand almost grasped a solid pipe, gripping it with what few fingers could reach, but slipped and her arm smashed against the slanted structure below her target. The pain shot up her arm from her hand and wrist, but pain from a hurt wrist was less important than the consuming darkness that Mevi quickly raced downward to meet.

    Mevi fell into darkness, her only thought being regret of not going back to Nessia sooner.

 Chapter 10.5: Kalesi

    Kalesi and Naazir made their way down the vast steps rising behind them to the Education Forum. Before her small pupil was out of sight, Kalesi stole one last look towards the tiny thing. Unsure exactly what will happen at the Forum, and not sure how she will be treated due to her status, only sure that she would be safer there than with her mentor. The two figures walked in silence halfway down the steps, Naazir watching Kalesi carefully.

    Kalesi hadn¡¯t interacted often with Naazir, or really any other Neophytes for that matter, but the grinning man was a strange cut of cloth from the Magi¡¯s followers. Despite being a Legionary, and subsequently in charge of training several waves of new followers into cold-blooded killers who enforce their Magi¡¯s will, he was still a mostly pleasant person to be around. Never affected by what goes on around him, or how much dread might fill the air. Kalesi had only had the pleasure to work with him a few times, and every event had ended in blood in one way or another despite a Legionary being known as a ¡®peacekeeper¡¯. Still, he was reliable enough, if he called for Kalesi¡¯s assistance she would answer. The man seemed to finish his appraisal of Kalesi, his grin ever plastered on his chiseled features, Naazir spoke up as if wanting to debate her decision, ¡°So. Why not bring the kid? It would be a good first experience.¡±

    Kalesi sighed, one thing she disliked was his dense bluntness, Naazir didn¡¯t seem to understand other people much despite his outwardly pleasant appearance, ¡°Whatever it is we are tasked with, it would be too much for her to handle. Simple as that.¡±

    Naazir seemed to think for a moment, ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡±

    Kalesi was genuinely baffled, ¡°What do you mean? Lord Magi Falcier¡¯s aid sent the request, and we will be facing dissidents. She is much too frail for that sort of encounter, not even considering her mental fortitude seems to need improvement.¡±

    Naazir seemed firm in his appraisal, ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t want to argue with the brick wall that was his personality. Despite how pleasant and cordial he looked on the outside, Kalesi quickly learned it was feigned to put others at ease. Naazir was incredibly stubborn, dense, and often even dumb, at least as far as Kalesi could judge him. Whatever made him see the girl¡¯s ability to deal with dissidents, Kalesi didn¡¯t understand it. She was strong, in some ways, the reading from the Scryier told Kalesi she had suffered extreme mental and physical trauma in her past. Yet it also showed her body¡¯s response was to attempt and block all memory and ability to process those scars, she seemed a glass moments from breaking. If she had to be immersed in potential violence or a less ¡®utopian¡¯ perspective of their world, Kalesi was sure the girl would break. She cast her own judgemental glance at Naazir, who was now focusing on the upcoming road ahead instead of looking at her.

    The two reached the bottom of the long set of stairs, delving into the throng of the city. Their destination was clear; Lord Falcier¡¯s outer territories, in the Pipes. The walk was long, making them lurk in dark and twisting alleyways, but the two knew the area well enough. After only a few hours'' journey the two reached the edge of their destination. The Pipes was a sector in a deep part of the city, where buildings were erected above and inside the massive blood vessels of the Barge. The huge section of area had become exposed to the city¡¯s surface during a past expansion, or at least that was what Kalesi had heard. As far as anyone alive was concerned, the Pipes were always there and more often than not the preferred center of villainous scum.

    As the two began exiting the last marble-concrete road from stable civilization, the expanding space before them opened up as if a massive pit was suddenly carved where a city should have been. Many meters down, maybe fifty or more, the first hint of a road could be reached. The largest of pipes were used as stable foundation, allowing the strange rusty dwellings to expand and hang in odd and precarious places. Intertwining pipes, bigger than most buildings, curved and wrapped around each other into an infinite mess of golden rust. Gaps between the pipes, and exposed innards of the Barge, allowed access lower into the superstructure for additional colonization and the denizens of the Pipes expanded as far down as they could fall. The Pipes was vast, covering many kilometers of the Barge¡¯s exposed organs, it was likely the most densely populated section of the Barge due to their ability to reach exponentially farther down than any tower could dare to climb upwards.

    By Naazir¡¯s thoughtful glances, darting crimson eyes, and studying of the edges of the Pipes, Kalesi understood they must descend. Kalesi maintained an element of preparedness whenever she could spare, keeping various tools in her small backpack attached to her own white and rose robes. Taking her backpack off, she produced her modified Intellecoder Engram and began scanning for the strongest structural anchor. After finding her desired target, Kalesi used a small device that allowed the printing of basic plastoid materials to create a makeshift rope for descent. As the rope was fastened and ready, Kalesi noticed Naazir already making his own way down. Already about two or three meters down, Naazir was slowly wall climbing down the exposed wiring, cables, and broken supports. The muscle-bound man jumped from ledge to ledge and grappled with whatever loose hand-hold he could find. Kalesi sighed to herself, of course he wouldn''t wait for a safer method when ¡®It is climbable¡¯ she imitated in her own head.

    The two began their slow travel down the face of the jagged cliff. Naazir only a few moments ahead, Kalesi caught up and overtook the man quickly with her cleverly placed rope. Reaching the bottom, a particularly massive rusted-gold pipe that would direct them into the outer edges of the Pipes. Naazir quickly rejoined his companion, who was scouting the direct vicinity for any signs of trouble or danger. The denizens of the Edge, and of the Pipes, were dangerous and often sought to attack, kill, or rob any individuals that got too close from the city proper.

    The pair stood on the wide structure, like a curved highway it led directly to the epicenter of the Pipes. It seems the people of the Edge would leave them alone, at least on their trip down. The two began walking across the partially rusted highway. The once-important pipework being eaten away by a strange dark blue material that was unique to the Barge as far as Kalesi¡¯s travels have taken her. The material acts in all ways like rust, but eroding against materials that shouldn¡¯t disintegrate like common metals, even eating away at stone, plastoid, and cloth if one had too long exposure. The name of the material changes from ¡®The Rust¡¯, ¡®Magi¡¯s Death¡¯, or ¡®Bluespore¡¯ and any other random name a local thinks up on the spot. Kalesi never saw it as a threat, and neither do most people with access to water solutions and cleaning supplies. Yet in the Pipes, this rust devours entire segments of cities if they can¡¯t maintain certain amounts of Magi technology to protect themselves.

    The two journeyed away from the watchful eyes of the towering cities behind them, the city¡¯s light unable to fully penetrate the smoke, smog, and dust that collected in the air of the Pipes. The condition of the area becomes worse as they progress into the inevitable warzone below. A thick mist of dusty smoke everpresent once you reach past where the Magi-Blessed air purifiers can reach with their current. The two emissaries of their Magi lords covered their faces with what cloth could be torn from their own long robes, Kalesi silently promising to pack masks as a permanent edition to her toolkit. Naazir covered his own face, but seemed mostly unfazed by the billowing dust clouds around them, the material soaking into their clothes and turning any whites a pale, sickly, gray.

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    The walk in the undesirable conditions is long, an hour at least, as the two had to fight against the perplexing wind that almost seemed to try pushing them back where they came. A natural barrier of intolerable smoke. Regardless, Kalesi was officially sequestered to the Legionary¡¯s task, but what she even came here for was still unknown beyond the obvious involvement of Lord Magi Falcier¡¯s displeasement with someone. If the ¡®someone¡¯ the Magi was displeased with was Kalesi, this was a sure way to teach her a lesson of some kind. While curious of what her task should be, she knew better than to ask questions around a Legionary. The enforcers of the Magi had memory monitoring devices implanted into them, allowing the Magi to review and chronicle all of their day¡¯s events. Asking what a Magi or their representative wanted was a sort of taboo, depending on how it was phrased. Their intentions to be kept secret, and as little of their disability spread outside their own ranks as possible.

    The two suddenly stopped, Naazir halting their progress with a hand in front of Kalesi¡¯s steps. The man removed his make-shift mask and began scanning the area around them with his keen eyes. Naazir made as few movements as possible, what few he made were short and quiet. Shifting his head back and forth, lowering himself to the ground, as if a wolf hunting for its prey. A yell from Kalesi¡¯s right, off the side of the pipe, a shrill screech echoing in the virulent winds of dust. Kalesi¡¯s instincts kicked in and she went into a defensive posture, keeping her guard around her head. Before Kalesi could even react to the stimuli of the echoing cry, a dark figure was already approaching her wielding a large cleaver. In the same moment Kalesi noticed the figure, their cruel hatchet cleaving the wind to strike her a vicious blow, Naazir was already beside her.

    In the same moment the figure raised their weapon and began to strike, Naazir closed the distance and struck his fist against the figure¡¯s skull. The moment his strike connected Naazir activated some device in his hand, and a golden shimmering blade of energy pulsed into life and pierced the bandit¡¯s head. The body slumped to the ground dead, and as it hit the pipe¡¯s surface Naazir ignited his other fist to produce another golden blade. Wielding two fists, with protruding blades of energy, the man made himself ready to fight.

    Kalesi was used to violence by this point, especially if she was assigned with Naazir whose lack of hesitation executed many. She rotated her back to guard Naazir¡¯s rear, producing two silver cuffs that pulsed with blue light as they activated. Two small shields exploded into life, covering up to Kalesi¡¯s elbows with a thin barrier of blue energy. The two of them had their own fighting styles, but seemed to complement each other as much as Kalesi disliked the pairing.

    The two figures, exotic weapons at the ready, stood in the billowing dust as other dark figures began approaching. Three, four, five, and six Kalesi counted to herself. Six figures, wielding strange blades or blunt instruments. The foes had likely been stalking along the bottom of the pipe waiting for the thickest of dust clouds to cover their prey¡¯s senses. The attackers seemed to size up their prey, outnumbering the two and so bolstering their confidence. They moved to attack, lunging at the pair from all sides.

    A massive creature almost twice kalesi¡¯s own size swung a proportionally sized blunt mallet at the shielded woman. Kalesi didn¡¯t bother trying to block the heavy blow, instead ducking while moving to parry the blow with her left shield above her head, in the same moment Kalesi punched with her right hand into the creature¡¯s gut. The large behemoth was struck by both Kalesi¡¯s hard fist and the jagged edge of the energy shield. Wet ichor spilled over Kalesi¡¯s fist, but as she pulled back another figure moved to the side of the giant. The figure took Kalesi¡¯s opening and tried to strike at her open back, but Naazir was protecting her openings, and the figure was quickly engaged with the strong man. The attacker wielded a long metallic pipe, like a common thug, the thug batted away one of Naazir¡¯s fists only to be struck in the neck by his other, pierced by the blade and crushed by the following fist.

    The giant stumbled, and a thug was slain, there were only five left as the two defenders reassembled their guard. The remaining assailants realized individual attacks would result in death, so they prepared to assault all at once. Kalesi blocked fast blows, one man striking with some kind of sword on her right and a woman attempting to punch Kalesi on her left. Both were held off by the glowing energy around Kalesi¡¯s arms. As the two tried to push her to the ground Kalesi fell with the blows, allowing to parry them clanging into the ground and following with a double kick, propped up by her now fallen arms. The woman was Kalesi¡¯s target, two quick heels slammed into the chin of the stunned woman and she was thrown slightly into the air. Scrambling to right herself, but missing any hand-holds in the flailing, the woman screamed as they fell off the large pipe after sliding down the curved edge.

    Kalesi turned to her other opponents, and saw behind them Naazir engaged with the other two fighters. The powerful strikes Naazir enforced were in direct contrast with his agile movements to dodge blows and slashes. Flawlessly parrying and moving to strike his attacker, in a few short moments Naazir dispatched a dark figure who was now a head shorter. Before Kalesi could congratulate the Legionary, she remembered her own two opponents.

    The giant creature had regained themselves in the short moments it took Kalesi to evacuate their female compatriot from the pipe¡¯s surface. The giant began swinging wildly at Kalesi, who dodged or parried the massive mallet. As she focused on avoiding being struck by a truck¡¯s worth of force, the other foe attempted to strike from behind. Kalesi dodged the man¡¯s attempt to stab her with his crude sword, and instead used his momentum to throw him into the giant¡¯s powerful swipe. Like the woman, the man was launched from the pipe¡¯s ledge and tumbled screaming down into the endless below.

    Naazir had somehow been disarmed, or had deactivated one of his blades, regardless the man seemed to be dueling his opponent. Kalesi couldn¡¯t watch their flourishes long before her own foe redoubled its efforts to defeat its enemy. The attacks came faster and faster, but Kalesi was luring the monster into a rage. As the giant enemy rose its mallet high, in an attempt to squash Kalesi, she saw her opening. As the mallet came down, she dodged out of the way, a large dent in the platform formed where the mallet struck and the weapon was thoroughly stuck. The giant was staggering from the powerful impact, likely breaking some of its bones from hitting the solid metallic platform so hard, and Kalesi used the opening to dive at her opponent. She struck where she had already drawn blood, causing a new puncture to form and red ichor to spurt from the old wound. She struck again, again, and again a flurry of blows against this beast¡¯s gut. The repeated lacerations against its stomach, and the heavy fists from Kalesi, caused the beastial form to stumble and fall onto their back. The rearrangement of their organs by precise strikes causing the giant creature to fall unconscious while bleeding internally.

    Kalesi looked up from her own victory to see Naazir duck, then grab his opponent¡¯s wrist, and pierce his remaining blade into the figure¡¯s chest only to have it exit out the poor creature¡¯s nape. The two stood triumphant, and Kalesi walked over to Naazir who was moderately less soaked than she was. Any who entered the Pipes should expect an ambush or two, but to Kalesi¡¯s experience the force was rather small. A roaming band of outcasts maybe? Regardless, her Legionary companion seemed to calm and collect himself as if the danger was past. She learned that a Legionary¡¯s senses about danger were usually correct, and if her companion was relaxed she had no reason to stay on guard.

    The two turned back onto their winding path along the pipe highway, the corpses left to be eaten by the Rust or scavengers after they slid from the rounded surface. Their destination laid before them, the Pipes settlements. A collection of loosely strewn villages, huts, and collapsed buildings. Run by the strongest or most influential of outlaws, a place where fighting would almost certainly ensue. The pair fixed their weaponry and delved into the crude ¡®city¡¯ built from the corpses of long-fallen towers and infrastructure. Their goal still a mystery to Kalesi, but her duty to assist and protect Naazir clear.

 Chapter 11: The Fall, Part 1

    Mevi doesn¡¯t know what happened, or how she got to where she was, but she opened her eyes in a dark place lying on a cold metallic floor. Her mind was blurry, and she remained confused for a few moments as she adjusted to the darkness. It didn¡¯t take long for her eyes to readjust to the dimness coating the area around her. Her people¡¯s natural inclination towards the dark allowed her to see some idea of what was around her, but she strained her eyes to see more than dark shapes and vague objects. Still confused, Mevi tried to recall her last memory. She remembered using her tools to fix things, and that she was fixing a crumbling support strut. Yet more than that her mind was fuzzy and cryptic. Regardless of how she got immersed in this darkness, Mevi had a hard time figuring out where she even was.

    The area around Mevi was cold, and she felt wet, the area around her had no real source of light. Yet there seemed enough ambient light that she could still sense some things around her. She seemed to be in a decently sized open area. She was sitting in an extremely shallow pool of something sticky and wet. She felt around in the dark, disregarding the sticky substance, and pricked her hand on something sharp in her fumbling. Grasping it, the sharp tool was long like a pipe with a jagged edge, the object was light in her hands. Suddenly Mevi remembered her tools, checking her robe she searched herself for the pouch where her items were kept. Putting the sharp object down, she began to pat herself furiously. Her robe seemed terribly torn, tattered, and with fraying all over and yet mostly intact. To her dismay the pouch she created was shredded and none of her devices were on her person. Mevi was stumped, while she could make out things extremely close to her she still couldn¡¯t see, and without sight she might as well be lost and blind. Actually, she probably was lost and nearly blind.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what to do, so she resolved herself to do anything at all and began to lift herself up. A sudden shooting pain shot through her right leg and left arm as she tried to push herself standing. Collapsing into the unknown ichor, Mevi winced in great pain. She used her right hand to clutch at her bad arm, feeling from the shoulder and slowly down to identify the weakness of her body. Once she reached her forearm, and especially wrist, the pain twanged into recognition. Her wrist was probably broken, or badly sprained, she wasn¡¯t sure if she cracked something in her forearm but it throbbed with additional pain. Content to leave it be, she investigated her right leg. As she reached down to her knee, confirming it was in the right place, she gently caressed her calves. She felt a sharp pain at the slightest of touch, and a great swelling that pulsed with irritation. Her ankle seemed to be twisted in the incorrect direction. She seemed badly hurt, and in great pain, but was strangely calm. Her adrenaline was pumping, either that or since she couldn¡¯t see the injury she could assume she was mostly intact.

    Mevi couldn¡¯t begin to guess what to do, or if anyone would even know where she was, but knew she couldn¡¯t leave her arm and leg as they were. She began slowly crawling around to look for any clues to her belongings. If she only had a hint of light she could assess her situation and potentially bandage herself with excess cloth. She found a long stick of some kind, longer than she was tall it seemed. It felt sturdy enough to use like a staff, she could use it to prop herself up for now. She held tight to the staff, wincing as she accidentally used her left arm, and heaved herself to a hunched stance. At least for now she was upright, and able to traverse without essentially swimming in the strange liquid she resided in.

    Mevi could barely make out her surroundings. She could tell she was in a large room of some kind, the ceiling several meters above her and walls out of sight. She strained her eyes against the pitch black. She felt she saw a few gaps in the dark where it seemed thicker and further expanding. The deepest pits of dark could potentially be holes or passages against the large room¡¯s walls. She wasn¡¯t sure how she arrived in this place, but possibly there was a way out through one of the passages. She could partially identify only a handful of potential escape routes. Choosing the closest to her, Mevi began limping through the strange flooded room to a potential escape. Her leg was dragging against the ground as she didn¡¯t seem entirely capable of moving the lower half. The agonizing trek was likely only a few meters, five at most, but the pain and discomfort made the travel seem as if it were leagues.

    Making it to a wall, if it could be called such as it was jagged, rough, and seemed badly dented, she followed it to her target darkness. As she predicted, the wall turned into some kind of new opening. She could partially see both walls, so it must have been some kind of hallway or other type of passage. Regardless, she felt no other choice than to progress somewhere other than where she was. Mevi began her stumbling through the dark path before her.

    As Mevi shuffled through the hallway, she limped slowly with very little progress. As she continued the sound of her foot splashing in the puddle of wet slowly faded. Whatever wet pool she was in before had tapered off and disappeared after the short trek into the hallway. Then as she made her way she felt her leg kick something during her hopping movement. Stumbling to the side and using the rough wall to balance herself, she used her staff to hit blindly at the terrain before her, and behind her. She connected with something as it skipped slightly through the air, a metallic sound clanging against the opposite wall. Hoping for something, anything, that might be one of her belongings she slumped once again against her staff and stumbled towards the other wall. Leaning her bad shoulder painfully against the wall, and brushing the rugged floor with her fingers as she attempted to locate the metallic object. Her hand grasped something cylindrical and thin. It felt familiar in some way, she grappled the item with her only good hand and found a sort of interface. Pressing against one of the device¡¯s buttons, in some hope it was working and could be useful, the strange device¡¯s end lit up slightly. The device¡¯s end lit with a dull glow, enough to illuminate Mevi¡¯s direct surroundings. It was the welding stick, the device she used to melt metal and stone. Her surroundings were illuminated in a short area with the glowing heat, and as it was she wished to have kept the illusion of normalcy.

    Mevi¡¯s entire form, illuminated by the small light, was covered in red ichor. The sticky substance coating her once white robe. She was soaked in some crimson substance, and yet it was thankfully thick. Her leg seemed swollen, and she avoided looking too closely at her ankle. The thick red painted her body, covering her injuries to a degree that was strong enough to keep her from thinking about the devastating wounds. Yet as she realized the color of the sticky liquid, she noticed the thick smell of rust that was blood. Her senses having been overwhelmed by pain, and so fully immersed in the liquid, she hadn¡¯t realized that the area around her smelt of filth and gore.

    Looking back, Mevi saw the imprints of her steps against the jagged and rough floor that seemed similar to the concrete roads she traveled to the Education Forum. Her mind suddenly raced back to where she was before this calamity. The Forum! She was meant to meet with Nessia and eventually see Kalesi again! It was a small hope, but if they noticed she didn¡¯t come back, and when they met with their own mentor, maybe they could find what pit she fell through and search for her? The idea of rescue was appealing, but after returning to the present she didn¡¯t expect a hastened escape. As Mevi was addressing her situation she stole a look at her trusty staff, the whiteness of smooth bone shone against the hot light. Her staff was a jagged strut of carcass. Mevi held a dreadful thought that made her wonder why she was brought to a place where blood and bone was stored. She wrestled with her own conclusion, yet still whatever had coated an entire room in crimson lifeblood was not something that would be likely to leave her alone. Mevi couldn¡¯t rely on the hope of rescue. In a strange possession of clarity and logic, Mevi realized she must find some way to either make herself safe or escape in some way. Her current goal was to follow the hallway into the darkness that had held one of her tools. Possibly it was where she had come from, or was taken from, or maybe it led to some monster that thought her items were shiny treasures. Her choices were limited, and her time was unknown.

    Mevi began limping through the corridor, noticing the color of the walls were black scorch with occasional dried splatters. She eventually stopped dripping, and instead was encrusted with foul smelling gore. Thankful she didn¡¯t seem to be leaving a trail, but still racing against an unknown predator regardless. As she began dreading what might be within this deep darkness, she heard an echoing rumble from where she had escaped. A deep and bone-shaking tone of anger and fury. A guttural cry that no human could possibly create or attempt to mimic, like the sound of large machines railing against each other in anger. Mevi only hastened at the call, putting as much distance as she could manage between her and the unknown terror.

    Mevi eventually found herself stumbling out of the corridor and almost falling at a suddenly declined ground, a slanted ramp leading into a vast open area. Jagged stone and metal forcing themselves out of the earth-like hull around her. The declination leading further into the open space, but a star-blessed light shining dimly from the top of the wide chasm. Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed the hints of light in her panic, but the dim illumination from the softly glowing blue lamp that shone like a quiet moon was enough to allow her eyes some vantage of her surroundings. The chasm opened into a section of metal and ship, or at least it seemed like it might have been part of a hull at one point. There was a large missing section of structure, as if hewn from its origin leaving a crater of jagged remains scattering an unnatural cave. The light seemed to be some kind of ancient device, still clinging to life, and lightly sputtered some old memory of illumination.

    A second clamor of rage billowed behind Mevi, still far but gaining in fury. Mevi had no time to debate her situation, and quickly began a sliding descent down the rough rock. The slide was slow, and she was caught on a few pointed edges causing cuts and small bruises, yet she made her way to the flat ground at the bottom. The wide crater open and cleared of most things. A few ruins of strange devices and metal husks remained in the center, only a few larger than Mevi herself. As she investigated the center, hoping to find some hint of where she came from or a place to hide, she could see a faint glint.

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    Moving towards the glint against the light, Mevi found another of her devices. The hammer-shaped tool that allowed for various functions of breaking or otherwise heating and shaping of an object. Limping to her belonging, Mevi fell next to its location. Without a way to properly carry the device with her only good hand full of her staff and newly acquired light, Mevi lamented what to do. Fearing for time, she removed her robes, leaving her under cloak and blouse as her remaining protection. She tied off the holes of her robe, and did her best to form some type of fraying and ripped baggage. While not perfect, it was easier to carry additional things with the idea of a bag than nothing at all. She fastened it to her chest, and tied off the ends to secure it. If anything, it could act as a pillow for her front if she were to fall over. Regardless of form, Mevi stored her device and thrust herself up again. She felt fear, and knew the creature hunting her was approaching. Without any real inclination of where to go, she scanned the area around her.

    Ignoring the way she came, there was only one obviously viable exit to this cavern. On the other side of the crater, and up the slippery ledges, a new hallway opened. Her choice was clear, there was no room for doubt or debate. She didn¡¯t see a space or area large enough to shelter her, and doubted anything that made such a terrible cry could be stopped in its hunt. Mevi darted away, regretting the abandonment of her new light, and even dared to use her bad leg to propel her faster despite the immense pain. When she reached the bottom of the slanted ledge, she began to scramble up the side. As her ascent began, an echoing war was fighting its way out of the corridor she had previously exited. Metal, claw, and hard scale was writhing against the ground and walls of where she had come. As if it intended to tear apart the entire Barge to reach Mevi. The girl¡¯s legs hadn¡¯t worked faster or harder in her life, she scrambled to escape up the side of the crater.

    As Mevi reached halfway to the top of her escape route, the deafening noise of rage exited where Mevi had been only a few minutes ago. Mevi could not risk looking back, for fear of freezing in terror at whatever she might have seen. Focusing on climbing to her potential freedom. The monstrosity stopped in the corridor¡¯s archway, a deep echoing breath that could be heard across the chasm. Like metal and gears scraping together in an attempt to replicate life. Whatever was there seemed to stop its movements and sound, as silence consumed the area apart from Mevi¡¯s own struggling. A foul snarl escaped the beast that pursued Mevi, as she was almost to the top of her struggle. The shattering stone and clattering scales deafened Mevi as the unknown beast raged against the ground to reach her. A tumble and crash as the creature must have slipped going down the slope.

    The beast gathered itself, and refocused its rage to its prey. Mevi was nearly at the top, if she could jump she might¡¯ve reached the next ledge that would be her savior. As she climbed against the slope, and made a slow method of her escape, the sound of the writhing beast was below her. The creature was ascending the side after her, writhing against the slanted ground to reach her. Mevi just barely grasped the edge of the stable ground above her, and with her only eligible arm Mevi pulled with what little strength her body still carried. She saved herself as if escaping hell, and flailed to the top of her goal. A quick glance as she stumbled was all she took to understand she should never have fathomed such an eldritch horror.

    The writhing mass of meat, flesh, and muscle raged against life itself. A metallic face and teeth, with sharpened claws to match. The beast¡¯s only coherent form were those meant for killing and slaughter. The mass of unholy mixture seemed to fight against what laws of nature should have kept it as primordial ooze. Reaching, grasping, tendrils of flesh and hanging tendon flailed in Mevi¡¯s direction, being only a breath away from finding a target. The monstrosity had no eyes to speak of, and seemed to wail against reality for its failed life. The blind monster¡¯s limbs flailed in confusion against the side of the ledge, only reaching higher by pure chance and mass. The horror couldn''t see Mevi, but seemed to hear and sense her in some way. Any small movement, rustling of clothes, and clattering of pebbles alerted the creature to her location almost instantly. The full scope of the monster couldn¡¯t be seen, as Mevi only took a flash of vision to behold the abomination.

    Mevi scrambled to her feet, seeing no other option than to run into the darkness. At least with its lack of vision she might spare a light, but didn¡¯t know if the welding stick could be sensed by the heat it gave off. At this point she didn¡¯t care. How could she hide from such a monstrously large being? Its flailing appendages would accidentally find her if its jaws didn¡¯t reach her first. Flushed pale and while losing whatever bile could escape, Mevi scattered into the new escape route. Hoping the ledge would stall the monster long enough to allow her to put distance between the entity.

    As Mevi rushed through the hallway, the adrenaline and fear allowed her to forget her own injuries to a degree. While her foot was still mostly unusable, her left hand balled into a tight fist, and she raced against time. While illuminated by the heat of her welding stick, Mevi passed by what looked like collapsed doors. Most were blocked by rubble, wreckage, or otherwise impassable. She found one door that seemed intact, and pulled furiously against the weight of the blocker, but it was shut tight and likely locked from some long abandoned key. She didn¡¯t spend more than a moment to test the door and continued to race, hearing the monstrosity fight harder and harder to reach the top. The hopeful sound of a shrill wail and clamor promised mistakes and tumbling. But it wouldn¡¯t be long until the embodiment of Mevi¡¯s terror found a way to ascend the crater¡¯s edge.

    Mevi passed by several other blocked entryways, some with holes or gaps big enough that Mevi might¡¯ve passed through. But she couldn''t take any chances with ¡®maybe¡¯, sprinting as fast as one leg could carry. As the corridor became blocked to go forward, a passage to the right was opened enough to walk through without trouble. The screaming amalgamation might take some time to breach the gap, and Mevi favored any idea that could stall such a creature. She ducked into the new passage that opened quickly into another hall. This one had a dim light in the distance, and Mevi raced against her pain to reach it.

    The light wasn¡¯t her savior, but it provided enough hope to keep her moving. It, like the illumination in the chasm, was a flickering orb on the high ceiling. Several others lined this hallway, leaving only spots of darkness from the faint illumination. As Mevi continued the wrestle against her fate to be killed by that monster behind her, she could hear its cry of success and the shattering of wall and tile roared to life again. Her time was again limited, the caved in passage likely not holding the creature back for long before it destroyed what prevented its progress or found a way to dive through the space provided.

    Mevi¡¯s heart raced, and she could not hear the monster as clearly due to the pounding in her ears. The pain in her arm and leg was intensifying, adrenaline and fear unable to hold it back forever. As Mevi continued to run through the dimly lit hallway, passing out of light into darkness then back into light again, she spotted a potential hideaway. One of the side archways, that might¡¯ve once been doors to new rooms or paths, had a mostly functional door that was open. Mevi pushed through, the door being held firm by something behind it but a gap open large enough she could pass in mostly unimpeded. She struggled against the pressure of the door, and fell to the other side losing grasp of her staff. As she fell she could hear the explosion of rage from the horror as it likely met the collapsed tunnel Mevi hoped would slow it down.

    Darting her eyes across the room, which was dark save for the light leaking in from outside, Mevi addressed her options. The massive door was held in place by collapsing wall and rubble, only partially propped open due to its own immense strength. Half of the room seemed to be filled with wreckage and rubble. Yet this could be to Mevi¡¯s advantage. The creature could only lift, move, and dig so much. No creature could excavate the amount of debris required to fit such a massive body into the room. The digging of terrain would only result in more falling where was excavated. The chances of the room filling entirely with stone, metal, and material was probably low. Mevi hoped to herself the chances of cave-in were low. She was exhausted, and the creature would easily catch up if she could only run in a straight line. Then Mevi had a thought. Her robes were drenched in gore and blood, but her under clothes were mostly left unmolested save for her blue cloak. She could not fathom how the creature sensed its environment, only that it seemed to be blind. It would not be a total loss if she used her robes and cloak to throw the monster off her scent. If it could smell at all.

    Mevi darted her head into the hallway, the sound of enraged digging could be heard echoing down the passage. Mevi didn¡¯t want to leave the clothes directly out the door, but couldn¡¯t risk running too far from her discovered safety. She steeled herself and removed her blue cloak, and dropped her two recovered tools onto the floor. Balling her bundle, and clenching the hood and hem between her teeth, Mevi made her way out of her sanctuary. She limped back down as far as she would dare, the sound of digging becoming more shallow as if about to break free at any moment. Making it only a few meters, Mevi threw her bundled clothes while staggering on one leg. The throw allowed for a few extra meters of insurance, and she wouldn¡¯t risk trying a second time. Rushing back to her discovered safety, Mevi fell into the room as she heard the eruption of the creature¡¯s exit from the rubble.

    Mevi crawled as far as she could in a few moments, but after hearing the heavy scratch of claws coming closer she froze still and lay on her back. Refusing to move, and taking in a deep breath, Mevi held back what pain she felt and focused all of her willpower on becoming quiet and silent. The creature clamored against the walls and floor and skidded to a stop near Mevi¡¯s hideaway. The pounding of blood and rushing pain coursing through Mevi¡¯s ears and limbs, she held as firm and still as she could manage. The sudden quiet from the monstrosity allowed Mevi to begin to feel all of her pain at once. Keeping herself quiet, despite whatever she might feel, she struggled against her own instincts to scream. The muffled clacking of talon against stone echoed into the chamber Mevi hid in, barely able to hear it over the sound of her own enraged body. Whatever the monster was doing felt as if it took an eternity, Mevi¡¯s lungs were moments from collapse. She held only dust in her lungs, no air or oxygen remained for her body¡¯s sustenance and it screamed for her to gasp. Despite her body fighting against her will to stay silent, she remained still and quiet. Mevi heard some clattering of metallic scraping, the monster was doing something. Then she could hear the bounding of its steps as it slowly made its way away from where she hid. Had her plan worked? Could she possibly be safe here?

    Mevi let out as slow a breath as she could manage, and took in air as calmly as possible despite her body screaming for her to take more. As quietly as she could muster she began breathing again, her heart pounding louder than she could ever recall. Mevi lay there, in the dark with only a faint beam of light from outside, and suddenly longed for the Magi¡¯s terror to replace this one. At least when she escaped the Magi, Kalesi was there to carry her away. Mevi¡¯s thoughts drew inevitably back to her, and she wished against logic that the woman would stride into the room and slay the beast that had hunted her. Mevi couldn¡¯t allow herself to think such longing thoughts, regardless of the creature¡¯s departure she needed to find a way out. This began with investigating the room around her.

 Chapter 11: The Fall, Part 2

    Before Mevi was confident enough to lift herself into a sitting position, she waited for several minutes while breathing quietly. The creature sounded as if it had left slowly, possibly stalking the outside hallway. Yet from what she could hear, as her adrenaline subsided, there was no noise to speak of for several minutes. She finally decided to risk her own movement, and sat up on the stone tile floor. With as little noise as possible Mevi scanned the area for her tools. Her welding stick, and only light, was dreadfully far away after clattering to the ground in her haste. Her bending hammer was close by, and she could reach the bone stave. After taking a few moments to collect herself again, and to fight through the agonizing pain of her right leg, Mevi resolved herself to try and get up.

    Taking her walking implement in hand, Mevi rose into a mockery of a standing position. Limping as she gathered her welding stick, for her mobile source of light was most important. Mevi could finally see what place she found herself in. The majority of the room was covered in collapsed debris, spilling from the ceiling and partially blocking what looked like the main doorway. The room seemed quite deep, much larger than even the workshop she studied her tools in only a few hours ago¡­ Once Mevi was reminded of her situation again, and recalled her hazy memories, she realized she had no inclination of how much time had passed. Even in her panic, how much time had passed couldn¡¯t be guessed, with her pain overriding most of her senses. She hoped she hadn¡¯t been gone for long, the idea of needing to find food in a desolate place like this did not appeal to her.

    Mevi tried to observe the rest of the room, but with so little light and her own injuries distracting her, she failed to notice anything of significance. Her desire to continue being productive started the waver. She had no idea where she was, how far she had fallen, or what had been trying to chase her. She was in immense pain, and what little knowledge she had of injuries told her that her leg needed immediate care. Her willpower began to fail her, the rush of adrenaline running low and no longer keeping her from breaking down. Regardless, she couldn¡¯t stay in such a place. The idea of being trapped and lost in this pit of horror made her hate where she found herself. With small tears welling in her eyes, she forced herself from collapse and refused to give in.

    Mevi tried her best to limp around the room, not needing her bending hammer or wanting to carry it without a reason. The area was large, even being filled with so much wreckage, and there seemed to have been much to do in this room once. Yet most of what might have been furniture was ruined, devices were rusted, and any hint of items were covered in thick layers of dust or were destroyed. The room looked like some strange workshop, filled with several tables that might¡¯ve once had various devices and tools stored on or in them, but it was more like a junkyard of rust now.

    Mevi spent some time walking the length of her new hideaway. The tables were ruined and falling apart, having once been bolted to the floors but no longer stable. What might have been storage installed into the walls had fallen and collapsed into large piles of rubble. What seemed like glass shards were scattered across the floor in small piles, she made careful work of limping across the space so as to not fall. Everything seemed broken and destitute. But for one thing in the room. In the far corner, a metallic table that was partially covered in tumbling rubble, held what looked to be a mostly intact glass ornament of some kind. Without proper light it was hard to see. Yet as Mevi approached the ornament seemed more a container than some sort of decorative piece. Inside the small container was a strange gemstone faceted to the remains of some old and rotted glove. Only the gem and the snaking metallic wires, that might have once held it to the glove, remained. Part of the glass container was broken, and a fist sized hole gave jagged access to the contents within.

    Mevi cast her dreary gaze back across the room and towards the tiny dim light seeping in from the hallway outside. She was tired, badly hurt, and was quickly realizing how doomed she actually was. She missed Kalesi, and even Nessia along with Marcus with their companions and mentor. What few people had been pleasant towards her she realized she cared for, to a very small degree in Marcus¡¯s case. Her first real day in the new life she was conscripted into against her will had led her to terror and broken bones. Worst of all, she was enshrouded again in darkness. The only source of light promising danger above all else. Even if she wanted to sit by the light, its eminence would guarantee anything outside could see her as she could see the source of the illumination. The risk of sitting too close to the door was too great. Mevi wanted to cry, but had to force herself to be silent for fear of being found. Even her own internal pain was prevented from ventilation. At least in the mansion, none would bother to enter her small room. There she could light up her brief moments completely to herself with her treasures, and she could allow her emotions to be free. The dread of the situation was beginning to take over, and Mevi noticed that her vision was blurring badly. Were her injuries finally overtaking her? Black void started to creep in around the edges of her vision, she felt the pain creeping its way up her limbs and into her soul. She just wanted to see light again. Proper light, any window that could whisk her away to a star¡¯s warm embrace no matter how blinding.

    As her vision faded, and her hopes began to leave her, Mevi noticed something at the edge of her view. A small iridescence. As she focused, it was a cold and blue shine. A faint, old, and dying light that fought against the darkness that threatened. Mevi turned her head, with what strength she had left, and could see some needle-point of light from her collapsed position. She had not even noticed she had collapsed onto the pile of rubble at the corner of the room. She had very little strength left within her, but that small fighting light compelled her to pull herself from agony. Her mind screamed that she wanted to be with that light! She needed to be with any light! Whatever the luminescence came from, she needs it for her own sanity to prevail. She pulled herself from the rubble and abandoned her staff. She grappled with what little strength she had left to mount the pile of rust she was being absorbed into. Her only functional arm stole what it could of strength, and her will provided the rest. She hoisted herself up against the metallic table, and peered into the glass container.

    The small gem, a blue and beautiful thing, was forcing out what little it had within itself to shine as if a small dot in a inky black sky. The only star that shone through what haze and dread covered Mevi¡¯s skies. Against any prior judgment, and her mind unable to process any other reasonable response, Mevi reached into the container and grasped the blue gem. The metallic wires and cables attached to the device seemed to be firmly entrenched into the base of the container but came loose at the moment of contact with Mevi. The object was stolen from its ancient resting place, and Mevi held the dying light in her hand. It was a pure thing, the blue sheen that fought to simply flicker. The light held no malice or radiance, it contained no power or will, it reminded her nothing of the Magi¡¯s brilliant display of malicious power. It was a small and harmless light, that strained against itself and the penetrating darkness, and seemed as if to react to Mevi¡¯s plea.

    Mevi held the gem in her hand, as its glow slowly dimmed as if dying. She couldn¡¯t see it die, she needed it to survive. If this small light couldn¡¯t survive against such darkness then how could she possibly try to resist against her own fate? She poured all she could into the small light, and it seemed to feed on her desire and began to grow in dim illumination. What was barely a glint then became a pin-sized starlight that started to grow to the mightiness of its wielder and shone like a flickering candle. The treasured light struggled to maintain itself, and Mevi could not think of how to preserve such a strange thing. But as she thought to try and assist it she began searching its container, but then she noticed the gem¡¯s appendages were reaching and grasping. The wires and cables, that hung like a seedling¡¯s roots, started to weakly attack Mevi¡¯s fingers and wrist as if it reacted to her thought a moment ago. She watched them drag against her bloody hands as if wanting to wrap around something. Then she realized what it might be trying to do, this gem must need to attach itself to her to function. Like with what looked like a glove, it needed to be worn in some way. It used what little strength it had within its ancient vessel to respond to Mevi¡¯s desires and notify her of its presence. Mevi didn¡¯t take any time to make her decision about the device.

    Mevi arranged the gem so it would sit in her palm, as it seemed to do on the old remains of the glove it was once attached to. After holding it in her palm, the wires and cables weakly snaked up her wrist and seemed to try to wrap themselves around her, halfway up her forearm. As the slow process seemed to finish, the smallest of cables reared up and inserted themselves into her skin. The assault was barely noticeable, only a small pinch from the point of impact and then nothing. As the gem seemed to settle and arrange itself in her grasp, it began to glow stronger than before. No longer a faint candle, it seemed to burn with blue light that could rival a flaming torch. The glorious illumination was bright and wonderful to behold, but as Mevi was marveling in the amazement she heard something from the hallway.

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    A shrill and prolonged scrape of metal against metal, as if someone had dragged a jagged dagger across a metallic sheet. The echoing howl of the monster that had hunted Mevi just minutes before. It was reacting in tandem with the brightness of her newfound weapon against darkness. Mevi willed the gem to be quiet, but not silent, and recalled how she focused on her own small gem. The device responded instantly, and seemed to sense exactly how much Mevi wanted it to dim. The illumination went from a fiery blaze to just enough to show Mevi¡¯s direct surroundings and floor. As she did so the scraping eventually stopped, but it had moved dangerously close to her location. The echoing sound of a metallic howl was hard to pinpoint just how far it had traveled, but Mevi could not believe it was very distant. The creature had somehow known of her when the gem activated. Did it react to heat, Mevi¡¯s own senses are so dulled and overcome with pain she didn¡¯t register anything spare for the light. Did it somehow sense the light despite outwardly seeming blind and eyeless? Or could it have sensed the activation of the strange device itself? Mevi didn¡¯t understand what this blue gem was, or what the monster outside was, but needed a solution soon.

    Mevi first needed to find a treatment for her leg. She stealthily made her way from the corner and scoured the room with her newfound light, or she scoured the room as stealthily as someone hopping around while lightly clanking a bone staff could. The echoing sound of her staff against the stone tile seemed to be amplified in Mevi¡¯s heightened state of awareness. She found herself sensitive to every sound, smell, and movement around her despite the pain she felt. She could faintly hear the sound of a slithering, wet, mass as it rubbed and writhed against itself slowly. The monster had to be close by, but how close was unclear. It had obviously not fully fallen for Mevi¡¯s trap, or had fallen for it and resolved to station itself where her clothes were found. Regardless, it sounded docile and unaware for now. Mevi took her opportunities as they arrived, and eventually found a suitable metal pipe she could fasten to her leg as a sort of brace and splint. She found her welding stick, as it had been briefly lost in her delirious state from before, using it slowly, and on its lowest setting, she cut the pipe in her lap. Her blouse wasn¡¯t long enough to properly cover her legs so small sparks occasionally singed and burned her flesh, but she ignored the pain as it was incomparable to the agony her leg constantly produced. The pipe was prepared, and with a tear in her clothes she produced bandages to secure the pipe to her own leg. She spared a part of the metal pipe to cut into smaller pieces using it for her left hand and wrist. In a few suspenseful minutes, Mevi had created a crude splint. It was stable enough, thanks to her now half as long blouse, and her leg and wrist were firmly secured.

    With her injuries handled, as best they could be in the situation, Mevi scanned the room again for ideas of what to do. She then recalled her hammer. The device was mostly meant to bend certain objects with ambient heat and some applied force. But its function to emit a short-range shatter was a viable distraction or defense if the worst came. Quietly hauling herself to the entrance, Mevi retrieved her hammer. Her hands full with the staff and her two tools. But her new splint could be used as temporary storage, as the situation was desperate. Mevi needed a plan, but before she could make one she needed to know how far away that monstrosity was. As her memory of the mass of flesh and hate returned to invade her thoughts, Mevi struggled to realize she needed to turn off her light source. For whatever reason the creature had become active at the same time she summoned the great light from her new gemstone. She could not risk it knowing where she was because of its use, even now it might sense the dim light that it produces but simply can¡¯t find out where it comes from. So with an increasingly heavy heart, Mevi wills the gemstone to darken.

    Desiring darkness, and enforcing her mind upon her newly found device, Mevi focuses to cement her logic over her instinct to cling to the light. As Mevi does so the gemstone dims, flickers, and puts itself out. Mevi lets out a sigh of relief that the device listens, and turns to track down the dying beam of light to approach the doorway¡¯s exit. Yet as she searches she can¡¯t tell if she is keeping her eyes closed or not, she is confused as to why she still can''t see anything. Even before the light from outside shone dim and short into the room, yet it was now gone completely. Mevi searched frantically, and hated the thoughts that crossed her mind as to what could have put out the light. As she fumbles and grasps at the space around her, she notices something. The light is still there, but muted and nearly gone. In her panic and partially delirious state she had taken the almost pitch black darkness for her eyes being shut. She saw the short beam from the hallway light source as it was letting out extremely little illumination. Mevi approached the beam slowly, fearing the light was losing power and then she would not be able to spot the monster. As she maneuvered around the beam of light and looked out the exit of her hideaway, she was perplexed beyond words.

    The beam of light, and the hallway, were emitting uneven illumination. The hallway was as bright, or as dim, as before and yet the beam of light leading into her hideaway was dimmed beyond comparison; it might not even be considered light. As Mevi looked out, ignoring the anomaly, she searched for the monster¡¯s bulbous form or sight of its location. In the hallway, where she had thrown her robes and cloak, large quantities of red ichor was drying on the tile and walls. As if splattered by some uncaring butcher. What might be considered footprints of a massive creature stumbled past the gory scene, and the hallway from where Mevi came was thoroughly coated in the bloody mess in varying degrees. Despite this, the blood didn¡¯t go much farther past where Mevi had abandoned her garments and there was no sign of the monster up or down the hallway. If the bloody substance was left behind by the creature, as some kind of secretion, it would be possible it hadn¡¯t gone past her hideaway. It might even be far down the hallway and in the darkness beyond where the glowing orbs reveal. A fair distance to say the least, and hopefully far enough that it can¡¯t see or sense Mevi¡¯s investigation.

    Turning her attention back to the anomaly, after confirming her immediate safety, Mevi looks at the dissimilar light levels cast on the ground. She dares to move partially out of her haven, and exits into the hallway slowly. She notices that as she moves the light seems to almost be absorbed and dissipates to the point of being almost pitch black. The darkness follows Mevi in a brief proximity, how far exactly is hard to tell but at least five meters of darkness seems to surround her. Looking down at her gemstone, and recalling her own command to it to ¡®darken¡¯ rather than deactivate. She wonders if this is coincidence or a chance anomaly. While still in the hallway, she tests her theory. Focusing with her mind, she commands the gemstone to deactivate or stop whatever it is doing. In the same instant the light flares back to life from the orb and beams back into her hideaway. In the same moment the light returns a rumbling clamor is heard from down the hall and past the darkness where the blood trail leads. The monster seems to suddenly notice her again, and a clash of activity explodes down the hall in an echoing cacophony. Mevi immediately yells in her mind that she needs the hallway to be darkened, she commands her gemstone to resume its task and darken the space around her again. As she does she whirles on her one leg and scrambles to enter her safe place again.

    It only took the monster a few moments of chaos to react, and possibly a minute to traverse the entire hallway. Yet halfway across the distance its rage seems to subside and it begins to approach where Mevi is in a more docile manner. As Mevi scrambles to the floor, and the light around her is consumed, she hides behind the closest table that has a small vantage of the outside. Even from over five meters away, part of the hallway outside is still consumed by her gemstone¡¯s darkness, a much larger radius of effect than before. The large body of the monster appears in the dim light, and it blocks out what light isn''t being actively hidden by Mevi. The details and form of the creature are almost entirely out of view due to its sheer size, and what can be seen is a gnarled and scaled trunk that must be one of its legs. The colors and features are muted and devoid of vibrance they might have once had, as the color and light around it is being consumed even from so far away. The creature idled by the doorway for at least one minute, but the duration felt like an hour. In the duration of its prowl Mevi accidentally let out a breath, and the creature reacted suddenly to the sound yet remained docile. Mevi dared to test something, and let out a slow and quiet gasp of air. Taking in what little she could muster in the monitored action, and letting out only what she allowed in. The slow and deliberate motion of breathing, despite Mevi¡¯s racing heart, didn¡¯t seem to alert the creature. In fact even to Mevi¡¯s own ears certain sounds seemed muted and slow. She worked her breathing slowly up to a normal pace, and the creature still didn¡¯t react. After its investigation concluded it turned and seemed to return down the hallway. Mevi was fascinated and stared down at the clinging gemstone.

    Yet as the creature left, Mevi could feel herself becoming faint. Not noticing it before but as she stood up she became suddenly dizzy. While she looked down at the gemstone, she could still see the smallest wires despite the dimmed light and felt a tingling coming from them. She willed the stone to deactivate completely again. As it did, some of the light dripped into the room once more. Mevi placed her hand in the way of the dim light, and illuminated her arm. Where the small wires were inserted, black veins streaked in stark contrast to her naturally pale skin. Horrified of the potential of having some kind of infection, she watched in confusion as the veins slowly returned to a normal state and disappeared under her skin after the black infection faded completely. As her arm returned to normal the sense of unease and dizziness faded quickly after. The device and its functions were slowly becoming known to her.

    It seemed to have control over both light and darkness, to some degree, yet enacted some kind of price. What the price was isn¡¯t clear, but continued use seemed to result in pain, unease, dizziness, and whatever the black veins represented. Altogether the unknown power she now somehow possessed seemed both a boon and a threat. She seemed entirely unnoticed when the device darkened her movements and breaths, outside of sudden and loud noises. Yet if used for too long, the device might make her faint or simply deactivate and if either happened near the beast she would almost certainly die. Yet despite the unease and potential danger, Mevi sensed an opportunity. She could not believe waiting and hiding would save her from such a monster. What could Kalesi even do against such a beast? That is if Kalesi even knows she is missing and tries to find her. No. Mevi must find some way to save herself, and if she is to either die in fear and starvation or in an attempt to live and flee she will fight to live.

 Chapter 12: The Escape, Part 1

    Mevi again waited for the horror to pass from the hallway¡¯s dim illumination into the far darkness. Once the creature seemed to stop moving, as evident from Mevi¡¯s strangely heightened sense of hearing, she enacted her plan. First she needed to test the monster¡¯s responses, before fully fleeing from her hideaway. Mevi willed the strange device to darken and mute the area directly around her. After feeling the shift in the air around her, that made even her own breathing sound inaudible without concentrated listening, Mevi slowly approached the exit. Limping from her safe haven, Mevi exited into the hallway fully. The area around her was completely darkened, the absorbing element reaching less than a meter in diameter focused on the gemstone device. Mevi prepared herself and began breathing normally, then she moved from side to side in silent motions by the entrance of her hideaway. The creature had no reactions, she could somehow hear what might be considered breathing from down the hallway. A billowing gust of air going in and out with a steady rhythm. But no abnormal or enraged response, the horror seemed docile despite Mevi standing in full view under the orb of light. Her next test required some risk, she needed to know how loud she could be while her presence was masked in this way.

    Mevi worked up her courage and decided to speak. A small whisper, ¡°Hello?¡±, and there was nothing. Her normal register, ¡°Hello?¡±, a slight stir in the creature¡¯s breathing as if disturbed. Yet the thing didn¡¯t seem to move or notice beyond potentially moving what qualified as its head, causing a brief scraping noise against the tile from some hanging limb. Mevi didn¡¯t need to test louder than her normal voice, if her natural quiet could alert the creature she needed to be careful. Her final test of sound, and her most risky. She held her bone staff and lightly tapped it against the ground, and there was no response. In her shuffling around the hallway up until now she had been doing small, quiet, hops to move around, but now she walked with her staff assisting her. For safety¡¯s sake she walked no further than a meter from her hideaway¡¯s entrance while using her staff as she leaned heavily against it. The tap was muted, and didn¡¯t seem to echo, but the creature snorted as if alerted to something. Mevi paused all movement and waited for the horror to become idle again. Once it seemed to resume its normal breathing, Mevi leaned a little less on the staff and was more monitored in how hard she had it tap against the hard floor. The sound was almost unnoticeable to her, and the creature seemed to agree. Her final test was about to begin.

    Mevi needed to know how long she could manage to use the device before becoming dizzy. Since the start of her testing a minute might have passed, possibly two. So Mevi looked at her arm, and there were no signs of the black veins. She admitted to herself it was difficult to tell due to the monochrome darkness that seemed to easily hide descriptions she desperately needed. She at least didn¡¯t feel uneasy or dizzy yet, and resolved to stand in the hallway until she could sense her unease.

    If time slowed to a crawl, Mevi had a hard time telling. She paced herself and silently counted the creature¡¯s breaths to maintain consistency. Counting for what seemed like many minutes, but according to her pace was likely only a few at best. While her senses were dulled from her own pain and exhaustion, she managed to determine that she began to feel a slight dizziness after about three minutes. She was still stable and unimpeded, so she continued her test for up to five minutes. The last twenty seconds stretched and wore her willpower thin, and she had to give up before she approached five full minutes. Limping eagerly back into her hidden chamber and collapsing as she ordered her device to cease its function.

    As Mevi fell forward into the dark interior, a slight disruption to the monster¡¯s breathing cycle was momentarily heard. As if it had sensed the muted darkness¡¯s passing or Mevi¡¯s collapse. Regardless, the monster remained where it was, and Mevi watched as the black veins retreated and faded. It was difficult to keep an exact measure after her test¡¯s end, but it probably took at least a full minute before Mevi felt recovered and what passed for her current normal.

    Unsure exactly how helpful doing this test once would be, but fearing repeated use might just exhaust her, Mevi needed to begin her escape. After her recovery, and the disappearance of the black veins, she gathered herself and her things. Storing her welding stick and bending hammer in her splint, causing a small amount of discomfort. Without many other choices, Mevi decided to head further down the hallway, keeping track of how far she walked and resolving to only walk for 2 minutes unless she spotted a place to hide. If she couldn''t find a new alcove or accessible hole, Mevi would make haste back to her hideaway. Unnecessary risks could be her undoing at a time like this, yet her slowly worsening leg and continued exhaustion fought against her reasoning to be safe and urged her to escape with haste. Her internal conflict being won by the immediate danger versus her own discomfort and pain.

    Mevi limped quietly down the hallway, stopping only for a moment to ensure the monster didn¡¯t notice her exit. With what little haste she could make with her current speed while being quiet, she seemed to make decent enough progress down the hallway. Most of the area was illuminated by the orbs of light above her, high in their position on the tall ceiling. Even here, further in the hallway, the walls and inscriptions seemed to be blackened with scorch and decay.

    To Mevi¡¯s growing dismay, anything that might have once been a hallway or door seemed barricaded or destroyed. In the first minute she passed by several doors similar to the one she accessed, spare for the fact that they were thoroughly destroyed and collapsed. As she continued to trek, keeping track of her distance with her internal counting, she eventually wandered far enough her heightened senses could no longer register the monster¡¯s breathing. The pressure seemed to drop around her, as the constant reminder of her reaper¡¯s presence made her additionally weary. Yet its sudden quiet made her almost worry, was she just too far away or was it quiet on purpose? The creature might be more clever than it seems, and if it began approaching her now she would not be able to escape it. Quick glances behind her every few moments reassured her it was at least not within the light¡¯s reach yet. But her mind at war with its own senses and thoughts made for a poor clock.

    Mevi realized that she had been preoccupied with the creature¡¯s presence disappearing and had forgotten to keep track of her own time. How much time could she have possibly lost? A second, maybe five? Her own mind was trying to rival against the loud beat of her own heart and the panic that monstrous abomination inspired. Mevi quickly scanned the area around her, there was a small spot that might once have been a new hallway. This collapsed hallway indented a meter or two, enough that she could be out of sight of the hallway itself and potentially hidden from the beast. She couldn¡¯t risk going forward, and didn¡¯t know how much time she had left to risk going back. So Mevi ducked into the small indent, pressing herself against the rubble and trying to be as small as possible. Without any further choice, she deactivated her device and prayed to her ancestors that she would be safe.

    As the muted darkness dispersed and returned to the gemstone, Mevi waited for the sound of screaming rage to echo down the hallway. Yet it didn¡¯t come. The creature might not have noticed her darkened aura disappearing since she was out of clear sight. Or it may have moved from its position in the hallway all together. Her thoughts raced with potential, maybes, and hope. As she regained her composure, to a degree, she looked at her arm. The thin lines of black veins seemed like they were only beginning to take root, only partially noticeable. Then as soon as they were noticed, the alien infection began to fade away and disappear. A sigh of relief escaped Mevi, who quickly tried to catch it, as without her hidden presence she could be more easily heard.

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    Mevi caught her breath, and attempted to be as quiet as she could muster. After feeling some relief she worked up her courage and reactivated the device, and made her way again down the hall. Focusing on her internal clock, and ticking away at the time to herself, she patrolled for potential hideaways and new paths. But this hallway seemed to go on forever without any deviation or interruption. Only a few alcoves of safety could be found, and they were scattered far apart. Yet Mevi used their presence, without fail, every time she found one that could keep her mostly out of sight. No further doorways were ever opened enough that she could walk inside, and any holes large enough for her to climb through seemed to lead to collapsed spaces and cramped tunnels.

    Mevi continued for a time, focusing on putting as much distance as possible between her and the beast she escaped. As her continuing path progressed, she could see what seemed like an end to the hallway. At the end of her vision there was an opening that stretched out into darkness. Whatever hope was mustered began to quickly fail, how could she stumble in the dark in her state? Without being able to use light she would become easily lost, hurt, or worse. Yet if she used light she would almost certainly give away her presence. Her path seemed doomed regardless of direction, so without any choice she continued forward.

    There was a small room that opened up a few meters wide and two meters long. Mevi ducked into the open doorway and used it to conceal her presence. Her strategy and methods worked thus far, and this room in particular offered a much larger degree of space to hide within. Mevi hid within and deactivated her device, instinctively looking to her arm to track the dark veins. Yet as her shroud disappeared, a great intake of air echoed from the open chamber she was planning to enter into. Mevi froze and stopped her breathing and any movement. The air was released as if in a great sigh. A chittering and scrambling was muffled yet reached her ears, as if far away. These sounds entirely different from the metallic horror of flesh and sinew she ran from before.

    Echoing from far away, as if suddenly awoken, Mevi could hear the sound of many hundreds of tapping, clawing, clattering, and scratching appendages. The source of the sound let out no howls of rage, but seemed as if waking up from a long slumber and slowly moving around its domain. The creature, or creatures, were obviously within the great expanse at the end of the hallway. The sound of the clamor seemed to emanate from many different sources and places, and funnel into the corridor. Mevi quickly looked down at her arm, the veins having disappeared fully by this point, and commanded her device to hide her presence again.

    The shroud of muted color and darkness loomed around her again, bathing her in the now familiar aura of silence. The chittering, that seemed to be growing in energy, started to dull and quiet. Yet the creature seemed to be awake now, and the clamoring of many hundreds of stilted legs tapped against stone and metal to echo down the way she had traveled. Mevi sensed her opportunity and began to quietly limp out of the small hiding place back the way she came. As she moved forward, preferring to confront a monster she could see than one she could not, she heard an echoing rage.

    Booming from down the corridor where Mevi had attempted to escape from, the shearing of metal and anger echoed with the fury of hundreds of clanging gears. The partially muffled and faraway sound was no doubt Mevi¡¯s previous monster, but how did it manage to sense her presence when she was hidden? Then she realized, the sound of the monster now behind her seemed to snicker and writhe in its own anger. Clattering along the walls and invisible expanse within the large chamber Mevi didn¡¯t dare to enter. Both creatures seemed to be aware of each other now, and they did not seem to appreciate the additional presence.

    The many legged thing didn¡¯t seem to notice Mevi, and it seemed content to stay where it was. The sound of its chittering retreated slightly further within the chamber, as if it might have been readying to run or simply repositioning much farther away. Yet the angered metallic clanging echoed from down the hallway, its rage and shrill screams sounding as it seemed to be charging in Mevi¡¯s direction.

    Mevi needed to determine what to do. She hadn¡¯t tested how close she could get to one of these monsters with her device active. Yet she hardly thought hiding in the all-too-small space would be helpful either. If these two massive beasts fought, or otherwise invaded the space around her, she would certainly get caught up and likely crushed under their malice or sheer size. Mevi needs to make a decision, and she chooses to deal with one creature rather than two.

    Limping as hastily as she could while maintaining her quiet, Mevi began fleeing back down the way she came. She quickly realized the two monster¡¯s angered cries and war shouts drowned out any noise she could make. She fell over in her panic several times, yet the sound of her scattering across the tile didn¡¯t seem to alert or otherwise notify the monsters of her presence. They might have even been so absorbed in their bloodlust they wouldn¡¯t pay attention to her, but that wasn¡¯t something she planned to test. Since she had mapped the hallway already, finding the hiding spots to recharge her stamina was easy enough and she could progress faster since she didn¡¯t need to worry about her walking staff¡¯s tapping alerting the creatures. The metallic and fleshy horror was approaching rapidly, Mevi refusing to look directly at the abominable form as it darted in and out of illumination. When its angered clamor was at its zenith Mevi darted into one of the closest hiding spots she found. She couldn¡¯t risk deactivating her shroud, but knew she had at least a minute left before it became dangerous to continue using it.

    Mevi hid, in a small nook that barely fit her tiny body. What might be more akin to a fox hole, or a rabbit den, than something a human would try using to escape a predator. Yet her small body allowed her to conceal herself amongst the rubble. She waited for the screaming monster to pass her by, and as the sound of war and carnage approached it seemed to slow slightly. Her worst fears began racing across her mind, the creature sounded as if it were easily within eyesight even with the light orb¡¯s sporadic placement. The still enraged beast stopped its charge close by. Its huffing and puffing of air and anger billowing out of its form as the creature shook the ground with every step. The thing¡¯s trunk-like legs appeared at the edge of Mevi¡¯s sight, and she recoiled as far back as the small hole would allow. She begged her gemstone to hide her from this monster.

    As the massive form of scaled legs came into full view, a misting miasma of red engulfed the area. The dripping ichor seemed to be a gaseous substance that emanated from the thing¡¯s mangled body, and it stuck to nearby surfaces congealing into the familiar bloody mess. If it was truly blood, or simply a thick red slime, Mevi couldn¡¯t tell. The creature¡¯s legs were in full view as it briefly searched the area around Mevi¡¯s hiding spot. Taking in the smells and sounds of the terrain, trying to drown out the responding choir of chittering and cackling from further down the hallway. This massive monstrosity¡¯s legs were easily twice the size of Mevi, and its main body was out of sight in her disadvantaged position. Occasionally a grasping tendril groped at its surroundings and moved past Mevi¡¯s sight. But none of the appendages got close to her hiding spot, as it was mostly hidden by the pile of rock and rubble collapsing part of the hallway. The creature seemed annoyed, it stomped at the ground and sprayed miasma in foul gouts from its body like erupting geysers. The smell of gore and flesh permeated the area around the monstrous form, but Mevi maintained her vow of silence and kept her breath monitored if she breathed at all.

    The monstrous form eventually was reminded of its enemy, and began to rile itself against its own rage of whatever was at the end of the hallway. The monster continued its charge after confirming Mevi wasn¡¯t there. It barreled past her position and left a gorey trail of sticky red following it as it made its way to assault whatever was in the darkened chamber. Mevi continued her practice and monitored breathing, allowing her to return to normal again. She released the gemstone¡¯s shroud so she could recover, almost two minutes passed and she had began to feel dangerously ill and dizzy. The creature was farther away as it had run past her with great speed.

    As Mevi recovered and decided to begin climbing from her hiding place, she heard the clash. What sounded like two massive titans of metal and scale railed against each other in a cacophony of rage. The two creatures were almost certainly performing their dance of battle and war, and this was Mevi¡¯s best chance to plot her escape. To return where she found her belongings and retrace her steps, in some vain hope it might lead her to salvation. Mevi fully exited her hiding place and activated her gemstone device, not bothering with silence and making all haste down the hallway.

 Chapter 12: The Escape, Part 2

    As Mevi rushed down the hallway, the sounds coming from behind her became louder and more violent. The ground shook as the entities fought in the abyss beyond the corridor. Her injuries seemed to be only getting worse, and in the panicked haste she forced her bad leg to propel her forward despite her increasing agony. As the alien cries reached a crescendo of violence and earth-shaking quakes of battle, Mevi stumbled into the darkness at the end of the long hallway.

    She hadn¡¯t realized it, but at some point Mevi forgot to reactivate her gemstone device¡¯s shroud. The ascending roil of the two beasts had urged her to continue without the assistance of her new device. Even within the darkness she plunged without hesitation. She could see only slight outlines and blurry shadows as the race from the terror behind her continued. Mevi met with the remains of the collapsed rocks she had snuck through in her previous attempt at escape, the pile was reduced to dust and pebbles and several chunks of the walls were cloven free of their original structure. The terrain was made more difficult with the large rocks and shards of metal scattering across the corridor. The uneven terrain, that gave way at the slightest mistake, made her crossing additionally difficult. Yet the rage behind her seemed to be dying down, or slowing. Maybe she was getting too far away to hear it? Mevi couldn¡¯t tell what was going on behind her anymore, and to be away from the alien broadcast of anger and battle was both a boon and curse.

    Mevi conquered the collapsed ruin and crossed the rocky pond that threatened to bury her with every wrong step. As she rounded the corner and progressed further back the way she originally came, what little sounds of fighting there still remained were now muffled and quiet. Her own rushed sprint over obstacle and through darkness was slowing as well, as her breath would no longer accompany her any further in her quest for freedom. Mevi fell against the wall, to catch what strength she had left, as the sounds of fighting titans echoed quietly through the hallway and gusted past her. The sound of thousands of cries and screams of unholy horrors bounced off the walls and propelled themselves into a cacophonous choir that assaulted Mevi¡¯s few senses.

    Mevi only allowed herself a short rest. She couldn''t risk being tracked by either creature, at least not until she put enough distance between herself and her potential pursuer. While her mind traced her distance she came to the realization; there is more than one monster in this soon-to-be crypt of hers. The creatures at least seemed to dislike each other, unless their angered cries was some form of greeting she couldn¡¯t understand. She needed to be increasingly careful patrolling new paths and unfamiliar territory. She had caught her breath at this point, losing herself in the distant sounds of eternal battle. How long the faraway entities had been fighting she didn¡¯t know, she had lost track of any sense of time when she deactivated her gemstone device. All she knew was those two monsters could not fight each other indefinitely. One would rise victorious, or one would retreat to a different territory. If either happened, she might very well become a target of their hunt again.

    Without any other real choice, Mevi forced herself to her feet again. The darkness offset by the distant blue glow that shone faraway like an impossibly faroff star in the night sky. Her destination was clear, she needed to find where she had entered this hellish pit from and in doing so hopefully secure her own escape. Where her items had been found would be the easiest places to start. So Mevi began her quickened limping, using her guiding star to ensure her direction was true.

    Mevi eventually lost track of the echoing sounds from behind her. The journey back from where she originally came seemed much longer than she remembered. Perhaps her panic and haste had made the distance seem shorter, or perhaps Mevi was becoming more and more exhausted. Her hope was the former, as she needed her body to hold together until she could find some place she could determine was safe. Yet the exhausting trek eventually concluded as the brightness of the blue star stretched its dim limbs out from the cavernous crater and into the hallway she now progressed through. The vast open space soon revealed itself to her, and she stood at the scene of the slope¡¯s murder.

    The side of the crater was torn into crushed boulders, scattered rubble, and jagged gouges. The metallic beast that chased her had obviously given up on attempting to ascend the side as normal, and preferred to cut out entirely new ledges and crude steps to allow it to scale the now less steep cliff. Indeed the side of the crater was a cliff. Her perception of the places she had swarmed past had been corrupted by confusion, pain, and terror. The side of the crater seemed to reach several meters high, maybe upwards to ten. When she first came upon the crater, and how she fell down the nearly sheer face so gracefully and without major injuries had to be some kind of miracle. Yet the way down was now more easily traversed, with the gouged ledges and platforms created by the monster¡¯s own progression.

    Mevi descended into the crater, carefully navigating the rolling piles of rubble and metal. After her third stumble and collapse, she finally sprawled against the flatness of the floor within this large cavernous room. The blue orb shone its dim light like her holy savior, and provided her much needed respite from the near complete darkness she had been immersed in from her gemstone device. She didn¡¯t have enough time to properly survey the area before, due to the creature pursuing her, but she could finally investigate the surroundings that were basking in the cold light.

    The bowl-shaped center of the room expanded far and occupied the majority of the space available, if such an expanse could be considered a room. As Mevi investigated the walls for doors, passages, or new objects of interest, the walls were some of the first she noticed weren¡¯t scorched black. The walls, while still decrepit and ruinous, were a clean marble with inscriptions of a silvery blue metal. The walls, and even most of the ceiling, were covered in the strange and illegible silvery blue material. The icons of inscription were all at least the length and height of Mevi herself, and some were incredibly larger than that. The blue orb was what Mevi assumed was the source of light in this large space, but as she watched the many inscriptions seemed to produce their own weak light that reflected off the orb within the center. Many of the inscriptions were void of any illumination or power, and contributed only to the dimness of the room.

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    As Mevi became bewildered by the form and function of this obviously ancient ruin, she noticed several passages beyond those trailed with blood and gore. Three other passages seemed to stretch out in varying points, while some other points might once have breached into this space but were now blocked. Mevi debated the points of interest. She needed to know where she came from, or at least where she entered these ruins from. Her gut told her to investigate the room of blood and bone with her newfound light, while her fear wanted to flee into the winding tunnels and passages. She had found her welding stick within the gore and muck, but her bending hammer was somehow placed in the center of this room. Her mind confused itself, there was no rhyme or reason to what was happening or how she got here. In the first place, if she was within that monster¡¯s den why had it not eaten or killed her? It seemed determined to pounce upon her when it noticed her, unless she was somehow undetected by it? Her thoughts were jumbled with ideas and possibilities, the decision of where to go seemed doomed to fail in some way regardless of her path. Mevi sighed and resigned herself to the most obvious clue.

    Mevi reluctantly abandoned the craterous room, and began to scale the side of the short cliff. The ledges she attached to were covered in partially dried bloody ichor, and as the warmth in her hands grasped what handholds she found the ichor seemed to almost melt and become slippery. Mevi wondered if this was why the monster had so much trouble climbing the slope on its own. The creature seemed to emit this strange substance, regardless of its intent or purpose, and it caused the scaling of heights to become doubly more difficult. Regardless, Mevi managed to struggle against the challenges posed against her and she reached the top. Now was the moment of truth. She resumed her quest of discovery and immersed herself in the waning light, eventually parting from it entirely.

    Consumed by the darkness within the foreign corridor, Mevi slowly limped into the origin of her terror. Where she had awoken would be through this long passageway. As the last dredges of dim light escaped her, she resolved herself. Regardless of the fact her deadly reaper had sensed it before, Mevi willed her gemstone device to brighten her surroundings slightly. The blue gem began to glow slowly, and eventually illuminated a dreary light. The provided illumination was enough to engulf her in a dim portrait, and provide enough light that she could see slightly easier her surroundings. She could at least see either wall, along with the scorched and clawed terrain that it hid under the blackened scars.

    Mevi ignored the red ichor that coated the corridor, it lined the walls with such density she didn¡¯t recall from before. Regardless of her surroundings, Mevi pushed on into the dreadfully familiar territory. As she passed further and further into the monster¡¯s domain, the gore and fleshy piles increased more and more. She had missed many of the details along the floor when she previously limped quickly past without looking down. With her hunched exhaustion and quickly weakening state, she found herself often forced to gaze upon the blighted scenes around her.

    After a while of walking, no more than five or ten minutes, Mevi arrived at where she had originally awoken. The large room opened immediately into a sprawling cave of some kind. Not nearly as large as the cavernous crater, but still intimidatingly large in comparison to her previous hideaway. The worst of her encounter was soon to come. As Mevi turned to take in the entirety of the room, only barely illuminating a few meters around herself, she caught a glance at a gruesome pile.

    Stacked almost adjacent to where she stood, was a mound of flesh, bone, and robes. Robes that were torn, tattered, and in any number of colorful combinations. By what she remembered and observed, the design of the robes seemed to be that of initiates and other newcomer servants to the Magi. The piles didn¡¯t even seem to be eaten, or otherwise used. The gore was strewn across the floor like some macabre display of decor. The faces of the lost were twisted into grimaces and pained agony, if there was any face left to be observed at all. Broken and shattered bone, skull, and torn flesh scattered across the abhorrent mound of death. Mevi couldn¡¯t turn away fast enough before taking in more than she desired of the unholy effigy¡¯s features. She turned her back to the pit of death and wretched what was left within her. The brief sight of the monstrous horror wasn¡¯t enough to break her, not even the terror of pain and death, but the sight of so many lost souls¡­ Some of them younger than she was, by the size of what remained of their piled bodies.

    Mevi fell to her knees, wincing in pain as she fell and slammed her injured leg against the wet floor. The ichor was now soaking into her bare flesh. Her hands were bloodied before, but her cloak and robes had protected her from the majority of the filth. Mevi held her hands in front of herself and noticed how much she was shaking. Pain and death was one thing, but the tortured bodies of others made her sick beyond anything she has felt before. She fought against herself, struggling against some argument within her own mind. She slammed her hands against the wet floor, and gasped in pain as she remembered her wrist. She laid there, sprawled against the blood-soaked ground in her own filth and the gore of others doomed as she was. What could she possibly do in this situation? What could she possibly hope for, someone might rescue her? The others within this chamber of torment probably thought the same as her. Maybe some didn¡¯t escape as quickly as she did, but she couldn''t believe she was the first to try and survive within this pit.

    Mevi sat there, righting herself to lean against the wall of the corridor, removing what thoughts she could of the room from her own mind as quickly as possible. She needed to forget. She didn¡¯t want to think or remember about pain and agony. The twisted expressions within the dead dyes of so many corpses. Her body was convulsing and shaking violently, she had nothing left within her. She couldn''t possibly hope to survive. But she knew one thing. She hated that monster. The terror it caused her, the pain it inflicted against so many already. She hated it more than she thought possible. She didn¡¯t understand what it was, only that it was evil and she did not permit herself to think otherwise. She couldn''t possibly survive, regardless of what she did or didn¡¯t do. So she decided to find a way to wound the monster as best she might manage. She remembered her bending hammer, its ability to create sonic emissions that could shatter stone and dent metal. What it might do to flesh would be devastating. If she were to harm this monster she needed a plan. And she realized she had a powerful bait at her disposal.

 Chapter 12.5: Kalesi, The Warning

    The two Neophytes had been walking for a time after their previous encounter with the small band of assailants. Kalesi had to rummage through her bag to find one of her devices, the task made more difficult with the billowing dust winds that blocked most vision. Yet she found her targeted device. It looked like a square flashlight of sorts, with a handle that had several buttons. The device was called a ¡°Spectoria¡±, the reasons why eluded Kalesi¡¯s memory. Yet the thing allowed her to be rid of certain uncleanliness, as it used a weak beam to disintegrate some types of filth, and Kalesi would use it to remove the stains of blood from her skin and the splattered amounts on her robes. The device also allowed her to change certain material¡¯s colors and even etch symbols into objects if she had the inclination. Once cleaned, Kalesi used the Spectoria to change the motif of her outfit from bright whites with contrasting rose red, with golden accents, to a more dull brown and gray combination. As she was modifying her own clothes to suit her better, she caught Naazir glancing at her short instance of ritual cleaning. Kalesi thought to joke with the brute, but decided against prodding him with japes and humor since it would be lost on him anyway. As Kalesi finished she spoke up to the still staring Naazir, ¡°You know, we could have kept one of them alive. I assumed you deactivated your other blade so as to capture the one you fought. They might have been useful, for whatever we are doing here.¡±

    Naazir straightened his gaze back to watching the sprawling pipe-highway before him, ¡°They were not deemed useful.¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t like that about Naazir, his outwardly positive demeanor offset by an ¡®efficient¡¯ and blunt personality, ¡°Then I suppose it can¡¯t be helped.¡±

    The two had only gone on a few missions, and when they first met his mannerisms were much more cordial and friendly than what he defaults to now. In the presence of others, he usually feigns an out-going and friendly personality, but at some point he seemed to decide he didn¡¯t need to do that with her anymore. At least there wasn¡¯t as much circular conversations and backward logic that many other Neophytes use. Their practiced debate and dribbling so as to act like ¡®Nobility¡¯, and thus better than others and unable to concede in even a simple conversation.

    Naazir started walking a little faster, taking a position slightly ahead of Kalesi. They were approaching one of the hamlets within the outer portions of the Pipes. He stayed close enough that they wouldn¡¯t become separated, but seemed like he was deep in thought or ignoring Kalesi. Despite his bluntness and simple but sound logic, his internal thoughts were still a mystery. So often he seemed to be thinking about things with such seriousness, regardless of where he was or what he was doing. Yet only someone who knew him could tell, his friendly exterior still shining a little too brightly for the terrain they walked and the environment they traversed. Sometimes his eyes would look just a little more empty, and his darting glances more sluggish, while he thought about something he deemed important.

    An experienced Surveyor would continue walking without halt at the pair¡¯s current point, not realizing they had arrived in the middle of a rusted hamlet. The collapsed buildings looked vacant and empty, the pipes bore holes and breaches covered in rust. The area looked as many other places did, void of livable conditions. The dust storm decreased visibility even further. Yet those dilapidated structures and penetrations into the great conduits of the Barge held a surprising number of gazing eyes and watchful stares. Their arrival to the territories controlled by the local dissidents had been almost unnoticeable, and they were being followed and watched carefully. Naazir had the two of them stop after walking a ways further into the ruinous dwellings. His mind was again on the present and he was waiting for our guide and escort from the community.

    Few from the outside knew of the strange culture within the Pipes, but that knowledge could prove fatally important depending on your destination and martial prowess. When one is to enter a new community, rust city, or other controlled territory, you are expected to wait until someone from said community approaches you. To traverse their land without permission would make you an enemy, and they would attack and ambush you without hesitation. Yet to enter and wait patiently shows you mean no harm, or at least want a discussion of some kind. Kalesi was almost surprised the two hadn¡¯t continued their path to accomplish whatever they were tasked with, assuming Naazir and Lord Magi Falcier would not care or wish to deal with locals. Yet the mysterious methods of both individuals always seemed to elude her.

    Out from the billowing dust, a figure begins to emerge and approach the pair who stood patient for several minutes. A spindly and emaciated man penetrated the cloud of corrupting wind that gusted past the two with a fury. Skinny, yet obviously not weak, and with sparse hair that showed signs of Rust infection. The overly demure demeanor of the creature struck Kalesi to think he was a coward and possibly forced to be their escort. Yet she didn¡¯t let her guard down, as even if you follow the customs within the Pipes you can never assume the dissident locals would be peaceful.

    The figure didn¡¯t approach closer than five meters, seeming to fumble with their words and what to say. Naazir spent no time debating his approach, switching fully into his friendly and boisterous attitude as he walked up to the man laughing loudly. The creature seemed to recoil at the approach and desperately searched his surroundings for an escape route, yet found none as Naazir¡¯s size deceived many into thinking he was slow. Naazir firmly grasped an arm around the much smaller man¡¯s right shoulder, his other hand gripping the left, ¡°Greetings friend! I was hoping we would encounter such courteous folk! Shall we head inside to wait out this dreaded storm? We have some quantity of rations we can share to have food and be merry as we talk!¡±

    The man perked up at the mere mention of food, and Kalesi could sense sudden shuffling movement in some of the shadows and hidden corners around them, the obviously hungry man sputtered out, ¡°Oh! Yesht! Wesh hes fuud, yesht?¡±

    Kalesi had to hold herself from sighing at the decrepit form of language the creature used, yet Naazir was unfazed and continued, ¡°Yes indeed! We should have a decent enough amount for you and your family if you might help us!¡±

    The creature was excited now, yet looking around cautiously, ¡°Yesht! Com, Yesht, com!¡±

    The two were invited to follow the tiny thing, his form was comparable to Kalesi¡¯s small pupil and maybe even smaller. The hidden glances and watchful eyes tracked their group¡¯s movement, and seemed to even follow as they journeyed into the entangled network the community lived within. They were led down a precarious set of carved stairs, barely functional due to intense rust, and found themselves on the out-of-sight colony under the pipes that hung over the infinite abyss below. The dwellings were quite expansive, probably housing several hundred if not a few thousand individuals despite this community being considered small. Even Kalesi couldn¡¯t have noticed all of the territory this clan seemed to possess, the start of their homes and public areas had started much farther than when Kalesi assumed they entered their land. Regardless, the spindly escort took them through the hanging village across hanging metallic bridges that were held in place by welded struts against the bottom of the twisting conduits.

    Many from their populace ventured out of their homes, braving the dust storm to watch as the foreigners walked their paths and invaded their community. Yet the man who was guiding them seemed eager to reach his destination and took the pair deep into the settlement¡¯s core. Reaching a slightly larger building than some of the others, that was carved into the side of an ancient collapsed tower, the man had them wait outside as he ventured within. A small crowd had formed around their tour of the settlement. While awaiting their guide to return, all of their routes of escape and alternate paths were blocked by at least a few curious denizens. Some probably heard rumors of food, while others were readying for a confrontation, most were probably just cautiously curious of the newcomers and their business. Kalesi couldn¡¯t bare to see the large group of them in their hovels and ragged clothes, their refusal of a better life.

    The Pipes was a strange place, and all who lived within were heretics, dissidents, rebels, and outlaws. Not even the children were able to escape their brand from the Magi. Yet that wasn¡¯t why Kalesi felt badly for them, it was for the fact that they refused to abandon their brand. It had been declared long before Kalesi joined the Barges; any and all from the Pipes who wished a better life may submit to become tributaries to a Magi that would accept them. All of the denizens, for one reason or another, refused to be ruled by the Magi and instead opted for a life of squalor and death. What worsened their life was the additionally decreed rule; any and all who remain within the Pipes, and who do not surrender themselves upon encounter with Magi-Representatives, are sentenced to death and may be slain without reprisal by any who are followers of the Magi. Kalesi could never understand the fervor with which they cling to their belief that this life is better for themselves and their descendants. Each one of them would know of the Magi¡¯s desire to welcome them, and yet they indoctrinate and force themselves and their children into a life of filth.

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    Kalesi is suddenly pulled from her thoughts, the squeamish and spindly man returns through the doors to invite them within. Kalesi and Naazir make their way inside, leaving the growing crowd to wonder what they came for. The interior was much to Kalesi¡¯s expectations, rust growing in the corners like mold, bare expanse without decoration or endearments, few if any furniture and what was there was made of stiff and jagged metal. The room they entered was only ten meters long at best and a few meters wide, in the center of the space was a circular table remarkably polished and without rust. The chairs stationed around it were old and bore signs of filth or decay upon the metal surfaces. Three were positioned around the table, and one was filled with a dark figure. As the two fully entered and the door closed behind them, the dark and cloaked figure waved a hand to dismiss the spindly man. The creature seemed disappointed but followed the command and exited behind the two intimidating newcomers.

    The dark figure wore heavy robes, as if they just ventured from some cold wasteland and doubled their layers. Their colors were mostly blacks and dark grays, but one could be fooled with the heavy coating of dust that tainted the designs of the once-extravagant display of fashion. Now they were little more than rags stained by their environment. The figure dared to glare at the two individuals who followed each policy and standard set to be invited into their realm. A glaring contest began between Kalesi and the figure, whose face was hidden beneath the heavy hood and by the dim light within the domicile. Naazir seemed to be debating how to work his way into the middle of the two, but then the seated figure gave up exacerbated. Sighing and throwing their hands into the air the thing stood up, the actions almost catching Kalesi off-guard. The figure removed her hood to reveal a feminine face scarred with a large burn on the right side of her face, one eye blinded by the old injury. Other scratches and deep scars scattered her features, and she stood almost as tall as Kalesi herself. What was worse, to Kalesi¡¯s growing displeasure, was her orange-red hair that hung in messy braids. The height, build, and form of the creature reminded Kalesi too closely of her own ancestry and home. The most remarkable of the figure¡¯s features was her eyes, they were a piercing silvery blue. Their eyes seemed to almost shine within the dim interior of the dwelling, and those shining eyes were a hallmark trait of her planet¡¯s royal family.

    Kalesi was aghast, but maintained her stoic glare. She refused to think this creature could possibly be from her planet. One of her people could not be so lost as to abandon the Magi for a life of pain and squalor, especially if they might be linked to royalty. Kalesi looked to Naazir, this obviously being his task and yet he was remarkably silent. The bulky figure, who was now dwarfed by the comparably taller females, seems to almost waver in his plastered smile as he thinks on what to say and do. The intriguing woman speaks up to break the tension, ¡°Greeting Naazir, Neophyte and Lieutenant of our Lord Magi Falcier. I welcome you to our community and my clan sends their greetings.¡±

    Naazir returns to himself, Kalesi perplexed by his strange unease, ¡°Yes, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. My companion is our requisitioned Socialite specialist.¡±

    The woman, who seems to be quite boisterous in a more genuine way than Naazir¡¯s feigned cordial attitude, speaks up, ¡°Good! I am Magi-Apprentice Masasi, and Lord Commander of our Great Lord Counselor, Thra¡¯Nasa¡¯s military coalition. I was eager to meet someone as distinguished as yourself, Kalesi.¡±

    Kalesi was surprised, and realized her own impure and crude thoughts towards someone of such high rank and in service to a Lord Counselor, kneeling immediately and apologizing, ¡°I apologize for my rude behavior, Lord Commander. Please forgive my insolence.¡±

    The woman gestured for Kalesi to rise again to her feet, ¡°I think nothing of it. You are in hostile territory, sizing up your potential opponent and watching for dangers is expected and to be commended. Now, we will sit and conclude your companion¡¯s mission.¡±

    The three moved to the table, Kalesi still embarrassed at her own actions and thoughts. Her presumptions about the locals infected her better judgment and biases. She was lucky the woman seemed so welcoming to them, a lesser Magi-Apprentice would have rewarded kalesi¡¯s actions with death or even demotion. As she dreaded her bad manners, the three sat at the table. Naazir reached into his robes and produced five packets, no larger than a person¡¯s palm, and seemingly made out of plastics that were sealing small square tablets. Masasi nodded as if pleased when they were laid out on the table, she spoke very calmly towards Naazir, ¡°Thank you. Your Lord Magi blesses my campaign with due needed support. You may send my thanks and regards to your master. I deem your mission a success.¡±

    Kalesi is confused, and not entirely certain what the objects are. Naazir seems to simply nod and begin to stand. Naazir turns to leave and Kalesi makes her way to stand herself, but is stopped by Masasi¡¯s hand. Naazir doesn¡¯t even turn around and simply states, ¡°I will ensure the security around the perimeter. Kalesi, you must secure the interior and only leave when you are certain there are no potential dangers or breaches where our conversation could have been spied.¡±

    Kalesi nods and begins to do as she is told, saying, ¡°I will begin immediately.¡± and Naazir leaves the small building.

    Masasi stops her from leaving again and says, ¡°You don¡¯t need to comply with that directive. It was simply a method to be certain Lord Falicer did not suspect anything from our meeting.¡±

    Kalesi is becoming concerned, the strange behavior of both of them putting her on edge, she decides to follow her directive regardless, ¡°Commander Masasi, I will begin my sweep immediately. If I might be permitted to stand?¡±

    Masasi chuckles to herself for a moment, ¡°I admire your determination. Yet like I mentioned, you don¡¯t need to follow Naazir¡¯s direction. Now sit. I arranged for this meeting on behalf of my master, Lord Thra¡¯Nasa. He needed to send a message to you.¡±

    Kalesi is becoming increasingly worried, ¡°I don¡¯t think I understand, Commander.¡±

    Masasi adopts a grave look, ¡°My lord deigned me to depart information by whatever means I was able. Your pupil. The moment they arrived the Scryiers analyzed them and our lords of the Council were sent the data, as is mandatory of all who are newly adopted into our society. She produced extremely unique readings, and the information was great enough that several members became curious. My Lord wishes to send a warning. Several council members might attempt to abuse their position and your station as Socialites to use your pupil. My Lord saw her potential as well, and would prefer to keep her at her current station. Others do not agree and might attempt drastic measures for further analysis or otherwise recruiting her.¡±

    Kalesi is taken aback, she had seen Mevi¡¯s results as well and they were impressive in some regards but the council taking notice was never something she expected to happen. Kalesi couldn¡¯t recall what could possibly have made them curious about her that such an arrangement to meet would come so quickly and under such means. Kalesi was cautious, one thing she knew was the inner workings of Magi politics was entirely too complex for her to understand. She wasn¡¯t sure what to say or do, but needed to know more. She spoke up, resolving to risk herself breaking her own rule of prying into a Magi¡¯s business, ¡°Forgive my request, but what is wrong with Mevi that she needs to be watched so carefully?¡±

    Masasi thinks for a moment before responding, furrowing her brow tightly, ¡°I cannot say. Not that I don¡¯t have assumptions, but I don¡¯t know for certain or how much my master wishes for you to know. As of now, my master requests you do not leave her alone. Council members might try to make a move that could put your pupil, you, and others in danger. So he requests you keep a short leash until further notice. I was hoping you would find a way to bring her here, but with the conventional protocol I assume she is at the Education Forum?¡±

    Kalesi confirms this, ¡°I had left her in the care of Naazir¡¯s pupils. They should be taking classes together since she is permitted to take any class she wishes. My desire was that they would have stayed together.¡±

    Masasi nodded in acceptance, ¡°Good. Her being alone would likely prove dangerous. Now you are dismissed. Your contractual obligation to Naazir is fulfilled. Return to her now, as fast as you might muster.¡±

    Kalesi nodes, and can¡¯t help but do a quick mental sweep of the room with a few glances about. This seems to make Masasi chuckle again, yet the two get up and walk to the door. Masasi covers herself with the heavy hood before the leave. The two exit and find Naazir standing as if guarding the front door. Masasi steps in front of Kalesi, and addresses the large crowd with a slightly deeper voice than she used before, ¡°We have been blessed with food! Rations to last us weeks! Blessed be the Magi Falcier!¡± The crowd erupts into cheering, disrupting the thick quiet that permeates the area and conceals them from harm. Chants of Magi Falcier¡¯s blessings rise up and the community sings his praises. Naazir approaches Kalesi and through the din and chanting of the crowd seems to tell her she is dismissed and fulfilled her contract. The exacts of his words were drowned out as he seemed to be pulled away by the adoring crowd that wanted to greet their savior¡¯s representative. Some from the crowd tried to do the same with Kalesi but she was able to dodge and avoid most of them. Her darkened robes that were covered in a thick layer of dust provided additional stealth as she blended with the crowd and their excitement concealed her escape.

    Kalesi navigated her way to the top of the pipeline highway, and began her journey back to the City of Light and then to the Education Forum. With the alarming news that the council was watching Mevi, she knew she had made a mistake leaving her at the Forum. Naazir might have known something about the message, or his instincts had been stronger than hers, and maybe he tried to subtly convince her to bring Mevi despite the potential risk of his words being found suspicious when his memory logs were read. Kalesi suddenly realized that if even one counselor was interested, and warning her of danger, then there was at least one other counselor that might endanger her pupil. While their rule held weight, a Socialite is not obligated to obey unless officially contracted, but Mevi could not possibly know that. The small girl could barely understand what a city was, and Kalesi had left her to brave the Education Forum alone and without the ability to understand her surroundings.

    Kalesi¡¯s speed doubled, and she flew across the rusted metal as if possessed by the spirit of the winds. She needed to reach Mevi before something happened.

 Chapter 13: Justice Dealt

    Mevi pulled herself forward with grim determination, willing her gemstone device to brighten in illumination enough that the dimness spread across most of the room. While not the burning torch she created once before, the light was still yet bright enough to allow her enhanced eyes to see the features of the gore-covered den. The walls had been made into cruel paintings of viscera and flayed skin, a disturbing display of some cruel intelligence. Piles of remaining flesh, bone, and meat lay in varying mounds around the room, diligently stacked. Varying sized bones seemed to be almost fastened to the ground and low walls, rising as intimidating stakes and crude effigies. Mevi was holding onto her consciousness with her willpower alone, and the horrifying sight of twisted expression within the dead eyes she saw before had made her hope waver. Yet in the twisted cruelty of the place, and the welling pit that formed within her, Mevi was determined to strike against the monster that had decorated the foul chamber.

    Mevi stumbled about the center of the room, glancing around the territory for things that might become useful in her rebellion against what fate laid out for her. While her mind seemed segmented, even screaming out against the horror she faced, she was single-minded in her delusions. She must wound or kill this monstrosity that committed such foul deeds. Even within her own mind, as she searched the room and gathered bone stakes and sharp rocks, she could not tell how or why she was still moving. At times her leg would begin to fail her, only for her to force its function back to life and continue against all sane judgment. Even within her own body she felt like some foreign part of herself had taken over, and was forcing away the thoughts, images, and memories of what sprawled around her. She allowed this part of her control, and its anger was a torrent railing against the dam of her inabilities and injuries.

    The steps to Mevi¡¯s goal seemed simple in her single-minded vision; she required a den of her own to hide within that would allow her a position of ambush. Her fragmented thoughts that were being consumed by exhaustion and anger, understood in some way the creature could not see or sense its surroundings well. The monster could barely climb a mostly simple ledge, it didn¡¯t seem to have eyes to assist it, and most importantly her gemstone device allowed her some strange degree of concealment against the creature. It somehow knew she was nearby, despite her device hiding her within the rubble of the ancient corridor, yet even with its searching tendrils it didn¡¯t attempt to look or change its vantage. The thing seemed entirely dependent on some other sense than vision, maybe sound, smell, or heat? Whatever compelled the life within the monstrosity seemed incapable of more complex perception. By hiding her presence in a well enough manner, enhanced by her device, she might get close enough to the monster she could strike it. Where her blow landed, and how, could determine her success or inevitable failure, yet from the brief glances she caught of the creature she didn¡¯t recall anything that looked important enough to aim for. Mevi¡¯s jumbled thoughts and confused movements didn¡¯t help her comprehend her own plan, or the force she would soon face.

    Mevi stumbled in confusion while making a few different attempts at a plan, with what resources she could scavenge, while not directly defiling any of the corpses. Her first attempt was a strewn together curtain of old decaying cloth and bone, yet without better tools she couldn¡¯t make it hold together. The curtain meant to act as a sort of tent, but incapable of standing upright enough without the use of more than unsavory means. Her second attempt was to scale some of the larger bones, which were disturbingly as large as she was amongst the tallest, and find a way to hide high on the wall or reach the tall ceiling. Neither plan worked, and she could not properly climb the rough bone well enough due to her pained leg. Her final strategy was her least favored, but only remaining option. She needed to hide within a pile of death and wait in ambush for her predator.

    Mevi briefly considered prowling the alternate passages, of which there were two others. Yet the other corridors were strewn with rubble, collapsing walls, and too small gaps for her to fit within. One of the passages seemed newly crumbled, the dust not settling and the ichor still partially wet along the walls and stone. There was only one way in or out, and the passages she could attempt to explore were limited. If she returned to the craterous room, and attempted to descend the small cliff only to climb a new one, the amount of time it would take alone could spell her doom. If not from the monster catching her scent and attacking, if it wasn¡¯t already there, then from falling and gaining new injuries. In her confused state she could barely even fathom what monotonous tasks she gave herself to search for useful supplies. She realized, as she refocused her thoughts, that she wasn¡¯t finding many useful items for revenge. What she thought were long and sharp rocks for a trap, spiked bones for speartip, and long sheets of cloth for coverings was actually little more than pebbles and scrap. Her grip on what her own mind perceived around her was fading fast. Her own force of will could only strengthen her for so long.

    Mevi came to the realization that she would soon become completely delirious if she didn¡¯t fall into unconsciousness first. Either situation would spell her own doom if the monster happened upon her. With what remains of her strength she needed to strike at the beast. Looking down at her arm and noticing the almost throbbing black veins, she startled herself with the reminder that her device crippled her functions and coherence. She deactivated the illumination, its light was barely perceivable to her at this point as the long shadows danced like foul harlequin in hallucinations around her. Her head was spinning, and her body ached against her toil. Yet she knew if she rested for too long it might be the last domino before her complete collapse. She remained standing, a blind warden in the eternal darkness. Focusing on her breathing, and the reclamation of what remained of her own thoughts.

    As the disorienting effects of her gemstone device dissipated, and her mind was less shattered, Mevi collected what remained of herself to enact her plan. She wasn¡¯t entirely certain of the creature¡¯s senses, or even if it survived the encounter with the new monstrosity, but at least she knew it reacted and sensed her device¡¯s activation of light and power. Mevi held her right hand in front of her, and commanded a beckoning light, a power bright and furious enough it could summon the devil from whatever hole it hid within. Her palm burst into power and splendor, blue light danced across the room and illuminated its foul icons of horror. The light gave off a warming glow that grew quickly into a hot power. As her bright display lit the room, some shadows seemed to fight against the overwhelming force. Long winding silhouettes cast around her, twisting and swirling as if in agony of the light, yet they soon dissipated. Mevi felt almost emboldened by her own illumination, the heat didn¡¯t seem to hurt her despite its intensity. Black veins were creeping up her arm, but her body felt stronger and without fatigue. The curious effects were soon lost on her as the rumbling cry of a metallic anger echoed faintly from far away. Her monster had heard her.

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    Dousing her light to nothing more than a dim glow, and striding from the center of the room with her fatigue lessened, she swore a brief prayer towards whatever would listen. Mevi gathered what materials she scavenged and approached the mound of death. With a moment¡¯s hesitation she immersed herself in the pile of flesh and gore that stood next to the only passage leading further into the decrepit ruins. She had found some small amount of cloth and used it to cover herself in a light quantity of the surrounding murder. Deactivating her only source of illumination, she laid in wait. Her right hand now clasped tight to her bending hammer and new instrument of justice.

    There were several moments of silence in the disgusting camouflage, but soon a faint rumble echoed into the chamber. Despite her gemstone device¡¯s deactivation her monster was still coming, and fast. The distant rumble evolved into muffled cries, and when screaming rage could be heard loudly Mevi knew it had reached the crater. Its speed was beyond what Mevi had witnessed prior, yet it had also not been provoked by her so plainly before. As the rage railed against the short cliff not too far away, Mevi decided she rested long enough and commanded her concealment. What small amount of shadows Mevi could make out were now gone in the darkened pile she laid upon. Mevi was covered only by a loose scattering of rotting flesh and hidden under the cloth she scavenged.

    The beast¡¯s rage would prove effective, as its assault of rock, metal, and ledge took less time than before to breach. The beast¡¯s boiling fury was settling, yet still angered and thrashing as it charged down the passage back to its den. Mevi kept one eye unveiled to watch for movement, but she wouldn¡¯t have needed it with the loud stomping of the creature¡¯s heavy footsteps. Its march felt as if an army was patrolling the hallway in unison, creating vibrations felt long before its stench was perceived. As the creature approached its domain, yet something seemed to be wrong about its rhythm. Mevi felt as if the rumbling charge was less powerful than it once was, despite it being encouraged by her invitation. As it came into her perception, and stepped through the arch of the passage, Mevi could feel a radiating heat and hear the spilling of a sloshing lifeblood against the ground. The creature seemed to be dragging parts of itself against the ground, and the signs of its battle were evident. While Mevi could not see the beast¡¯s form, but the way it carried itself and the sound of splashing ooze made evident that it had been wounded in some way.

    The monster fully entered the chamber, and was doing little more than stumbling to a stop. The behemoth form cast a shadow large enough that even in the enhanced darkness Mevi could sense its presence. It stumbled into the center of the room, as if confused or searching for something. It didn¡¯t seem to turn or investigate near Mevi at all. She felt that waiting would prevail over a sudden attack. It still seemed on edge, and despite its own fatigue the weak billowing air showed some of its tendrils were still functioning and searching its environment.

    So Mevi waited. She knew that her mind began to fail around five minutes of constant use, but she needed to make sure her ambush was in the best position before springing her trap. She thought to lessen her shroud, but until the monster settled she couldn¡¯t risk it. Mevi tried to count the seconds, but they felt like an eternity, the passing time was already wearing on her weakened mind. As time passed by she began to feel the dull confusion produced by her device, the creature moved to fall to the ground. She waited and listened for longer, and the grasping tendrils slowed. Mevi felt this her only opportunity to try and reduce the device¡¯s strain, she begged the device to lessen the shroud enough that she could have more time but still be concealed. Her communion with the device was strange, and it seemed to understand her desires despite her not understanding the device. She could feel the air¡¯s density lower as her shroud dissipated slightly, relieving some of the burden from her. The creature stirred, but its own senses seemed dulled enough it didn¡¯t seem to directly perceive the subtle change.

    Mevi waited longer, and used her device longer than she had done so before. With the lessened effects it seemed to offer several more minutes where she could properly understand her surroundings, or could it have been only seconds? Regardless it wouldn¡¯t last. Mevi made slow movements, testing first by moving just a single finger back and forth. Then she rotated her wrist, and eventually began slowly peeling off the crude camouflage. She rose from her position slowly, still not noticed by the monster. Moving to a standing position, and only able to use her instinct to guide her animosity, Mevi began slowly moving through the room. The beast¡¯s own heavy breathing and leaking lifeblood covered what few sounds she might¡¯ve made.

    Wielding the hammer, and feeling the bodily heat grow stronger and stronger, the miasma it produced wettening Mevi¡¯s skin. Mevi felt herself approaching the beast. She could not know how close she was or how close she should approach the monster, but her mind was slowly fading. She was fighting against time, and she needed to strike before her own consciousness failed her. Mevi felt her chance to strike was now, or she would never again find her righteous fury satiated.

    Raising the hammer above her head, and looking down into the dark abyss of shadow and pitch below her, Mevi used only the guiding gusts of breath to target her mark. She channeled the pain, confusion, and anger of her situation. She recoiled in rage and disgust at the memory of the murdered, defiled into fell icons. She poured all the emotion that overwhelmed her judgment and clouded her mind. She felt her arm pulsating in pain and her mind aching in response. She didn¡¯t care if she lost her other arm, she needed her strike to be true and lethal.

    Mevi struck down and in the moment of her rage against fate her gemstone device lit the room with dark anger. Her hammer wielded itself like the reaper¡¯s gavel being brought down against the monster that had destroyed so much. The creature didn¡¯t get a chance to react, as the room was filled with a monochrome light that drowned color and features, and only the dark pit that had been forming within Mevi remained. As her strike fell, so did she.

    Feeling herself collapsing, and hearing a dangerous rumble around her, Mevi hit the wet floor hard and felt herself drift into darkness once again. For what felt like many times already, Mevi could feel her consciousness become malleable and ethereal again. Dark shadows and morphing shapes filling what remained of her mind.

    As Mevi felt nothing, saw nothing, and could only sense the empty expanse around her, she somehow knew she wasn¡¯t dead. But what remained of her seemed to almost be fading, and her lucidity was failing her. Her last thoughts were of hoping to see Kalesi again.

 Chapter 14: Returned

    Mevi drifted in the familiar sea of unconsciousness. Floating aimlessly in the swirling colors and ever changing shapes that stalked the edges of her dreams. When without a nightmare, her dreams always seemed strange and empty. Her mind was lucid, but without any markable control of her surroundings. Yet she felt strangely comfortable in the eerie and familiar space, it comforted her that her dreaming held no malicious shadow stalking her unconscious thought. Even more strange was the dim glow she could feel around her, rather than see or perceive things as she would in the waking world she could instead feel and sense the sensation of light with its warm comfort. The vast expanse of her own mind held a soft and safe glow, a new addition to her growing list of intruders to breach into her subconscious.

    Mevi felt that something was supposed to be wrong, she was doing something only moments before. Yet only peace and warmth coddled her within her mental realm. It felt almost as if the dread and pain she remembered was being sapped away from her, and she welcomed the thief of her woes. She couldn¡¯t recall what had brought her so close to shattering, the pain that wracked her body, and the reason for the dissipating fury. Whatever had troubled her so greatly was leaving, and she had no reason to stop such terrible maladies¡¯ departure.

    The growing comfort stole the dark pit that Mevi felt within her stomach, it removed the red pain that infected her body, and wiped clean the emotions she felt so strongly only moments before. The warmth was taking away her troubles, and as it did so its power grew, then she could finally perceive it and it was blue and wonderful. The swirling blue unlocked some ancient repository of memory within her, a sprawling clear sky of blue and bright light. She bore witness, in her own mind¡¯s eye, something she had never seen before in her short life. The glowing presence of such an alien sight gave her some strange feeling of old nostalgia. She didn¡¯t recognize the sensation but somehow knew its origin must be good. The careful and slow method in which it worked was unlike her nightmares that forced their way in and only took using violence. The presence asked for an invitation, and she begged for its presence to take the place of whatever foulness had made its home within her soul.

    Mevi could subtly sense the presence leaving, its work finishing. As it did her own dreams slowly began to return to their normal, vacant, state. She could feel her body stirring, and the dreamscape was crumbling around her as she began to enter again into the waking world. Her mind clutched tightly to the memory of the blue sky that sprawled into infinity. As her power to hold onto sleep wavered her eyes began to open.

    She glimpsed the dim light of orange illuminating the hallway she was passing through. She was being carried by something, or someone. Their rhythm of movement was calm and barely noticeable, yet the speed with which she passed by the overhead lights showed the evidence of her transport¡¯s mobility. Her eyes were blurred, and she suddenly felt again the pain within her leg and arm. Yet despite the presence of the aching pain, she could not recall how or why she was injured. Her mind was confused and jumbled. The last thought she recalled was the brightness of the city. She had gone somewhere. To the Education Forum? She recalled being with someone, Marcus, Nessia, and several others. Her mind was blurred beyond their names and the vague recollection of the quest she had for herself.

    Mevi¡¯s eyes cleared, and she was being carried by a person. Or at least she hoped it was a person of some kind. Looking up at her rescuer she saw elegant white robes with blue inscriptions of ancient runes trailing down their coattails. A mask bearing a galaxy swirling with blues, whites, and silver. As she basked in the strange entity, she wondered why it was her rescuer. What had it rescued her from? She felt it had somehow endeared itself unto her, and she was extremely grateful for something. But her mind could not recall what had been going on even moments before.

    As Mevi weakly stared into the ethereal lights dwelling within the mask the entity turned its head down towards her, yet bore no expression in the ever-changing miasma within its mask. Its head cocked slightly, as if curious and looking into Mevi,  it investigated her face¡¯s details scrutinizingly. She felt strangely embarrassed to be investigated for such a long moment, its gaze could be cast on any part of her as its eyes were hidden behind the alien mask. The entity¡¯s mask changed in color, the subtle hues of blue and silver shifted to a warmer and deep variant, and Mevi somehow thought it might be smiling at her. Or the creature¡¯s equivalent of a smile. The masked entity spoke softly and almost off-puttingly slow, endowed with an ethereal and feminine voice, ¡°Good¡­ You have awoken? I, yes, I am glad. We reach the surface¡­ soon. You are safe.¡±

    Mevi somehow knew she was indebted to the entity, but not why, ¡°Thank you¡­ Where are we?¡±

    The entity took many moments to analyze each syllable and word. The voice¡¯s owner processed the brief question for a long time. While it did so they moved through an unremarkable hallway with great speed, and the entity¡¯s legs didn¡¯t seem to be moving under the long cloak that almost looked to hover above the ground. Its response eventually came, with the slow and methodical tone it carried before, ¡°We are safe¡­ We go to places yet safer, young subject.¡±

    Mevi was barely surprised by its strange mannerisms, and its method of speaking was strangely comforting to her and entirely opposite to Lord Magi Falcier. Yet as her mind drew to that very conclusion she confused herself, why had she compared it to the Magi Falcier? The entity seemed entirely without the powerful aura that the Magi had exuded over its environment she recalled from her own encounter. The robes it wore were simple and the only mentionable features were the blue inscriptions; the star-filled mask was the only sign of its similarity. Yet other followers of the Magi could possibly hold such regalia and motifs, couldn¡¯t they? The entity¡¯s warm glow softened as its cocked head turned further as if investigating something very curious and strange, ¡°Do you¡­ Remember?¡±

    Mevi was caught off-guard by the question, but found herself unhesitant in her response, ¡°I¡­ I do not. I recall entering the Forum, I think I witnessed a grand speech with my companions. But once we separated¡­ My memory fails me.¡±

    The glow within the mask almost shone a slight pink of gladness, ¡°Good. I worried. You experienced much for such a young subject. I had to remove things. You are better.¡±

    Mevi was confused, but still felt grateful towards this entity, ¡°Thank you, I think. I don¡¯t recall what happened, but you don¡¯t seem mean. I am grateful, for something¡­¡±

    The creature¡¯s glad glow dissipated slightly, ¡°You remember? You are grateful? You should not know me¡­ Are you a stable subject?¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t know how to respond, ¡°My leg and arm hurt, and I don¡¯t know why. But I somehow feel glad around you, and grateful for something you¡¯ve done that I cannot fathom or recall.¡±

    The entity slowed its movements slightly, yet still continued in an almost dizzying speed down the hallway, ¡°Very strange¡­ Yes. I must have erred. I can fix?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if she offended or upset the entity in some way and frantically searched her thoughts for the right words, ¡°No, I am fine! Just confused. I don¡¯t know you, I just feel glad to see you I think?¡±

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    The entity slowed to almost a normal, human, pace but soon resumed its full speed again, ¡°Good. You are safe. I am glad.¡±

    The strange entity talked in such a peculiar way, yet it somehow made Mevi feel at ease and even safe. Its presence wasn¡¯t overwhelming, or attempting to overpower her emotions, it was simply calm and honest. With the entity¡¯s presence, and the air blowing by with incredible speed, her mind drifted to a serene moment in nature. She had never been in nature, and had only known it as a word, yet she somehow felt this entity embodied a calm and serene place within a great golden jungle. An oasis within the odd customs and hostile attitudes.

    The entity watched Mevi¡¯s face while she processed the environment the two were within. The scenery eventually began to change, the unremarkable and short hallway with dim lights steadily grew in size and brightness. The walls started to occasionally bear the brands and marks Mevi recognized from the city and were telling signs of Magi rule. Eventually the hallway opened fully into a large corridor that wasn¡¯t entirely unfamiliar, and somehow felt too well maintained to her memory. The walls held icons of varying symbols Mevi couldn¡¯t understand, and branching side passages or intersections passed by barely noticed in the inhuman speed.

    While they reentered, wherever Mevi had left before, many other figures in white robes were seen scattering the halls. When the two were noticed the other robed individuals seemed surprised and began to chase after the speeding duo, but were quickly lost in moments. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what was happening, or if she was in trouble, but their presence seemed to be causing a stir in the passersby. The corridor opened suddenly into a vast and grand hall, the ceiling stretching high enough a partial cloud was formed and passing through. Tall archways with carved buttresses bore gargoyles that would stare down with a scrutinizing gaze. Mevi recognized this place, the Education Forum, its decorum and grandness was unmistakable even in her hazy memory.

    Many more white-robed individuals were patrolling the grand hallway, along with many other followers of the Magi wearing varying colored motifs. All noticed the two and kneeled to the ground suddenly. The entity that was carrying Mevi, so delicately despite its haste, looked up and down the hall for less than a moment before resuming their previous speed. Mevi barely got a chance to notice the other living beings who wandered the halls, but as they sped past she noticed their identical reactions of kneeling. Mevi was beginning to wonder, why had she compared this entity to Lord Magi Falcier? She began to gather her wits into an assumption, with the addition of the responses of those around them, and she began to feel suddenly small.

    The two sped through the Education Forum with great speed, and before long they had connected to the tall outer hallway Mevi recognized from her scrambled memories. As the two continued gliding across the exalted halls and gilded tiles, Mevi was worrying about what she should say or do in the presence of this being. If it was a Magi, she had been entirely improper and was even being carried by it like it was her servant or courier. Mevi¡¯s face was reddening and she was worrying about what she should say or do. She squirmed slightly from the thought of her own actions and words against something that might be a Magi. As she did so the entity noticed, and seemed suddenly alarmed, it stopped its movements entirely and investigated Mevi¡¯s features, ¡°Error? Injury? Malady? Does the subject hurt?¡±

    Its tone and speech was slightly faster than before, and Mevi felt her face become more red with embarrassment, ¡°No! My lord, I am sorry. Just confused.¡±

    The entity seemed just as confused as Mevi was, tilting its head trying to comprehend what was afflicting the small girl, ¡°Are you afflicted? Did I err?¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t understand what it meant and realized she needed to be blunt while still being polite, ¡°I apologize¡­ I am embarrassed. My words and actions, being carried like this, it is unbefitting to make you do this.¡±

    The entity seemed to come to understanding after several moments of contemplation, ¡°Irrelevant. Subject is safe, subject is healthy?¡±

    Mevi conceded to the peculiar personality, ¡°Yes. I am fine, only my leg and arm still hurt. I apologize for the¡­ alarm.¡±

    The entity seemed content with the response and continued its travel. The two soon came to somewhat familiar territory. Mevi could see a large amphitheater past several sets of opened gateways, and felt the scene was somehow familiar. She recalled someone standing in the center and addressing a large crowd, then her own confusion and concern but not as to why. They passed the area quickly, and the entity¡¯s pace seemed to slightly slow. The two stopped in front of a massive arched gateway, the etched doors bearing hundreds of faces of the Magi¡¯s masks and varying motifs carved into elegant scripture. The entity stood in the gateway for a while, searching the distance for something. When it finally seemed to find what it looked for it looked down to Mevi and asked, ¡°Can you stand? Is the subject''s leg stable?¡±

    Mevi reached a hand down and felt her right thigh and calf, it was incredibly sore but didn¡¯t feel much worse than that, ¡°Yes my lord. I think I can.¡±

    The entity slowly set Mevi down at the top of the steps, holding her hand delicately as Mevi wobbled slightly and regained her footing. Her leg almost collapsed as she pressed weight on it, and the response of her leg alarmed the entity. Mevi collected herself and straightened, using her left leg to hold most of her weight. She found herself leaning slightly against the entity, and it diligently held her steady with the blank blue and silver swirling galaxy within its mask.

    As Mevi was stable again, two groups approached from behind and below. A large group of maybe a dozen white robed individuals, most bearing unique swirls of a light blue, quickly approached from behind. Below them, to Mevi¡¯s delight that almost brought forth tears, Kalesi scaled the tall steps with Nessia, Marcus, Maruval, and Jenu close behind her. When Kalesi and the pupils of Naazir noticed who Mevi leaned against each fell quickly to a knee, having only made progress halfway up the steps. The white robed individuals within the Education Forum caught their breath as they reached their leader, a imperious woman, approached and spoke ¡°Master! You did not need to deliver this¡­ thing, yourself. Any one of us could have done so, we wish to be of use and this thing is below you.¡±

    The entity seemed to ignore her, and was investigating Mevi¡¯s every move and called down to the group, ¡°Socialite. I return your pupil. Care for them. Retrieve them now.¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t say anything, but rose and ascended the steps. She kept her eyes to the ground and approached slowly to Mevi¡¯s side. When she reached her pupil Kalesi looked her up and down and clasped Mevi¡¯s cheeks. She seemed worried and was investigating for the smallest blemish, when she noticed the slight limp in Mevi¡¯s leg she grimaced at the unknown injury. After noticing the difficulty Mevi had when standing Kalesi scooped the girl into her arms and held her firmly. Backing away and down the steps, still staring at the ground and remaining quiet, Kalesi removed herself from the entity.

    Mevi was sure, with the robed individuals and the reaction from Kalesi, this being had to be a Magi or someone of extremely high rank. She wasn¡¯t sure if she should look in its direction, or what she should even think or how to act. Mevi stole a glance up towards the peculiar being, and she met its gaze as the Magi looked down at her. In the most odd behavior Mevi has observed yet, the entity lifted a hand and shook it back and forth as if trying to badly mimic a wave. Mevi wasn¡¯t even sure how to respond, and before realizing it she returned the gesture. When the message seemed to be received, and returned, the Magi turned and walked into the grand halls of the Education Forum. The imperious woman who approached the Magi before scoffed at the Mevi and her gathered companions. With the rude gesture the woman turned and followed her Magi into the building, after the group of them passed Kalesi set Mevi to the ground.

    Kalesi and Naazir¡¯s pupils were aflame with questions and they all demanded different answers she couldn¡¯t provide. Kalesi silenced the children¡¯s curiosity with a glare and shout of demanding ¡®silence!¡¯ Kalesi turned to Mevi and calmed herself to ask, ¡°Mevi, why were you being carried by the Lord Councilor Maphet? What happened?¡±

    Mevi could not have an answer, so she was honest, ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Mevi felt her emotions creeping up on her again. The pain in her leg and hand inflamed in pain suddenly, without any memory of the last few hour¡¯s events Mevi was left confused and in pain. She felt so relieved to be with Kalesi again, to be away from the strange place she was rescued from. She could not recall what had happened, but somehow she felt as if her world was collapsing and all she could do was sit in confusion as the pain suddenly hit her. The strangeness of the situation had dulled her senses, and she seemed under some self-inflicted haze spell that kept her from panic, but with Kalesi returned she let her guard down and her exhaustion claimed her. Kalesi resigned her other questions, and carefully collected her pupil and began descending the steps to head towards the city roads. At some point Mevi fell asleep in her guardian¡¯s arms.

 Chapter 15: Path to Recovery

    Mevi awoke feeling as if she had slept atop a cloud. She drearily looked around herself and collected what fragmented thoughts she could. She was within her room, the place Kalesi gifted to Mevi as her new home. Atop the soft and luxurious bed, covered in soft sheets, Mevi relaxed within the safety of comfort.

    Mevi lazily gazed through hazy vision, her senses trying to catch up to her consciousness. Feeling around herself, and reluctantly revealing one of her arms to the air, Mevi found what she was unconsciously looking for. Her items. The staff, blanket, and small pouch were stationed close to her bed to her right. The soft touch of her blanket was what she sought, and she pulled the fabric into her new nest. With her den complete, Mevi tempted herself with returning again to her soft slumber. Yet as she debated with herself, her musing was interrupted by the muffled sound of conversation echoing through the hall and arriving into her room by the partially opened door.

    Mevi heard the distinct voice of Kalesi, her noble countenance toned with a slight gruffness. Paired with hers another voice, much deeper than any she had heard before yet calm and almost monotone, a man most likely. Their debate was muffled but it was clear Kalesi was frustrated or upset with something. They were most likely talking further in the building, or even by the strange moving room that could deposit someone onto the street. The two seemed to conclude some part of their conversation and there was quiet for a few moments. Then footsteps were heard approaching Mevi¡¯s room.

    Unsure of what to do, Mevi¡¯s first instinct was to pretend to be asleep. Not entirely sure as to why, only that she feared she had made some mistake again. Maybe if she was asleep she wouldn¡¯t be in trouble, or would at least be able to avoid the strange encounters that seem to be constant within the Barge. Mevi held her eyes closed tightly and pretended to sleep with her face partially covered by her sheets. The two figures approached and slid into the room quietly. The man¡¯s voice spoke as they halted in the doorway, his deep voice sounded as if it was several voices in one unified purpose, ¡°See? She awoke as I said.¡±

    Kalesi was quiet for a moment, her tone was hushed, ¡°Her eyes are still closed, are you sure she is coherent enough for questions?¡±

    The man seemed entirely without expression or changing tones and the smaller voices that were barely perceivable made him sound entirely strange, ¡°My senses do not mistake me. I think she is hiding herself for some reason. I am sure she can hear us at least.¡±

    Mevi decided to give up on her attempts to feign resting, she sat up slightly and leaned her back against the frame of her bed. She was expecting a large man, maybe even someone in similar looks to Naazir and his muscled disposition, yet the creature standing outside her door frame was something out of a fever dream and defined her understanding of the word ¡®alien¡¯.

    A tall creature stood in the doorway, standing at least two or three heads taller than Kalesi. Their sheer height made it so their head was almost brushing against the top edge of her door frame. From the large frame sprouted four separate arms, each seemingly bulky, and each clasping hands in pairs in front of themself calmly. The alien wore long purple robes, with gold trim that was incredibly baggy, and partially dragged against the ground. Their chest emblazoned an orange sigil of an eye shining as if it were a sun rising on the horizon. Most of their features were covered by the baggy attire, but their face was made entirely bare and further confused Mevi. The face was split in half horizontally, following the inner end of the brow curving down the nose and following the bottom part of the eye socket and then in a straight line to where Mevi assumed was an ear. The top half was a dark and deep blue, as if part of the depth of a deep water, and seemed to be made out of a hard chitinous material with jagged edges. The bottom half of their face was varying shades of a light sky blue, their mouth region being the brightest section, and resembled human skin, if ignoring the blue coloration. Their forehead bore red patches that seemed to breathe slowly, and the dark blue chitin cut into it like an upside down ¡®V¡¯. Their features, and the divide of their facial colors, were framed by what looked like a thick golden line tattooed into the chitin that almost drew purposeful focus to the sharp contrast in colors. The top of their forehead, at the tip of the chitinous ¡®V¡¯, bore a gold brand with a blue jewel that seemed to be embedded into the chitinous plate. The rest of their face, including what might count as his ears, was covered by a thin red hood that emerged from the interior of the purple robes.

    The strange four-armed and blue creature stood calmly outside Mevi¡¯s doorway, Kalesi not put off at all by the being¡¯s presence. But Mevi could imagine her own face, that wasn¡¯t covered by her sheets, was a mixture of fear, confusion, and curiosity. Kalesi seemed to pick up on her pupil¡¯s dilemma late and it took several moments of silent investigation before Kalesi came to realize the disproportionately strange individual might be a new experience to Mevi. Kalesi quickly attempted to put Mevi¡¯s worry to rest, ¡°Mevi! I am glad you are awake. This is Magicae Murano, servant of Vol, and Acolyte of Healing. I suppose he might be considered a doctor of sorts.¡±

    The being, now known as Murano, introduced himself, ¡°Greetings. I mended your many wounds. It is a pleasure to meet you, if you are still feeling any uncomfort please describe it so I might remedy it.¡±

    Mevi stumbled over her words but managed to make a squeak, ¡°Hello¡­ Um, thank you.¡±

    Kalesi spoke, as if wanting to hurry the conversation past the revelation of the strange alien, ¡°Mevi, do you still feel any pain? Are you well enough to answer some questions?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure, she thought and sat up fully in her bed, the aching pain and exhaustion was completely gone from her leg and arm, ¡°I think I am fine. I don¡¯t feel any pain as far as I can tell.¡±

    Murano interjected before Kalesi could ask more questions, ¡°Good. Your body showed signs of dangerous levels of adrenaline and I worried some symptoms might have remained. You had a broken right leg, your right ankle was shattered, and your left hand was dislocated. Beyond that you had other minor fractures, bruises, and varying degrees of cuts along your right arm. Including a collection of broken bones¡±

    Kalesi stopped the man before he could continue with his surgeon¡¯s report, ¡°Yes. You were incredibly badly injured, but were healed enough that your injuries weren¡¯t obvious until we arrived back here. Do you remember anything at all about how or why you were injured?¡±

    Mevi had to take time to wrack her brain for any information she could recall. The past day¡¯s events were a blur, if there was any recollection at all. She definitely remembered going to the Education Forum and the grand speech in the auditorium. Yet beyond that point few memories were functional. She remembered something, or some place, very dark. In this darkness she remembered confusion and fear, yet not why she felt it. Mevi simply shook her head, none of her experiences would explain her injuries or why her first stable memory was in the arms of a Lord Councilor.

    The three idled in the room, Kalesi seemed to hope for some kind of answer or explanation but found none. The tall creature, Murano, seemed to be studying Mevi and her responses. One of his hands silently moved to stroke his chin as if grooming a phantom beard. He seemed to make up his mind about something, ¡°Regardless of her memory, I will need to continue implementing healing arts for several days. Perhaps I might glimpse some clues, or her improved condition will reveal her forgotten memories.¡±

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    Mevi was confused, and looked to Kalesi for explanation but finding no clues on her face she was forced to address the strange man, ¡°Sir¡­ I feel fine, I don¡¯t think I feel any pain or even sores. What would you be healing?¡±

    Murano produced his top right hand, and a sort of black gauntlet bore a purple stone in the palm. He seemed to focus, and suddenly the stone shone in a beautiful display. As it came to life a vision of a female body glowed the same purple light just above the stone¡¯s surface. The strange apparition was simple and several areas of the body were colored a dark tint. Most of the head, left hand, left forearm, entire right leg, along with several smaller parts of the stomach and chest, glowed the dark tint as if indicating something. Two spots shone almost no color at all, a portion of the head and the ankle, they were a dark and intimidating black. Murano spoke in a professional tone as if giving a lecture, ¡°As you might¡¯ve guessed, this is a representation of your body. Before you ask, I am able to produce this image with a power practiced among the Magicae. It is more or less a mental image conjured by my aiding Maige, the stone embedded into my palm. The darker areas indicate extreme physical damage, and the black areas indicate brokenness or other life-altering damage. You are currently affected by powerful anesthetic, enhanced further by the abilities I may use with my Maige.¡±

    Kalesi spoke up, noticing the information was confusing and alarming her pupil, ¡°Mevi, Murano is here to assist you. He said that you can make a full recovery, but he must help with the process. I trust him, so you don¡¯t need to worry. I will also not need to go anywhere for a long time, if you are at all worried.¡±

    Mevi was worried, and incredibly alarmed. She felt perfectly fine, without any pain or indication that she was dazed or influenced by a drug. She had not been on this path of her life long, but at least Kalesi had been kind and caring towards her. She disregarded the bias and premonition of unease she had surrounding the strange blue man, she had no other choice it seemed. If she was truly so badly injured she needed to recover so she would not hinder Kalesi, if her physical condition was beyond recovery she feared the idea of being abandoned. She would not allow herself to lose to her own fears and prejudice, and could not handle being abandoned for her incapabilities. So she would place her life into the hands of her guardian and this strange man, if it was so endangered as the two seemed to believe.

    Mevi nodded after her internal acquiescence of her priorities. She would do as she was told and be of service again when she became better. Kalesi seemed to appreciate the movement and turned to Murano, ¡°I think we should let her sleep. We can continue this conversation later, and you and I have things to discuss.¡±

    Murano had not removed his gaze from Mevi the entire encounter, and continued to look at her with an emotionless studying look, ¡°Yes. Yet first I must talk with your pupil, if you will permit me. I think it would be better to have some privacy as well, if you might permit it. For her benefit rather than my own. But if she insists, you might listen, it makes no difference to me.¡±

    Kalesi seemed curiously confused, ¡°Mevi, do you mind talking to him alone? I won¡¯t be far and will not leave the building.¡±

    Mevi thought for a while, and she determined that if she would put her life in the stranger¡¯s hands she should trust him to some degree, ¡°I think I will be. I don¡¯t know what he wants but I trust you that he means well for me.¡±

    Kalesi nodded to herself and gave Mevi a smile before exiting the room. The looming blue frame of the strange man entered the room, slightly ducking to ensure his head didn¡¯t graze the door¡¯s frame. Closing the door carefully behind him, he stood staring down at Mevi quietly. His eyes seemed to almost glow like her own people¡¯s when in the dark, his irises were a dark blue seemingly without a pupil and were afloat in a gold-yellow sclera. The man had light blue, almost white, skin around the eye and part of the socket making him seem more human than he was. The facade made his eyes seem slightly closer to the shape and size of her own, but in reality he had incredibly small eyes that almost never moved. The entire presence of the being above Mevi¡¯s bed seemed to be made specifically to intimidate without any overtly intimidating action or features.

    Murano eventually walked further into the room, strolling to Mevi¡¯s right, and approaching close to Mevi¡¯s small pouch and staff. He could easily reach down to grab her things, or her, and her unease was only growing with his silence. Eventually the man spoke up, looking down at her personal belongings, ¡°I thought I sensed something. I had done most of my operations on the table in the parlor. Standing close to your room was enough to confirm it. You have quite the item in your possession¡­¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what he was talking about, she wondered if her confusion was a byproduct of the aesthetic she was apparently given, ¡°What exactly are you speaking about? I don¡¯t think I understand.¡±

    Murano gestured a hand towards her belongings, but turned to face her as if it wasn¡¯t important, ¡°You own a small and insignificant stone do you not? You seem to hide its presence, albeit without intent or knowledge of how, it seems. I find it curious.¡±

    Mevi realized what he referred to, her small treasure and golden-orange pebble. It was no more than a colorful rock to her knowledge, it was capable of letting out small amounts of light with her great effort. She suddenly worried for it, in her tired state she could not defend or protect the treasure. Murano seemed almost amused by Mevi¡¯s sudden panic, a quick smirk crossing his face then disappearing as he managed his own features to return to his neutral state. Mevi scavenged her mind for an answer or response, but Murano spoke up before she could manage an excuse, ¡°Don''t worry. I don¡¯t need such a trifle. But your ability to control it is evident as to why I was summoned here. Your value has potential to grow it seems. If you wish to learn how to increase your own advantage in our great Barge, I might show you. If you wish.¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how to respond, but knew if she could become more desirable in some way the chances of Kalesi leaving her would shrink, so she asked what came first to her, ¡°What do you want in exchange? I can¡¯t provide anything, I can barely even keep myself safe it seems.¡±

    Murano didn¡¯t hesitate in his swift response, ¡°Nothing. I want for nothing. But it would be remiss for me to not report this to my own master. I cannot guarantee what his response would be, but I assume he would know about this already.¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t know who his master was, only their name ¡®Vol¡¯ and that Magi were all equally strange as they are dangerous. Mevi could not muster a response, and didn¡¯t know enough about the world she was recently thrust into, she couldn¡¯t possibly have an answer. She also could not anticipate Kalesi¡¯s reaction to such an offer, would she see it as Mevi betraying her to receive instruction from some new stranger? Socialites were said to be extremely valuable and desired, but most followers indentured to a Magi hated them. If Mevi became something else, or learned something outside of her station, would Kalesi hate her for it as others hate them? Her inner conflict was studied by Murano, and his emotionless face shifted into slight amusement again as he sighed to himself, ¡°You needn¡¯t answer now. If you want to ask your master, feel free, I will return to mend your body regardless of how you treat with me. I only warn, if you do not pursue my lessons, never use the abilities you operate to hide your precious pebble. It might attract unwanted attention, and if not properly trained you could very well kill yourself. So be warned.¡±

    Murano left Mevi¡¯s bedside, and opened the door while she was still conflicted with herself. He began to exit the room before turning to say, ¡°I will return soon. Do not leave your bed, doctor¡¯s orders.¡± That brief smirk crossed the alien man¡¯s face, if it was some sense of superiority or that he thought something funny Mevi couldn¡¯t tell. But he quickly left and marched down the hall into the parlor, voices could be heard from outside. Soon his heavy footsteps were heard echoing down the hallway and escaping from her senses, likely entering and leaving by the strange exit.

    Kalesi walked into the doorway as if to check up on Mevi. She was a confusing person, to Mevi. She held herself proud, strong, and had the form to suit her outward countenance. Yet when around Mevi, she always seemed to care for and even dote on her, she was almost awkward in the strange way she interacted with her pupil. If Marcus and Nessia¡¯s words represented the majority of Neophyte masters, Kalesi was indeed strange. But Mevi felt herself becoming more and more attached to the woman with every small action and sign of genuine affection. Kalesi watched her pupil from the doorway, concern still on her face, and seemed to debate what she should do or say. Kalesi eventually resolved herself and reclaimed her confidence with a smile, ¡°Mevi? Are you hungry? I still have to introduce you to our kitchen. Though since you aren¡¯t allowed to leave bed, I''ll have to bring the kitchen to you!¡±

    Mevi was glad to be blessed by her ancestors, her mentor and master was her first experience of affection and acceptance. Mevi would ask her about Murano later.

 Chapter 16: Magicae Apprentice

    Mevi would be bedridden for several days, noticing suddenly in the night the pain that was obviously blocked by Murano¡¯s techniques and medicine. She was able to withstand the pain in silence, so as to not disturb Kalesi. Yet the observant woman was keenly aware of Mevi¡¯s discomfort. It didn¡¯t take long, while being subject to Kalesi, for Mevi to realize the motherly tendencies of her master. Either due to her injured state, or if it was her natural instinct, Kalesi seemed to adopt Mevi entirely and without restriction. Mevi could easily imagine her with several pupils, in the large home Kalesi spent so long preparing for them, and being a wonderful role model for younger children. Kalesi was extremely attentive, yet strict in what she felt was best for the girl. Even while Mevi was in pain, Kalesi was insistent the girl ate balanced and well made food instead of the automatically synthesized rations provided by their food dispenser. Mevi wasn¡¯t even sure how or where Kalesi acquired half the ingredients she used, or if there was some way to use the synthesizer Mevi didn¡¯t understand.

    Over the course of the next few days Mevi didn¡¯t see Murano once, but on the fourth day he returned. Mevi had plenty of time to debate his offer, and only had one question to determine her decision. Murano walked into Mevi¡¯s room, holding a large case of equipment and chemical vials, while rifling through his equipment he absentmindedly asked her, ¡°Have you made up your mind? You will only benefit from four of my visits, from my predictions of your injuries and how long they will take to heal.¡±

    Mevi had thought for a long time, and asked her question without hesitation, ¡°If I am to train under you¡­ Will it benefit Kalesi? Will this be able to help her in some way?¡±

    Murano didn¡¯t hesitate, ¡°Certainly. If you train long enough you can heal minor wounds to almost perfect condition, and with diligent practice you might even use your abilities in combat.¡±

    That was the only thing Mevi needed to hear, ¡°I will train under you. But could I ask you a favor before we do so?¡±

    Murano seemed curious as to what she could possibly ask of him, ¡°What might that be?¡±

    Mevi felt her own tension increase as the idea crossed her mind, ¡°Can you explain to Kalesi what we will be doing? I am unsure if I would be capable of fully comprehending it, and am not knowledgeable enough to explain anything myself.¡±

    Murano smiled, the strange grin showing sharp teeth that were hidden by his blue skin, ¡°Of course, young apprentice. I am eager to start. But after I care for your body, and not before.¡±

    Murano¡¯s checkup was quick, and almost unnoticeable with the assistance of his Maige. The strange device was almost familiar in a sort of way, and Murano¡¯s words from their first meeting made Mevi wonder if it was somehow related to her small gemstone treasure. The blue man waved his gauntleted hand across her body a few inches above the bed sheets. Mevi wasn¡¯t certain, but thought she saw a faint glimmering in his alien eyes. Flashes of color, shapes, and symbols raced across his eyes, too quickly to be sure if it wasn¡¯t just a trick of reflecting light. After he concluded whatever examination he conducted he operated on the air, as if there was an interface in front of him. After several minutes of silent, invisible, operation Murano concluded the procedure with placing his gauntleted hand gently onto Mevi¡¯s forehead. A dull glow emanated from his hand as the purple gem pulsed like a faint heartbeat.

    Murano¡¯s strange movements were finished. Suddenly Mevi began feeling much more at ease. Her muscles relaxed suddenly, and tension disappeared almost instantly. The throbbing pain dissipated so rapidly that she realized she was incredibly uncomfortable and sore with throbbing nerves throughout her body. The soreness remained, but no longer throbbed or stabbed at her senses as it once did. Her head felt suddenly cleared, as if a fog was removed and she could breathe clearly again. Her chest decompressed, tension built up in her lungs from her not breathing properly due to pain. It felt like a great weight was lifted from her body, like something had been pushing her down and making her immobile but was removed by whatever method Murano implemented.

    Before Mevi could thank Murano, he left to the hallway and disappeared to the left in the direction of the parlor lounge. Words could be heard being spoken in a calm tone. While some of the haze cleared, it was still difficult to focus on such small sounds and faraway conversation. She could understand that the two spoke about her, and Mevi heard the word ¡®power¡¯. Kalesi seemed to be growing distressed, and asked many questions. Yet eventually the woman seemed to concede in some way, and the two returned to Mevi¡¯s doorway. Kalesi entered first, with Murano standing in the hallway patiently. Kalesi seemed conflicted, or confused, and asked, ¡°Mevi, do you entirely understand what you are agreeing to? What Murano proposed, I can¡¯t recall a time anyone has received ¡®private¡¯ lessons to use Manaflow.¡±

    Mevi was less confident in her decision now seeing the concern in her mentor¡¯s eyes, ¡°I.. I am not entirely sure, that is true. But if I can provide some kind of unique assistance, especially if it could keep you safe and be useful, I want to learn.¡±

    Kalesi¡¯s expression softened at her pupil¡¯s words, ¡°How thankful I am to have won the lottery with you. But still, if you can use Manaflow it could endanger your life. I have heard of weak-willed Magicae burning up in their own power and dying. If you pursue this I can''t protect you from yourself. I wasn¡¯t even aware you had capabilities of this level, you had plenty of Source within you this is true, but to train in the abilities of a Magicae? I cannot begin to guess what you will do or experience.¡±

    Mevi was not sure what any of these words and terms could possibly mean, but despite her confusion she had only two questions for her mentor, ¡°Kalesi? Would my learning these abilities be useful to you? And do you trust Murano to teach them to me?¡±

    Kalesi thought for a moment, obviously conflicted with what she should say, ¡°Yes, you being able to manipulate even simple Manaflow arts would benefit us¡­ And as strange as Murano seems, he has saved my life before and never betrayed me. I might be suspicious of his superiors, but I at least trust him.¡±

    Mevi was reassured by her earnest answer, ¡°Then my mind is made up. If I have some kind of power, or potential, or any way to be helpful I want to use it.¡±

    Kalesi smiled weakly at the girl, a look like a parent about to give their child away to the wild world to explore on their own, but Mevi¡¯s determination seemed to infect Kalesi, ¡°Fine then. But I will be attending your lessons. If you seem to become overwhelmed or otherwise compromised I will end this experiment of yours Murano.¡± With the last word Kalesi turned to face the neutral expression of the blue man.

    Murano seemed eager with the development. His desire to ¡®help¡¯ still confused Mevi, she saw no benefit to him from the deal. But any chance to learn more about the strange world she was thrust into would benefit her, and given the opportunity to grow in a way beneficial to her mentor could not be passed. Murano produced a small glass vial from under his cloak with his bottom right arm, the rest of his manipulators were clasped in front of him or hanging idly. Despite the calmness Murano carried himself with, every movement that reminded Mevi of his extra arms sent a shiver down her spine. The strangeness was setting off some part of her animalistic instinct, but she disregarded it as Murano produced three move vials. The small glass objects were placed gently into Kalesi¡¯s hands, Murano began to explain, ¡°These have a condensed chemical that can help relieve pain for a short time. I suspect her condition will worsen before it improves, and with the operation I conducted tonight she will suffer the worst of the effects. When she feels pain, mix four drops of this liquid into water or some other liquid substance. It will sedate her nerves enough to relax for a while, but only use it if absolutely necessary as it also blocks proper sleep.¡±

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Kalesi nodded, and Murano turned to leave but Mevi called after him, ¡°Murano, I thought you would teach me after I made my decision?¡±

    Murano stopped and looked over his shoulder to respond, ¡°Recall. I said my first duty is to tend to your body. I will return in two days time, and if you are mentally capable we will train then. I suspect you won¡¯t be, but you might surprise me yet.¡±

    Mevi was not put at ease by Murano¡¯s cryptic words. Saying she would feel great pain made her dread what he could possibly be hinting at. His phrase ¡®if you are mentally capable¡¯ did not sit well with her, and only caused her to worry about what could possibly happen tonight. She felt so much better after his operation from before, but would soon lose her mental faculties? Or does he mean she simply couldn¡¯t understand his concepts? The man did a good job of answering questions while simultaneously planting several new questions within her.

    Murano fully left the room and said his goodbye to Kalesi. He showed himself out as Kalesi sat at the end of Mevi¡¯s bed. Kalesi stared down at the vials, as if she recognized them and did not like what she saw. She seemed to be debating what exactly to say before submitting to a growing sigh and asking, ¡°Well¡­ I suppose we should have dinner. We will face what comes when it comes, and I think a full stomach will help.¡±

    <hr>

    The next two days passed in a blur. Mevi could not recall the pain she felt, her body had become so overwhelmed by spasms and contortion that the memory itself was almost entirely removed. She knew her mentor was with her, helplessly watching her pupil writhe in an otherworldly pain. With the intense agony, set upon her by Murano¡¯s treatment, came hallucinations.

    Mevi saw figures, shapes, and horrors invading her reality. Her mentor was drowned in a sea of fear and terror beyond her own reckoning. Regardless of light, dark, or dim monsters assaulted her with their invisible malice. Memories of terror once forgotten revealed themselves to invade her consciousness only to be lost again once they departed. Screamed names and incoherent language echoed out of the small room. Indecipherable incantations of pleading mercy sputtered from Mevi throughout the day and night. Every moment was a waking nightmare, and the medicine Murano gave to alleviate the feelings seemed useless.

    Mevi could recall moments of clarity, induced by the medicine, that brought more nightmares than peace. When she could comprehend her surroundings it made the hallucinations more real, and almost made them more dedicated in their efforts to tear apart the young girl¡¯s mind. Mevi could distinctly feel every centimeter of her body, every fiber of clothing and brushing sheet. Her body screamed at the smallest touch, and the enormous quantity of stimuli added to the realistic nature of her hallucinatory nightmares.

    Mevi could not rightly comprehend the passage of time, to her it could easily have been weeks or months in the agonizing torment. In a moment of induced clarity, likely from the strange medicine Murano gifted Kalesi, Mevi thought she saw a vision of the blue four-armed man. He rushed to her as if incredibly worried, any words he attempted to use to soothe or stop Mevi¡¯s reactions failed. He seemed to be glowing an aetherial purple, and Mevi¡¯s jumbled memory concluded he was using his device in some way. Yet through the power he possessed he created a mystic sight.

    Murano stood at the center of Mevi¡¯s nightmares, the swirling faces of her deepest terrors attacking and penetrating the blue man. Yet he seemed unfazed by the attacks, and instead pulled at the creatures to quiet them within his purple aura. Stealing the monster¡¯s form and essence into himself, and using them to enhance his power, Murano began hunting the things plaguing Mevi¡¯s waking dream. Putting his many limbs to use, Murano pulled at the air and dug into the ground, pulling aetheric magic from the air and earth around him. Even the nightmares he harvested some primal source, using the power he controlled and stole, then Murano quieted Mevi¡¯s terrors. The creeping shadows hiding monstrous forms skulked out of the alien man¡¯s reach, and his looming form posed enough of an intimidating presence that they dared not attack Mevi again. With his strange power, emanating from the purple device in his palm, he quieted Mevi¡¯s thoughts and body to allow her to sleep.

    Mevi woke up, unsure of exactly what was happening or how long she had been drifting through the nightmares that stalked her dreams. But as she came to sanity again, she found her mentor sitting in a chair in the corner of Mevi¡¯s room. As Mevi began to stir and search her dark surroundings Kalesi almost jumped up in surprise, or from startle. Kalesi sprang up and called for Murano, who was apparently within their domicile. The blue man quickly appeared in the doorway, ragged and obviously exhausted. Murano maintained his neutral face, but it seemed tinted with emotion of some kind. Mevi could not tell, but he seemed almost afraid of something. Murano slowly entered the room, but didn¡¯t approach closer than past the door frame, ¡°Mevi, how are you feeling?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure, but she felt mostly fine if not a little startled from her confused memories, ¡°I think I am healthy, or at least not in pain. I am confused, my memory is hazy but I recall the events of after you performed  your strange ritual. Nightmares, great pain¡­¡±

    Murano¡¯s features were slightly sunken and exhaustion was infecting his posture and poise, ¡°The events you endured¡­ They were not expected. Your physical injuries cured themselves quickly, but your mind produced unfavorable results¡­¡±

    The three were quiet, and Kalesi seemed ready to yell at the blue man. Kalesi¡¯s face was furrowed with anger and frustration, but she was also afflicted with her own exhaustion. Kalesi stood up and went to Mevi¡¯s bedside, sitting on the edge close to her, and was looking for words she could use. Kalesi eventually found her voice, ¡°Mevi, you were in a state after Murano left. You were under a dark influence for a long time, one which neither of us expected to occur.¡±

    Murano quietly began to elaborate further, ¡°The ritual and methods I used was to promote your use of natural mana, the essence found within a creature¡¯s own body. It would help heal your physical wounds. In addition I attempted to create a sort of hex that would siphon the mana, and thus use it to unlock your lost memories. Its effects were¡­ adverse. Dark shrouds slowly began to manifest, and seemed to be attacking your body in a strange way. I arrived as soon as Kalesi informed me something was wrong. The hex seemed to malfunction due to some unobserved interference, and your memories seemed to almost be guarded in a way.¡±

    The two exchanged looks that Mevi couldn¡¯t translate the meaning of. Her body was tired, and her mind was dazed. She was slowly processing the words the two said, and she was becoming fearful that her nightmarish dreams weren¡¯t nightmares or hallucinations. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what exactly to say, and neither did her two seniors. Kalesi was gently holding Mevi¡¯s hand, and she hadn¡¯t noticed until now. Her senses and nerves were slowly awakening to their normal state. Mevi had so many questions that she couldn¡¯t process a single one properly. Mevi eventually spoke, with a wavering voice from the exhaustion that slowly caught up with her, ¡°What do I do now?¡±

    Murano didn¡¯t have a reply, but Kalesi began speaking up, ¡°Murano and I spoke at length once you calmed down. He doesn¡¯t possess the skills to properly attend you, or understand what situation you are in. He will return to his order and relay what he observed. Most likely a senior member of the Magicae will arrive and deliver council. We will make our decisions from there. But for now you, and I, rest. I wasn¡¯t expecting to fight shadow creatures, but I think we have both earned a real rest. One uninterrupted by failed novice rituals.¡±

    At Kalesi¡¯s last remark Murano seemed to flinch slightly, but offered no dispute about her assessment. Mevi agreed to the idea of resting properly. It felt like she hadn¡¯t gotten a real rest in many days or weeks. She has lost track of how long it was since she was given to the Barge, but it could not have been very long. Mevi nodded at the decision made by her mentor, agreeing to the terms since she had no alternative. Yet she felt uneasy about some powerful member of ¡®The Magicae¡¯, whoever they were, coming to advise her and Kalesi. If she was taken away, or worse deemed irredeemable and disposed of¡­ Mevi couldn¡¯t host such a thought, and quickly shooed away the intrusive paranoia. Yet it remained with her. If her short record on the Barge held anything it was trouble. If what trouble she was shrouded in was too much and she was removed, or sent away, she could easily understand why. Mevi gripped Kalesi¡¯s hand tighter, almost as if holding tighter would ensure her stay with her mentor.

    Murano seemed drained, lethargic, and even afraid. He spoke very little, and Mevi could hear Kalesi having essentially a one-sided conversation with herself. Mevi was tired again, and in a recurring moment felt herself falling slowly asleep. The muffled conversation drifted out of her memory, as she descended into her own dreams again. She was left in her eternally empty void. Floating aimless once again, but thankfully free of the dark shadows that usually haunt her mind.

 Chapter 16.5: Kalesi, Dilemma

    Murano dismissed himself from Kalesi¡¯s apartment. The four-armed man was shaken from the experience they shared over the last two days, the struggle to wrestle Mevi back into a semi-conscious state was difficult on both of them. He usually strode with an air of confidence that is natural for a Magicae, but as he departed he only carried a shroud of uncertainty and heavy exhaustion. He was originally confident in his ability to tutor Mevi, her potential for Magicae abilities were low he said. Murano was quickly proven wrong, and didn¡¯t seem to have believed Kalesi when she reported strange shadows escaping Mevi¡¯s room and attacking the girl¡¯s body. When the two confronted the possessed room together, Murano seemed almost to shrink away in fear at the mere sight of the creatures. While Kalesi¡¯s experience taught her not to fear anything she could face, and the monsters that were conjured seemed corporal enough for her to fight them in her own way.

    Kalesi was left in the parlor of her apartment, alone. She had no company beyond her own thoughts and the mysteries that hung about the curtains and clung to the carpet. Since Mevi¡¯s adoption into Kalesi¡¯s household there had been incident after incident. Something was brewing, and she hated being left out of the loop. It is not unusual to have a strange experience with a Magi once in your life. Yet Mevi had not been within the Barge¡¯s realm a week, and she already encountered not one, but two, Magi directly. If Kalesi included the cryptic warning from Masasi that claimed to be the voice of Counsilor Thra¡¯Nasa, Mevi had three encounters with the Magi. They were obviously watching her, or interested in her, for some reason beyond Kalesi¡¯s understanding.

    Kalesi decided to run a medical scan over Mevi¡¯s body as she slept, not having the chance to see her vital functions quantified since her initial recruitment. Without a Magi¡¯s equipment and power, the scan would take time. Yet Kalesi was not in a hurry. She gathered the equipment needed and began setting up within Mevi¡¯s room. She tried her best to remain quiet, but the moving of clanking materials was an unstealthy affair, but even so Mevi remained asleep. The girl was probably exhausted, the amount of events plaguing her in such a short amount of time had likely drained what little spirit the girl had.

    The scanning equipment was set. A tall pylon, of sorts, that almost touched the ceiling. A long wire, connected to the tall conduit, which was inserted into a metallic bracelet fastened to Mevi¡¯s wrist. Kalesi owned few advanced equipments, most of her toolset was meant for on-the-job tasks or fighting. She still had a few dusty items here and there, and managed to cobble together a sort of monitoring screen that could be carried away due to the wireless communication between the pylon. Kalesi set up her monitoring station in the pit of the parlor, where she could use the table for notes and to compile what little she knew about what was going on.

    The machine took an arduous amount of time analyzing the data it received from Mevi. But the time gave Kalesi precious moments of empty thought. To be alone without eventful interruption or important tasks to attend to. She had become worn thin in such a short amount of time, but that could also just be her lack of sleep from her vigil with Murano. The piles of documents on the table made quiet vibrations as the data pads slowly came to life. The sound of a notifying beep brought Kalesi from her thoughtless state.

    The monitor connected to Mevi beeped for attention. Kalesi was confused at the display, it read ¡®Error, rescanning.¡¯ That wasn¡¯t something that should happen, perhaps the wireless communicators weren¡¯t as strong as she thought. She left the monitor to its work and addressed the data pads before her. She had begun searching and compiling information in these brief moments of reprieve. She had notes on the three Lords who have made their influence known to Mevi. Lord Falcier, Lord Councilor Maphet, and Lord Councilor Thra¡¯Nasa. While Lord Falcier could possibly be ignored as a major influence, the presence of two councilors within the same day intrigued Kalesi. What value, or threat, could Mevi pose to such omnipotent beings? Counsilor Maphet was the lord of knowledge, it is said that any and all there is to know is already known by the will of their inexhaustible curiosity. Then Counsilor Thra¡¯Nasa, the militant lord of the Magi¡¯s coalition of foreign legions. Two completely different, and essentially opposite, realms of influence.

    The monitor beeped again, once again showing ¡®Error, rescanning.¡¯ The equipment was old, and unmaintained by Aedifexi, but it should not fail more than once. Kalesi rose and returned to Mevi¡¯s room. Investigating the band, and ensuring the pylon was secure, Kalesi readjusted the equipment and returned to her study in the parlor. The monitor was processing once again, so Kalesi sat down back to her notes. Or lack of notes.

    Kalesi held next to no information about either Councilors, and even less clues as to how a single acolyte could possibly warrant so much attention. Kalesi¡¯s thoughts were drawn back to the waking nightmare that spiraled around Mevi¡¯s room, a whirlwind of darkened shadow. It was strangely reminiscent of some Magi who flaunt their power to intimidate their followers or enemies. Mevi had been carried out of the Education Forum by Councilor Maphet; such a thing had never happened before, at least within Kalesi¡¯s memory. A Magi does not touch a mortal unless it is to kill them in some glorious show of power. The idea was brought forward between her and Murano, Mevi¡¯s lost memories were distinctly within the realm of time that she disappeared from Naazir¡¯s pupils and was personally escorted by Councilor Maphet. They had both dismissed the idea as heresy before it had fully formed, but in the sanctity of her solitude the conclusion was drawn that the Lord Councilor was somehow involved.

    A beep from the monitor brought Kalesi from heretical contemplation. The monitor showed the message, ¡®Three consecutive failures to retrieve data. Display data anyway?¡¯ Kalesi was confused, it had erred but had data to display? Without wanting to wait for it to conduct another scan, Kalesi brought up the ¡®failed¡¯ data. Her vital signs were quantified in an algorithmic method, most of which was lost on Kalesi. Her physical signs showed nominal, her injuries were gone, and she bore no sign of illness. Murano¡¯s manaflow therapy seemed to have worked at least. Yet the next section of data was displayed with a message blocking it, ¡®Data may be skewed. Show anyway?¡¯ Kalesi quickly dismissed the message, not having time for the device¡¯s warnings. Within this page there should be four sets of data. Mana, Essence, Compatibility, and Source.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    Kalesi suddenly understood the warning that data was ¡®skewed¡¯. Kalesi¡¯s own array would be something similar to ¡°502 Mana¡±, ¡°640 Essence¡±, ¡°Low Compatibility¡±, and ¡°128 Source¡±. Mana represents the speed at which mana flows into and out of a person¡¯s body, as mana flows naturally at all times like oxygen. Essence was the purity of a person¡¯s bodily mana, the equivalent of life force or mana that does not flow out of your body but rather stays within. Compatibility showed how easily, and effectively, a person could use Magi-tech and mana devices like a Maige. Finally Source, the representation of a person¡¯s psyche and best descriptor of how powerful certain devices could be if said person used them. Mevi¡¯s array showed around 200 mana, 100 essence, low compatibility, but 350 source when Kalesi first received Mevi¡¯s readings aboard Lord Falcier¡¯s ship. The monitor now showed ¡°-368 Mana¡±, ¡°0 Essence¡±, ¡°?#&?@% Compatibility¡±, and ¡°2340 Source¡±. To have negative mana meant that a body was actively losing mana faster than they naturally produced it, and this would conclude someone was dying very quickly. The rest of the readings made little to no sense, and Kalesi quickly determined the equipment was faulty. The error message was obviously right, some data was obviously corrupted or otherwise not translating from her body into the bracelet.

    Kalesi had few choices she could make, and none of them gave her confidence she would find any answers. She was given little choice, she could either contact the Order of Magicae directly, await their inevitable investigator, or Kalesi could attempt to treat with Councilor Maphet¡¯s followers to find answers. All of her options contained the threat of losing Mevi, and Kalesi could not risk that happening. Even while she protected Mevi she protected herself. If a Neophyte fails to rear an acolyte to a steward, their service to the Magi is severed. In the case of a Socialite, they would most likely be given as a tributary to serve a Magi Lord¡¯s underbelly infrastructure. Kalesi had to be careful how to handle the situation, for both her and Mevi¡¯s sake.

    Kalesi determined the least heretical of options was her best chance to protect her household. She needed to contact the Order of Magicae and admit to the strangeness surrounding her pupil. Murano would not be able to make an official report until he finished his own duties, as protocol demands procedure. So Kalesi would contact his order first, and admit to everything she saw.

    Kalesi began cleaning her equipment, and placing it within the storage spaces that were abundant in the overly large apartment. Once she finished she activated her interface to bring up the Aetheric Communication Network that was tied to her section of the City of Light. She began searching through the mental webbing of data, less a visual experience than a physical inclination of what she should be perceiving. The feelings, touch, even smells and tastes of a vast collection of thought and code. An almost overwhelming quantity of information barrages any unregulated stream of data, but all incoherent and without meaning or translation. Kalesi began traveling the neural highways to locate the nearest available Magicae mind, when her access was suddenly ripped away from her.

    Kalesi fell to the floor clutching at her head, a sharp pain like being hit with a blunt object rang through her brain. She had been jacked, a crude term used by those in the Pipes, the term meaning someone was listening for her unique neural wavelength and forcibly blocked transmission or attempted to seize control of information streams. To be suddenly thrust out of the Network was dangerous, and painful, and few could manage the feet unless they were monitoring someone for a long time while they waited for a connection.

    Kalesi was suddenly on edge. Still reeling from the sock of the jacking, she got to her feet holding the side of her head. Wobbling up the large steps she fell against the hallway wall. She needed to get to her room, to retrieve her weapons. Regardless if it was an accidental incident, or malicious attack, Kalesi would not risk being unarmed when so distraught. As she stumbled into the hallway and fell against her personal room floor, and quickly collected one of her war gauntlets. With it she could at least defend herself.

    She rallied her willpower and rose, unsteady for a few moments, and slowly made her way into Mevi¡¯s room. She would not risk leaving the girl alone after such an incident. Kalesi quickly stumbled into the room and sat on the edge of the bed, and closed the door slightly. Only a crack was left open, to allow sound and light to filter in so as to listen for potential invaders. But no sounds came.

    Kalesi¡¯s implant eventually rebooted, and ran its safety measures. The dazed feeling subsided after a few minutes of sitting and not moving. Kalesi was cautious, but decided to interface with her implant again. She slowly activated it, but did not make any attempt to access anything directly, she simply existed in the Communication Network and allowed the stimuli to pass over her consciousness. Eventually a ping at the back of her brain was sensed.

    She felt some kind of request, a message, a transfer of information. It was from an anonymous source. It simply read ¡®Cease investigation. Do not contact Magicae.¡¯ The abrupt message, and violent method of communication, gave Kalesi cause to be worried. If whoever this was knew she was conducting research, what else could they possibly know? Did they simply recognize she was attempting to contact a Magicae, or did they know more than that and if so how did they keep track of her actions?

    Kalesi attempted to respond to the message, to send some mental invitation to converse with the anonymous entity, but they seemed to have disappeared. As if they were never within the Network in the first place. Few, if anyone, could manage such an accomplishment. To mask your own mind and be seen as a non-entity, becoming anonymous, was already incredibly difficult and would require immense resources to set up such a system. Yet even then, if you conversed in any way with another being in the Network they could return in kind. There was no trace of the message, or the sender, there was nothing but empty void in the mental grid that spanned where a personality should have been. Did Kalesi imagine the message? No, she couldn¡¯t have imagined something so specific. But to disappear entirely, and have your identity masked was impossible as far as Kalesi¡¯s basic knowledge of the Network allowed.

    Kalesi was suddenly acutely aware of her surroundings. The dark corners in Mevi¡¯s room and eerie silence beyond the partially shut door. To say she was on edge would not accurately describe how Kalesi felt.

    Kalesi stood up, carefully maintaining her balance as her body still recovered from the violent jacking. Leaving the room silently, she crept into the hallway. Yet she found no intruder, or unknown variable within her household¡¯s apartment. She swept the entire apartment regardless, finding no sign of malicious activity or intrusion. Her own scans with personal equipment confirmed that nothing was amiss, but she felt something had to be. How could some unknown entity have predicted what she was doing, even with an intimate understanding of the Network no person or intelligence could possibly predict what Kalesi was searching for without knowing something about recent events. So whoever had reached out to her had to know something, or have some way to observe Kalesi¡¯s actions, and were likely responsible for the jacking as well.

    Kalesi had few choices remaining, fewer than she had previously assumed. She would not dare leave Mevi¡¯s side after such an event, but her access to communication was somehow being monitored and prevented. She could only stay and wait. Wait until Murano completed his own tasks, and sent a Magicae after them, or until this unknown entity deigned to contact Kalesi again. Whatever the path that was taken, Kalesi somehow knew she would get little sleep in the coming days.

 Chapter 17: An Opportunity

    Mevi awoke in her soft bedsheets and found her mentor sleeping peacefully next to her. As if Kalesi had fallen asleep sitting up and rested against the backboard frame of the bed. The strong woman had her eyebrows furrowed in frustration even while asleep, and her fists were clenched shut tightly. Whatever dream she was having didn¡¯t seem pleasant. On her arm was a silvery metallic gauntlet, not dissimilar to Murano¡¯s black version. Yet instead of a gem in its palm, there was a small interface on the inner wrist and a glassy pearl on the outer portion. It was an interesting device with its strange markings, buttons, and symbols.

    Mevi decided to allow her mentor to sleep, with all the trouble Mevi had caused Kalesi must¡¯ve needed the rest. So Mevi carefully extradited herself from her soft and sleepy prison. She slowly made her way to Kalesi¡¯s side of the bed and maneuvered the covers to blanket her body. Her frustrated face seemed to soften slightly, and her shoulders relaxed as she fell a few centimeters further into the bed¡¯s embrace.

    Mevi made her way out of her room, and into the dim light of the apartment. Kalesi¡¯s door was swung open and some of her things haphazardly spread across the ground, but Mevi decided to leave her mentor¡¯s things alone even if her room was unorganized. Mevi walked into the parlor, not sure exactly what she was even searching for. The room was much the same, mostly void of decorations beyond the lounge in the shallow pit and the balcony that was closed with heavy curtains. The dull drone of buzzing vehicles and the sound of the city still penetrated the apartment¡¯s parlor, yet it was mostly muffled. Kalesi had shown the apartment¡¯s layout to Mevi, but they had never gotten enough time to become adequately experienced with the place and its devices.

    Wandering into the kitchen, Mevi decided to attempt to understand how the devices worked. Kalesi had shown how to operate most of the equipment, albeit a rushed education, so Mevi wondered if she could produce some kind of food for herself. Making her way inside she began to work, activating the synthesizers in the nearby room to produce materials and using the various equipment in the kitchen to stir, chop, and heat her production. She used all the devices Kalesi had shown her that were meant for cooking, and when she was done a plate of charred paste sat in front of her. Mevi had no idea how Kalesi could create food that had real substance, or if maybe Mevi was using the devices in the wrong order. Regardless, the plate of food was made and Mevi would never complain about sustenance.

    With the bland food eaten, and the kitchen cleaned, Mevi now wondered what she should do. She still felt as if she should be useful to Kalesi in some way, yet the entire apartment was almost perfectly clean. Mevi spent several minutes fixing her mess, and cleaning the devices carefully, but once she was finished the parlor and hallways were without dust or grime. Supposedly all the rooms were available to her, so Mevi sought out the others to find duties to perform.

    Mevi began her investigation of the various apartment doors. She first ensured she had properly cleaned the synthesizer room, but the recycling of waste was automatic so little escaped the solutions that dissolved and collected leftover substance. Within the synthesizer was also a collection of tools, equipment, and various types of cloth items. The room seemed used as additional storage for certain equipment that wasn¡¯t suited for the other rooms or meant for personal use.

    Making her way to the bathroom was much to be expected. Perfectly clean and without a single blemish. After its use Mevi had witnessed it automatically spraying a foamy substance that wiped away all imperfections, a very wasteful practice but Kalesi assured her the solution was easily made and recycled. Yet still, Mevi investigated every corner and crevice. She was beginning to realize how limited her skillset was in an environment that so perfectly maintained itself.

    Finally Mevi made her way to the Charging Station. She hadn¡¯t seen very much inside, as they were in a hurry when she was first introduced, but she remembered it being dark and dusty. Opening the door slowly Mevi was met with a dark and black interior, and even she could barely pierce the darkness. She had to turn on the hallway light just to peer properly inside and find a wall switch to activate an overhead light. The light struggled for a moment to come to life, but eventually illuminated the room inside. Most of the rooms were always kept at a dimness for ease of traversal, but this room seemed to have not been touched for a long time and so its light was strangely weak.

    The interior of the strange room was covered in odd markings and peculiar symbols spreading across the walls. Lines of gold, amber, silver, bronze, and many other strange materials seemed to melt off the symbols and runes down the walls, and collected themselves in the middle of the room at a central pedestal. The pedestal was an obsidian black, and shone with a glassy texture as if it might very well be made of real obsidian. Atop the pedestal was a fist sized orb, a dark purple orb reminiscent of Murano¡¯s gauntleted gem. Yet this device seemed flawed, or less refined. Instead of the clear crystal, it was opaque, and almost foggy inside. Several small cracks inside of the orb could be seen, even from the entryway of the room. The device seemed wholly flawed compared to the refined and perfect gemstone Murano displayed.

    Mevi spent a few moments idling in the doorway, in awe of the strange aesthetic the room hosted. After her initial surprise of the strangeness of the room subsided, she set herself to clean. This room being the only one that seemed in need of a good dusting and cleaning her new goal was clear. Gathering some cloths and a bucket of water, Mevi set out to polish the metal surfaces and dust the room clean. As she began revealing one of the symbol¡¯s surfaces to the light, and uncovering it from the dusty burial, Mevi could feel a pulse from the center of the room. Startled, she stood like a frightened doe with wide eyes at the pedestal. It made no effect to produce the same reaction, or to show it was activated in some way. After a few moments Mevi began to clean again, but was wary of the reaction.

    A few more times the device would pulse, almost randomly, while Mevi cleaned the walls and polished the runes. Only after the seventh pulse did she understand what was happening. When she moved to clean one of the strange symbols carved into the walls, it reacted with the pulse. It almost seemed to slowly come back to life, the dark interior of the orb was clouded by fog and was slowly lightening. By the time she had fully cleaned the walls, the orb was holding a dull glow in its interior, producing a violet hue in the room. Mevi, for some reason, felt no worry towards this reaction but rather thought it good to reveal the orb to the air again. So she continued with her self-assigned duties.

    Cleaning the floor, and using an elongated brush to reach the ceiling, Mevi cleaned every inch of the room. Only the pedestal and the orb itself remained untouched and blemished by dust. Carefully, Mevi began cleaning the pedestal from the bottom up. As she revealed its surface, small etched carvings of similar runes and symbols were becoming visible. As she carefully cleaned the surface, with a delicate hand, the pedestal¡¯s carvings slowly began to glow as if lit aflame. An orange hue echoed from somewhere deep within the carvings, and the wisps of light reached out to greet those that viewed them. When she finished with the pedestal, it emanated the fiery glow of orange from the many hundreds of carvings faceted into the faces of the obsidian material.

    The orb was all that remained. It was strange, Mevi could obviously see the strangeness of the situation and how these reactions could startle her but she continued diligently. For some reason she felt no fear towards the device, beyond the initial surprise. Almost as if she recognized it in some way, or that it felt familiar to her in a way she couldn¡¯t explain to herself. The device seemed to react vibrantly as she approached the device, the purple glow having increased in potency enough to shine away the imperfections in the crystal. It was a small ball of light, contained strictly within the orb it was set in. This light reached out to her in an alien fashion, the streaking power within it almost bending in her direction as if anticipating her arrival. Mevi reached down and clasped her hand against the orb, and it engulfed the room in a prismatic display of color.

    The room was suddenly engulfed in every color Mevi had ever seen, and many she could not possibly fathom. The realm she had brought back to life celebrated in reaction to her touch, the carvings against the wall and pedestal shook with excitement. Every facet of the relatively small room exploded in a bright show of color. As Mevi maintained her touch on the orb, the initial excitement slowed and began to eventually calm. The sheen settled in a calm swirling galactic show of stars and constellations. Twisting and winding around the room in a brilliant display of elegance of form. Mevi looked down at the orb, and saw it beginning to settle as well.

    The room slowly calmed, the swirling stars retracted themselves back into their emitters, and the shining light slowly returned to its dull glow. The moment of freedom excited the spirits held within the light, but they eventually returned to their duties within their carvings and inside the orb. When the light settled, the orb had changed color completely. It was now a swirling silvery blue with a golden core. The Pedestal had shifted to a silvery hue as well, shining its new light brightly and with confidence. The runes and symbols against the walls now shone an array of blues, silver, and soft purples. After the amazing display had finished, and the room had settled in its evolution, Mevi recalled her purpose and finished polishing the orb. The orb was securely fastened to the pedestal, but still seemed as if it could be removed. Still Mevi polished the orb of dust. She thought to return later with more proper cleaning equipment, to give the room a better treatment than water and rags. She felt strangely endeared to the inanimate object and its small house.

    <hr>

    Mevi continued to diligently clean the Charging Station. After every visit, each time with a new cleaning solution or polish, the lights and color in the apartment seemed to get a degree brighter and more vibrant. The apartment itself seemed to be enjoying the attention. The devices Mevi operated, doors, lights, the synthesizer, and all seemed to run smooth and without error. Even the synthesizer seemed to operate almost automatically now, producing what she desired from it before she could impute the codes and terms. The vibrance and liveliness of the place had exploded in comparison to before, when it was mostly quiet and eerily empty.

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    As she finished the cleaning, and had disposed of all her used devices and equipment, she stood proud in the hallway. As she did, a door slowly opened from further in the apartment, and Kalesi carefully walked out as if something was wrong. The tall and strong woman was slightly crouched as if expecting an ambush, and peered in Mevi¡¯s direction. After the two noticed each other Kalesi¡¯s demeanor shifted back to normal and she stood up fully in the hallway. Kalesi called out to Mevi as she looked around curiously, ¡°Mevi. Did you adjust the lighting? Or clean? The space seems different, and the air seems fresh.¡±

    Mevi was a little embarrassed to be almost caught in her ritual cleaning, ¡°Oh! I did clean a bit. I also tidied the Charging Station, and that seemed to help fix up the apartment in some way.¡±

    Kalesi reached the doorway of the Charging Station to look in, and seemed impressed, ¡°So you did. I could never use this room so I mostly left it alone. Make sure you are careful here. With recent developments¡­ Well I can explain that later.¡±

    Mevi nodded and smiled at her mentor. They stood for a few moments, Kalesi seemed to be thinking about saying something, but preventing herself from speaking freely. Mevi waited patiently for her mentor to give her instructions of some kind. Eventually Kalesi spoke up again, gently placing a hand on Mevi¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I just received a message. Someone is coming to greet us, and we have a job offer if you would go with me.¡±

    Mevi was curious who these people are, but was excited at the prospect of finally working with Kalesi, ¡°Of course! I will go where you lead, I am eager to learn.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s reaction didn¡¯t seem to be what Kalesi had hoped, but she gave a grim smile regardless. The two made their way back into the parlor and sat in the lounge. It was a while of silence, Mevi had been used to sitting in silence for a long time but she was becoming antsy. Kalesi seemed to be sleeping while sitting up, her legs crossed and eyes closed gently. Mevi decided to not bother her with her own boredom, and waited patiently while listening to the  drum and hum muffled from outside.

    After several hours passed a sudden loudness could be heard from outside, and at the clamor¡¯s entrance Kalesi shot up startling Mevi. Kalesi motioned for Mevi to wait in the lounge as the loud barrage of sounds continued outside. Kalesi moved out of the pit and made her way to the balcony¡¯s curtain, swinging the heavy curtains open, allowing the leakage of bright brilliance to penetrate the dimly lit apartment. Mevi had to shield her eyes from the brilliance as she had before, the sudden introduction of bright light causing her eyes to fog slightly with blips of bright spots.

    As Mevi¡¯s eyes cleared, on the balcony there was a strange vehicle. A sort of triangular box-like shape, some sort of ship with large devices meant for thrust on the four corners. The vehicle looked similar to a large storage container, simple in its base design with a triangular front. The sides were bare of insignia or markings, and it was colored a dull gray. As its thrusters calmed to a small red glow, the side parallel to the balcony entrance opened as it slid into the structure of the vehicle. Five figures exited from the vehicle, each wearing a dark gray hood that also used a cloth mask to cover most of their face.

    Four of the figures bore heavy armor, styled in a tight way that showed carved muscles in the metal plates. They, oddly enough, wore long armored skirts of some kind, and every inch otherwise was covered in tight metallic sheen of armor. Their hands and legs seemed painted in metal or like their skin was made of metal, the ¡®armor¡¯ looked extremely tight against their body, but they moved as if unencumbered. The fifth figure wore a gray toga with a stripe of red hanging across their shoulders. This figure also wore a long hood with face bandages, their arms and legs showing past the heavy cloth, yet their skin wasn¡¯t metallic but rather a shade of dark gray similar to their own clothes.

    Kalesi opened the balcony door, the five figures waiting patiently. As she did so the figures moved to flank the cloth-wrapped individual as it entered. Two armored figures remained on the balcony, while two others entered behind the figure that seemed of some importance. One continued following the main figure, while the remaining guard moved to block the hallway to the device that was the only other entrance or exit.

    Kalesi bowed slightly, and gestured to the lounge pit, and all three of them descended as Mevi watched with growing worry. Kalesi sat next to her pupil, and the important figure sat down while their guardian stood diligently beside the couch they chose. The air was tense and Kalesi looked on edge, her left hand flinching towards her gauntlet at the smallest sound. After a few moments the vehicle activated its thrusters and departed, after doing so the two guards outside moved to the interior and closed the balcony door behind them. The strange meeting had been set, and both parties remained silent.

    After several moments of silence, and shifting in their seat, the clothed figure seemed comfortable. Positioning their hands across their lap, and sitting with their legs slightly to the side in a feminine way, they spoke with a stern and annoyed feminine tone, ¡°I am glad to finally meet you. The one to cause such a stir.¡± Kalesi became defensive, and the gray woman¡¯s gaze was directed at Mevi. The gray woman spoke up again, directing their attention to Kalesi, ¡°I will be blunt. I come bearing a gift for your pupil, and a task we request the both of you complete. You will take the gift regardless of if you comply with our request.¡±

    Kalesi seemed hesitant but spoke, ¡°We thank you for the gift, may we know more about the task?¡±

    The woman continued as if Kalesi hadn¡¯t even spoken, ¡°My name is inconsequential so do not attempt to ask me of it. We work for our lord Tukas Korius, Lord Councilor and Master of Artificers. We wish for your pupil to use the gift we have provided, and for the best results we have found a region of scum that must be eradicated from our territory.¡±

    Kalesi seemed to wait for a few moments, neither Kalesi or Mevi were sure if the woman wanted a response, but Kalesi spoke after a few moments, ¡°What is the device you are giving us?¡±

    The gray emissary spoke again, ¡°We have created a new type of Maige. Your pupil is in need of said device anyway, so we will give it to you. You needn¡¯t ask how we know this, it is not important. Regardless of if you use it or not, or if you submit to our request, is not important. My Lord¡¯s message has been given, and the details of your task will be sent later.¡±

    Kalesi interjected as the woman started to rise from the seat as if to leave, ¡°I must ask, how will either of us know to use the device or if it is safe? She hasn¡¯t even received instruction from the Magicae.¡±

    The woman spoke but still made her way out of the lounge with her guard following, ¡°And she will not receive instruction, as things stand now. This is your only chance. The Maige we have created is a new model that will respond directly to the user without the need of an implant. So there is little danger involved with it. The rest is reliant on intuition. I must take my leave now, as other business requires me.¡±

    Kalesi seemed defeated. The gray emissary of a new Magi deflected any reasonable question or attempt to understand. Kalesi began clenching her fist tightly, and looked after the woman¡¯s steps with frustration. The gray woman exited with her retinue onto the balcony, and their transport returned to collect them. The wind blew inside from the powerful thrusters as the door to the balcony was left open. Kalesi¡¯s hair billowed giving the illusion of a furious wildfire, and the emotion in her eyes could match the image the wind conjured.

    After several quick moments the transport left with its collected crew. Kalesi went to close the door, and after doing so sat down with her back against the glass. Mevi collected herself from the lounge and sat next to her mentor, not having the words to comfort or help. The two sat in silence for several minutes, Kalesi contemplating something with her eyes closed while Mevi sat still confused from the interaction. The demanding attitude of the Magi and their representatives seemed to cause no end of trouble for Kalesi, and by extension Mevi. Mevi wondered what they would do, or if they would take the task offered to them.

    After several minutes of sitting against the balcony window, Kalesi got up and helped Mevi to her feet. The two closed the curtains to resume the dimness of the apartment and hide from the searing light that constantly attempted to penetrate their domain. As they collected themselves, Kalesi let out a deep sigh. Almost immediately after a sound from the end of the hall that held the building transport device. The door leading into the box, that could transport them around the building, opened. Inside there was a small metallic container.

    Both Kalesi and Mevi approached, and Kalesi retrieved the container carefully. The two brought the small box to the lounge, and Kalesi didn¡¯t hesitate to open it. Within was a velvet lined interior, sitting on the soft velvet cushions was an elegant necklace along with two blue gloves. Set within the centerpiece of the necklace was a pure white gem, and a matching gem was set on the backside of the gloves rather than within the palm like Murano¡¯s. The necklace was a simple silvery cord, with the central gem being only a few centimeters in diameter, held within a silvery setting.

    Kalesi looked down carefully at the three devices, almost like she was hoping there would be more. Then she suddenly looked up, as she sometimes does when receiving a message or notification. Kalesi looked conflicted after the information she was receiving was analyzed. She then took out the devices and inspected them, in and out thoroughly. She was searching for something, and Mevi patiently waited for her mentor to decide what they were doing. Kalesi eventually gave up on her investigation and set them back down, then looked to Mevi to speak, ¡°Well¡­ The request has come in from the office of Lord Tukas Korius. So the representative spoke true. There has been an infestation of an affliction called Rust¡­ I am conflicted about taking you with me, especially without any sort of proper training. Yet the details state that we won¡¯t be alone, several other Socialites and their pupils will be assisting in the operation. In addition to the Lord Councilor¡¯s own warriors¡­¡±

    Kalesi seemed tired, as she so often does recently, and Mevi moved to reassure her, ¡°Kalesi, I will do whatever you think is best. If we should test my abilities, with whatever these devices are, maybe it would allow me to learn how to harness what power you think I have. If there are others there with us, we could probably escape if needed.¡±

    Kalesi smiled at the retort of her pupil, ¡°You are right, if needed we can escape. And I will ensure our safety. The affliction is not difficult to deal with, it seems that it has simply spread farther than expected¡­ Well it would be a good enough introduction to our work as any. So I think you may be right.¡±

    Mevi smiled, and Kalesi returned the gesture with some effort. Kalesi decided that they should rest and recuperate before leaving. That night they had a grand feast, and Mevi even watched Kalesi¡¯s methods to create their food. She had some way with the synthesizer that let her create mostly solid food in certain shapes and quantities that she could then prepare in different ways. The both of them eventually calmed down and enjoyed an illusion of what could be considered a ¡®normal¡¯ day¡¯s end.

    They both returned to their bedrooms early, Mevi taking the metallic case with her into her own room. Deciding to leave the investigation of the devices to another day. Gathering her small stuffed mouse, and blanket, she positioned herself in bed and quickly fell asleep. By her own volition this time, rather than exhaustion or some spell. It felt strange, and nice, to sleep in such a luxurious room. Every time she recalled that it was ¡®her¡¯ room Mevi grinned to herself. Many troubles and issues lay around her but she realized that she was still happier here than where she came from. She hoped to spread her confidence and optimism to Kalesi soon, and that the two could work on jobs together without end.

    Mevi was eventually stolen away by her dreams, and the comfort of her bed. Falling into a deep sleep, and within her dreams anticipating the strange new world she would explore with Kalesi upon awakening.

 Chapter 18: Beginning a Mission With Flare, Part 1

    Both Kalesi and Mevi had woken up early, but to Mevi¡¯s senses what defined as early or any point in time at all was confusing. The Barge seemed to have no designated night, or any sort of regulated time. All things simply were, within the Barge. The people were filled with a sense of now, and most seemed accustomed to resting only when there was no work remaining. At least that is how Kalesi explained it.

    Kalesi had prepared simple dress for the two of them, pure white robes with the symbol of Kalesi¡¯s Household on the front. The symbol was that of a blooming red rose with crystalline stars hanging above it, its roots intertwining to form the circular border of the unique icon. It was a beautiful statement to wear, and both sported it with pride. It was the first time Mevi had something to truly identify with, she was barely even able to identify with her own house from Baes, and she clung to the inscribing identification greedily. Their robes were otherwise simple, close to form with baggy sleeves and legs that layered on top of itself. It was not flowing as their more formal attire was, and these sets were obviously meant for moving with the best mobility.

    Kalesi spent extra time, while Mevi gawked and awed at her new icon, to fit herself into what she called ¡®wargear¡¯ that she wore under the robes. She readied herself with tight rubbery plates that accentuated her every feature and pulled her tight to herself. Each of her well defined muscles shone through the gear that automatically adjusted itself to fit as snug to her form as possible. The armor looked like a second layer of skin, dyed with red in the softer and more mobile regions while it was black with hard rubber-like material protecting vital organs. She bore her two silver gauntlets, as well as a holstered projectile weapon fastened securely to her hip. She wore her white robes overtop the armor, concealing the protection well enough that it was easily forgotten if it were there or not.

    When the two had finished adorning themselves into their outfits, Mevi was left to equip her own tools. The two blue gloves fit snugly, as if they were measured against her exactly. As the gloves were placed and secured, they tightened slightly and their white gemstones pulsed into a dim life. Mevi then secured the silver necklace to her neck, and it shrunk to fit her perfectly. In the same fashion, the larger gemstone on the necklace pulsed to life, attuning to the gloves. In a beautiful display, Mevi was framed by the dull light illuminating from the gemstone. The feeling when she wore the items was familiar in some way, and without realizing it she had instinctively doused the light they produced. The gems dimmed and then deactivated to an empty state. Kalesi was surprised at the interaction, but both she and Mevi assumed it was simply just as intuitive as the Artificer¡¯s Emissary had explained.

    The two were fitted and as ready to leave as they might ever be. For a time Kalesi dreaded that Mevi had no protective wargear, but she eventually conceded to lead close to Mevi and protect them both. After they were finished, they left and delved into the murmuring crowd of the city.

    The City of Light never sleeps, as Kalesi had explained. Yet Mevi was still surprised to see how many people packed the walkways and roads. The sheer quantity of robed and masked bodies were similar in presence to the towering structures of metal and stone. Their bodies, shapes, clothes, and forms were as diverse as the architecture around them. Indeed, when Mevi was not holding onto her mentor¡¯s sleeve and avoiding eye contact, many forms were alien or strange. Murano, by comparison, was quite docile compared to the fanged, furred, scaled, and towering figures some creatures on the street postured.

    Their travel on the roads wasn¡¯t long. Kalesi was seemingly following a path laid out to her by something or someone. At the end was an open clearing in the jungle of metal and stone. They arrived at a platform that was moderately busy, several shuttle-type vehicles landed or flew away in a constant stream. Less creatures were entering this platform compared to the nearby streets, but those that did seemed important or adorned with jewelry and fanciful masks. Near the center of the platform stood the similar styled sentinels from the encounter with the Lord Councilor Tukas Korius¡¯s emissary. Their gray armored skirts with metallic skin stood imposingly while flanking the entrance to a small, hovering, transport that was similarly gray without insignia.

    Kalesi led Mevi up the platform and interacted very briefly with one of the sentinels. With the short interaction, cut short by the sentinel stating they were to leave immediately, both Kalesi and Mevi entered the transport. The two armored sentinels sat directly in front of their two passengers. The transport was a fraction of the size of the emissary¡¯s own. Mevi could easily reach out a hand to touch the door that closed tightly as the vehicle took off, and only six medium sized humanoids could fit in the hold they were all stuffed into. For a few moments, as the door was shut tightly, there was darkness inside the transport. Suddenly, after several elongated moments where the vehicle started flying, a red light lit up overhead to illuminate the small cabin. Strangely Mevi wasn¡¯t put off by the flying, mostly because she couldn¡¯t see the outside, but the intimidating blank glare of the two sentinels made her feel uncomfortable. After a few, dreadfully long, minutes one of the sentinels spoke in a gruff and gravelly voice, ¡°Our destination is The Edge, bordering our Lord Artificer¡¯s territory. Several groups of the Rusted have infected nearby Pipes populations, supplying a stream of Rusted into our Lord¡¯s territory. You know your task, we will drop you off at the outskirts of the Rust''s influence.¡±

    Kalesi responded quickly, she adopted a serious tone, ¡°Our job is simply to infiltrate and evacuate correct? I will not subject us to fighting without need.¡±

    The sentinel scoffed, ¡°Of course¡­ Flee if you so choose.¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what their mission was, but gathered that Kalesi somehow negotiated the two of their roles to be less combative. Mevi could handle evacuation, she assumed so at least. The Pipes are not a place she has been to yet, and Kalesi had mentioned it very little or only in passing. Mevi wondered what this ¡®Rust¡¯ was, as it couldn¡¯t possibly just be actual rust.

    As Mevi silently pondered their situation, the transport rumbled as if passing through turbulence. Mevi grabbed onto a nearby strut close to her seat, and the rumbling only got worse. After a minute or two the transport felt like it coasted to a stop, but the cabin shook slightly even while the vehicle tried to stabilize. A green light shone, replacing the red tint around them, and the side doors swung open. A whirlwinding gust billowed into the cabin, blasting Mevi with dust and particle debris.

    As the wind gusted into the transport, and Mevi became more accustomed to the sudden change, Kalesi gathered up her pupil then jumped out of the transport. The two soared out of the vehicle, and Kalesi slammed into the ground with a ringing impact onto metal. Mevi looked up, startled by the sudden change in elevation, and saw the vehicle fifteen or twenty meters above them. Kalesi had somehow fallen a height that should kill a normal individual, or at least shatter bone. Kalesi quickly recovered as if nothing happened, yet still holding Mevi, while they stood on a wide metallic surface that curved at the edges. The metallic road looked almost like a massive pipe, and Mevi assumed this was where the realm got its namesake. As Mevi looked around with curiosity she noticed where Kalesi had landed there was now a heavy indent several centimeters depressed, like a Kalesi-sized meteor had made a crater in the metallic surface.

    The transport quickly left, after a few moments of the glowing shape hovering in place. Kalesi put Mevi onto the ground, and pulled a hood over Mevi that she hadn¡¯t even noticed was present in her garb. Kalesi did the same, and the two were hooded in a billowing miasma of dust, material, and metal flakes. Where Mevi¡¯s skin was exposed she received small cuts, and she quickly learned to cover her face and skin with the excess fabric that dangled closely to the robe¡¯s form. The minimalist attire had many baggy sections that were tucked into itself, deceiving eyes into thinking it was very thin clothes. These baggy sections seemed purposefully featured so as to adjust against the dusting debris.

    The two adjusted and fixed their clothes, with Kalesi helping Mevi here and there, until they were properly bundled against the outside winds. The two quickly made their way across the metal pipe-road, only barely able to see ahead of themselves. Kalesi seemed to know her way around, or maybe could see better in the thick dusty mist, and led them into what looked like an abandoned hovel.

    The two made their way into the old, rusting, hovel. The door was strewn to the side, and Kalesi rammed it back into place with sheer strength. They were protected from the outside for a few moments. As they sat down Kalesi removed the cloth mask covering the bottom half of her face, and Mevi copied her mentor. Kalesi shook her head, dislodging a large quantity of accumulated dust, and spoke up in a serious tone, ¡°Mevi, I didn¡¯t have much of a chance to explain what we are doing, because the Lord Artificer¡¯s request came in as we boarded the transport. Normally I wouldn''t accept such a last-minute request, but the situation and client are not what we might call ¡®normal¡¯. First off, are you alright so far?¡±

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    Mevi was shaking her own head, while listening to Kalesi¡¯s words, and paused to speak before she dislodged more dust, ¡°Of course Kalesi. I was surprised at your jump, it was amazing how far you could fall uninjured!¡±

    Kalesi chuckled at the odd compliment, ¡°Well, it is in part because of the wargear I wear. The suit helps enhance my body¡¯s natural strength, while providing a great deal of protection too. When you are trained, and accumulate some muscle, we¡¯ll get you a set as well. Speaking of training, how do you feel with your Maige?¡±

    Mevi had to focus for a few moments, suddenly recalling the gemstone devices, ¡°I think they are fine? They haven¡¯t done anything since I turned them off in the apartment. I am still not sure how to activate them.¡±

    Kalesi thought for a few moments, putting hand to chin in contemplation, ¡°Well¡­ I have seen some Magicae use it, but never in situations like this. Some say a type of prayer, others like Murano just make things happen without sound or words. I have seen them make light, heal, and even move things with a Maige before. While we walk to our destination, try to practice with making light or moving things. But that is hardly advice, since I don¡¯t even know how you would start a task.¡±

    Mevi was curious about her new tool¡¯s properties and abilities, but Kalesi¡¯s words caught her current attention, ¡°Kalesi? Where are we going, you mentioned evacuation on the transport. Am I allowed to know our mission?¡±

    Kalesi smiled, ¡°Good, asking questions is good. Our primary objective, according to the request, is to train your abilities and return testing data regarding your Maige¡¯s usage. Our secondary objective is reconnaissance and evacuation where possible.¡±

    Mevi was not certain she knew what that meant, ¡°What is reconnaissance? And what people would we evacuate, I can¡¯t imagine living in a place like this. I can imagine even less that a place like this even existed on the Barge!¡±

    Kalesi thought to explain, but suddenly a loud creaking of metal scraped across their ears. Without hesitation, Kalesi grabbed her pupil and both bolted out the door of the rusting hovel. As they exited, they both covered their faces as fast as they could manage. A few moments passed and the hovel they once sat in slowly shrank down past the metallic road¡¯s surface and fell into the abyss below.

    A cloud of red-iron dust billowed around them. An electric sound vibrated to life suddenly somewhere behind them. Both turned to see a figure darkening the dust cloud further up the metal road, and a gleaming energy pulsed as a blade at the figure¡¯s side. An evil red thrummed against the metal clouds causing static discharges to arc in the air, creating an intimidating sound of miniature lightning striking the electrified surfaces around the blade. Several other figures emerged from the clouds, pulling and clawing themselves up from the sides of the massive metal pipe-road. The duo were suddenly surrounded by imposing figures brandishing crude weapons of pain.

    Kalesi instinctively moved Mevi behind herself, but it did little to protect the girl as there were minions of malice behind them as well as in front. The creature holding the red blade moved forward, several of the figures around them beginning to cackle or chuckle to themselves as if very pleased. Kalesi held her left hand against Mevi¡¯s shoulder, and her right as if to fight. The red blade was waved in large arches meant to intimidate and strike fear, striking the ground and throwing sparks into the air that blistered into red energetic electric explosions. The figure stopped three or four meters in front of the mentor and pupil, and it called with a hiss in its voice, ¡°Ohh~! How lucky for us, two idiots stumbled into our territory. Two beautiful idiots, I''ll add.¡±

    Kalesi shot back with a venom Mevi hadn¡¯t heard before, ¡°You¡¯d do well to leave us be scum. This won¡¯t end as you assume it might.¡±

    The figure took a few more steps forward, his features becoming full view in their scaly terror, ¡°Oh, but you entered OUR territory! We are the victims here! You and your little girl are mine now, and if we need to fight then you¡¯ll just be a bit bruised is all.¡±

    Kalesi looked around cautiously, and whispered low enough that Mevi barely heard, ¡°Mevi. I will clear a way behind us, you will run until you can¡¯t see me anymore. Stay close to the ground.¡±

    Mevi began to object, but Kalesi moved with a speed that was superhuman. Suddenly Kalesi disappeared, the suction of wind being the only sign to where she once was. The figure with an electric blade was kicked backward, and in the same instant two of the minions behind them were thrust to the ground, bouncing against the hard metal. Kalesi appeared next to Mevi, and she simply instructed ¡°Run.¡± and Mevi shot into the dust cloud with as much haste as she could manage.

    Mevi darted between the two figures who were violently thrown against the ground. A call was heard as she tried to escape, several figures moving towards her only to be equally incapacitated. Mevi couldn¡¯t count the dark silhouettes around them, there had to be at least thirty or more. Mevi trusted her mentor, and her apparent superhuman abilities, but still worried for her safety. Regardless she did as she was told and continued running along the metal pipe-road.

    She ran while occasionally looking back, she was told to go until she couldn¡¯t see Kalesi anymore but she could hardly see her in the first place. She ran until most of the dark figures were cloaked by the heavy misting dust. At which point she sprawled against the ground to stay low, and kept herself as small as she could. There were no obstacles or objects along this part of the pipe she could hide behind, so she made herself like a rock. Her dust-soaked robes might serve as a sort of camouflage if she stood still enough.

    Her theory was about to be put to the test. One of the bandits that assailed them had followed her, not being noticed or somehow escaping Kalesi. The tall figure was a bulbus collection of limbs in the idea of a humanoid shape. Mevi counted at least four sets of arms, and maybe two sets of legs. It was a creature she could only have nightmares about, and yet it was still considered a person in some monstrous regard.

    The large creature cautiously clattered its way in Mevi¡¯s direction. As it searched the ground around it, glancing back and forth, Mevi prayed to be invisible. To not be seen. As she did, she could feel a shroud suddenly fall over herself. The area around her tinted into a colorless hue, and she startled herself making a short yelp. But even her own voice was muffled and didn¡¯t seem to escape the periphery of a meter or two. The sound dissipated into nothing as soon as it escaped her throat. Mevi panicked, and looked around herself, then she noticed her gloves glowing in a peculiar way.

    Her gloves, emanating from the gems on the top of her hands, were seeming to absorb the color around her. Where the gemstones rested there was nothing but a black pit that defied her understanding of vision. Rather than seeing a real black pit, it was more like complete emptiness. She looked down to her chest, and the necklace produced the same effect. She realized, almost instinctively, that it was her command to become invisible that triggered the effect. She sat up, testing what her instinct told her was almost perfect camouflage, and the many-limbed minion walked directly past her. Not even bothering a cautionary glance of curiosity in her direction. What was stranger, was Mevi¡¯s complete confidence in what was happening and that it was her own doing. Somehow the gemstone was responding to her immediate internal desires.

    Mevi wondered how this power worked, and how far it might be stretched or manipulated. Kalesi mentioned the device being able to create light, or even moving objects. If she could master becoming invisible, could she do those things as well? She was overcome with curiosity, and the feeling of using the Maige was exhilarating. She felt her veins pumping quickly with excitement and emotion. She experienced the fear of the figure that was hunting for her to a higher degree, and at the same time she felt the extreme excitement at unlocking some strange ability. All her senses were heightened along with every motion producing an immense amount of stimuli that she could analyze at a speed entirely beyond what she remembered possible. As the smell, sound, feeling, and emotions flooded into her all at once, she could feel a dull headache pulling its cloud over her. Her first instinct was danger, that this sign was an omen of worse effects to come.

    Disregarding the omen, Mevi was overcome with exhilaration. She planned her next thought, her first true command, and demanded that the cloak be dropped. As she thought to command the Maige, it responded instantly and the colorless hue dissipated allowing vibrance to flood back into the world around her. As if suddenly aware, the monstrous humanoid jerked its head back, as Mevi was now behind the cretin. She stood to her full height, and pushed a hand out as if to grasp something, and the lone bandit turned fully to face her. The creature grinned a sickening expression of glee, as if he had already won against her. As he fully faced her, Mevi summoned light. She commanded light to shed in a star¡¯s radiance to blind or stop her enemy.

    A brilliance shone from Mevi¡¯s glove that could not be compared to any light that had shone by any artificial means. A light rivaling a star¡¯s embrace engulfed the vicinity around her, and shone with overwhelming brilliance beyond her adjacency. Despite the show of light, Mevi could still see perfectly well. The bandit writhed as it immediately covered its eyes in pain. The flare was over as soon as it began, a single flash like a sudden explosion of power. The creature fell to the ground and dropped its crude blade as it clutched at its eyes in pain.

    Mevi stood triumphant, the exhilaration of streaming stimuli overpowering her normal senses. Yet as the effect dissipated, she realized what she had actually done. She was overtaken by excitement, almost an unconscious desire or command to use the Maige. Looking down to her arms in the realization of the power she displayed, she felt fire in her blood. Ripping away at the sleeves of her robes, her skin blistered and popped in agonizing bubbles of blackish tar. Dark veins streaked up her arms, and blistering welts formed around where her glove contacted skin. As her enemy clutched in pain, so did she as she remembered some primal instinct of fear. She had used too much of herself, she didn¡¯t know how she knew that fact but the truth was bare across her arms. She fell to the ground, becoming overwhelmed by the sensation of pain, writhing in an agony of her own making.

    Mevi began to crawl back to her mentor, her last instinct remaining was to return to her. The overwhelming pain had begun to fry what little was left of sense, but Kalesi could make it better. She would know what to do. Mevi could almost see her master¡¯s form, darting around in the haze of dust and wind. If she could only reach her, everything would correct itself again.

 Chapter 18: Beginning a Mission With Flare, Part 2

    Kalesi saw her pupil run from the bandits that surrounded them. She would not fail to protect her ward, and these creatures would not stop her. She prepared all of her most vital gear for any type of danger, and now was the time to use them.

    As Mevil ran, time was slowed as Kalesi¡¯s body was flooded with enhancing chemicals from the wargear she wore. Darting past her pupil, Kalesi kicked the bandit¡¯s spokesperson to the ground and dispatched several individuals that attempted to follow the fleeing girl. Their bodies flying to the ground in a sort of slow motion, before they hit the ground Kalesi was already attacking two more bandits that looked on towards Mevi¡¯s flight.

    The quick burst of speed was all Kalesi needed to focus all attention on her. The fast movements stirred dust and wind into a brief storm. Her pupil was out of sight as the smokescreen dust covered her trail. Kalesi¡¯s attention now needed to be on the assailants around her, and trust that her pupil would get far enough to be safe.

    Around her there were at least thirty creatures of various sizes. Most sporting unhuman mutations and repulsive deminors. The boysterous attitude was dropped when their compatriots hit the metallic ground. The presumed leader of their group, wielding a fell crimson energy blade, rose back up to his feet. Of the group he was the most normal of the monstrous forms. Sporting a gnarly gash across half of his face spreading down into his shirt, a wicked scar he wore with some type of pride. The man was almost laughing to himself, a disturbing chuckle that echoed around them, and as he did the man rose back to his feet.

    When his amusement ended, the bandit leader displayed his energy blade in front of himself. The man held himself like an experienced warrior, but kept his stance low to the ground with his left hand free, curling his fingers as if to claw and tear. The bandits were surprised by the sudden blitz, but seemed seasoned, or well prepared, and readied themselves to move in to strike Kalesi. The group of villains crept closer and closer, inching inward to close off the circle they made around Kalesi.

    Kalesi needed to find an opening, fighting them all at once would become her death. Her wargear assisted with fighting, and gave bursts of speed and power, but needed to be used sparingly. Too much use of the device could cause her body to erode and muscles to fail.

    Kalesi drew her plasma blaster, a weapon that shot super-heated particles to melt and maim. It had a limited range, but was lethal to all but the most durable armors. The group around her had little semblance of armor or protection, metal sheets fashioned into crude barriers or rusted wargear that had long since lost its functionality. Kalesi would need to open a gap in their formation and attack them from the shroud of dust that started to settle around them.

    One of the cretins jumped towards Kalesi, lunging forward to stab with some rusted metal stake. A small creature, and easily avoided. Grabbing its thrusted arm, Kalesi threw it, manipulating its own momentum. The creature clattered to the ground past her, and another enemy rose to strike her while she was distracted. Pointing her blaster under her arm, she discharged the weapon sending a wave of energized particles into the ambusher. The hot particles cut through the arm of the bandit behind her, and it wailed as it crashed to the ground. Kalesi dodged their falling body, only to be attacked by two other individuals. Both enemies swung blunt weapons at her from different angles, hoping to catch her off guard and without a way to escape.

    Kalesi ignited her gauntlets, the blue energy shield pulsed to life. Kalesi¡¯s shields were struck by the two blows, each hitting her from either side. But she did not buckle under their strength, the attacks were weak even if she wasn¡¯t enhanced by her wargear automatically reinforcing her. With the two attackers blocked, a third moved in with military precision to strike at her unguarded chest. Kalesi activated her wargear¡¯s enhancements, using the increased speed to duck under the speeding strike.

    Using the remaining boost of the wargear¡¯s enhancement, Kalesi sequenced her shields to become narrow and pointed. Twisting in place, she spinned with a furious speed, gutting the three attackers in an instant. While she was still enhanced, Kalesi darted past the falling bodies around her. Still wielding her shields like jagged blades, Kalesi pounced on the largest bandit she could see. A massive behemoth of a man, stone-like skin with a gray tint not unlike the minions of the Lord Councilor¡¯s own followers. It wielded nothing but its fists, and Kalesi took advantage of its large form to scale up to the monster¡¯s shoulders. As she arrived at the top, her wargear¡¯s chemical enhancements wore off. The confused giant began to reach up to grab Kalesi, but she plunged her two bladed shields into its neck, discharging her blaster against its skull just to be sure of the kill.

    Kalesi rode the creature to the ground, jumping back so as to land on its spine to cushion the fall. A loud crunch under her boots implied additional insurance to the creature¡¯s demimse. In a few moments four enemies were defeated. The bandits looked startled, they began looking around as if to flee. The leader of their group called out with authority, snapping their attention back onto Kalesi. The feral shout was more like a monster¡¯s enraged wail than any language she had ever heard. The man hadn¡¯t moved much since the start of their altercation, and he now approached slowly with his blade at his side. Calling out to Kalesi, ¡°Hey bitch, you really think you gunna escape?¡± After his taunt the man sped up to a superhuman pace, not unlike Kalesi¡¯s own wargear enhancements.

    Kalesi noticed his intentions soon enough to just barely reactivate her own wargear. The man darted forward with an arching swipe, Kalesi barely dodged to the side as the blade cut into the dead giant¡¯s corpse. The two exchanged offhand blows, Kalesi¡¯s jagged shield striking towards his head, but his off hand rose to deflect her attack. Kalesi managed to pull her other hand up to strike his center, but at the same time the man dislodged their own blade to block the attempt. Kalesi¡¯s strike was powerful enough that he was thrust back and off the giant¡¯s body.

    Kalesi jumped after the man, identifying him as the biggest threat. As he met the ground and stabilized himself, Kalesi was soaring after him with a downward strike from both gauntlets. The bandit leader pulled his crimson blade up to block both attacks, but Kalesi¡¯s weight and power was more than his own. Her assault broke through the man¡¯s guard, and he staggered back. While he was stunned Kalesi brought up her blaster and shot, aiming for his center to ensure her accuracy. The man barely recovered fast enough to deflect the majority of the plasma away. Yet some still sprayed as the energy blade met the super-heated plasma. The man yelled in anger as his right arm was singed with dotted marks of char and burns.

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    The two duelist¡¯s wargear enhancements ended at the same time. To the onlooker¡¯s perspective they had clashed in a spray of color and electrical discharge over just one or two seconds. The bandit leader crouched against the ground, his right arm shaking from the sudden burns. Kalesi reared herself backwards, several of the onlookers had begun to move once they saw their captain¡¯s actions. They charged forward to defend their leader. Three strikes came one after the other, easy enough to dodge but it pushed Kalesi farther up the metal pipe road.

    At the edge of Kalesi¡¯s mind, her thoughts were on the fate of her pupil. Mevi ran quickly away and Kalesi brought most of the bandit¡¯s attention onto herself, but not all the bandits could have been accounted for. Their large raiding party likely had dredges lurking at the edge of even Kalesi¡¯s vision. With her senses filtered through her wargear, and subsequently enhanced, she could hear the calling of a guttural voice in the direction Mevi had escaped. Kalesi couldn¡¯t run to her assistance, as there were many bodies between herself and her pupil. She needed to dispatch these vermin quickly, but their leader in possession of wargear complicated things.

    Kalesi wasn¡¯t given much time to contemplate and strategize. The dawdling minions at the edge of the fight were commanded by their leader to charge. His angry barks summoned a wrath within his comrades, a fury and confidence to flail themselves against Kalesi¡¯s superior skill. Several enemies lunged at once. Two from the right cut diagonally, one charged to grab her from the center, and one more was attacking her left with a large mallet. Parrying the two cuts with her energy shield, she enlarged the energy projection to push them off. The grappler was easily kicked away, but before Kalesi could pull up her arm to deflect the mallet its wielder released its grip and instead fell onto her left arm.

    The sound and smell of singeing flesh permeated adjacent to Kalesi. The attacker wrapped his large body around her shield, and it cut into him. But she was partially pinned. The kicked grappler redoubled his attempt after being knocked aside, and both of the attackers on her right followed suit and dropped their weapons. All four were struggling against Kalesi to pin her to the ground. But she could feel the first, and largest, of the grapplers weakening. The center figure managed to slip past her second attempt to kick, and grabbed Kalesi¡¯s floating leg. The two on her right were attempting to push past her guard, but she held them back by increasing the size of her shield, its power waning with the added stress of a large form and being attacked by heavy objects.

    The other enemies sensed Kalesi¡¯s weakness, and began to charge at her with their weapons, even their leader had recovered and was moving towards her with a smirk. Kalesi activated her enhancements again, and was able to entirely pick up the large form of the bandit on her left, hefting it over her head she threw him down on top of the individual grabbing at her leg. He fell forward when Kalesi deactivated her shield, thus removing his only grip on her. Kalesi yanked her leg away from the creature in front of her before the larger body began to fall forward and then on top of it. She could easily enough likewise deactivate her other shield to cause the two assailants to fall forward. Creating a tumbling mass of confused bodies.

    Kalesi jumped backwards, escaping the tumbling bodies. Yet as she did so the bandit leader¡¯s own enhancements kicked in, and the villain charged her and vaulted over his own men. Slicing downward with his blade, the creature lunged at her. But Kalesi was able to take advantage of his previous injury, his strike was slowed even with a wargear¡¯s enhancement. Kalesi managed to duck under his flying strike, and get under him while grabbing his injured arm. She crushed his wrist with all the strength her wargear allowed, and the flesh and bone flattened in spurts of blood and shattered bone. Kalesi turned her body and threw him past herself, and away from his comrades. He tumbled to the ground as Kalesi¡¯s enhancement wore off.

    In the same moment, as Kalesi turned her back to throw the bandit leader, a bright and incredible light erupted from behind her. Kalesi could hear several shouts of surprise, and she herself barely managed to close her eyes before the illumination blinded her. Yet as it disappeared, Kalesi realized that the light came from Mevi¡¯s direction. Had her pupil activated such a power? If so, she was almost certainly in danger to feel the need to do so.

    Kalesi¡¯s vision was foggy, but thanks to both training and her wargear she didn¡¯t need her full vision to continue fighting. While her enemies were reeling from the sudden blindness, Kalesi closed her eyes to allow them to recover, and ignited her shields to become blades once more. She darted in the direction of the confused wails, and began cutting and slashing at where she sensed bodies and warmth. For several moments ichor and organs splattered, caking the ground around her in a mess of gore.

    Kalesi¡¯s vision began to return quickly, partially thanks to her luck of not looking at the source of the light. Opening her eyes she could see blurred images, but it was enough to continue fighting. Several enemies had fallen at her instinctual attacks, and they were cut down to size with several gashes from her repeated assault. Most of the bandits were scattered, writhing on the ground and clutching at their eyes. Some were attempting to run away, escaping past Kalesi and further down the pipe-road from where they had come. Kalesi took the opportunity to ruthlessly kill any of the confused bandits who did not attempt to flee. Some put up a defense, but most were too disabled to even realize where her attacks came from.

    By the time Kalesi had cut down the last of the bandits who remained, several moments had passed. Not bothering to check where the bandit leader had skittered off to, Kalesi rushed with blurry eyes in the direction of her pupil.

    Kalesi found Mevi crumpled on the ground, conscious and crawling in Kalesi¡¯s direction. Not far off a large and disgusting figure of many limbs was desperately searching around itself in a rage. Mevi was obviously injured, in some unknown way, but Kalesi darted to the fiend and killed him instantly with a short burst from her blaster. Rushing back to Mevi, Kalesi saw that she was covered in strange black welts and blisters streaking up her arms from the gloves she wore. She must have activated her power with the modified Maige, but its strength had been more than she anticipated. The girl was alive, but in pain and mystically wounded.

    Without any knowledge of the ailment Mevi was stricken with, Kalesi collected her mumbling and confused pupil. With Mevi in her arms, Kalesi darted down the pipe. Using her wargear to cushion her fall, Kalesi descended into the depths of the Pipes, one of the few places safe from fiends was below the surface. She needed to find a safe place for them both to rest, and evaluate the situation.

    Descending into the Pipes, Kalesi and Mevi were engulfed in darkness. The thick haze blocked what little light was ambient in the Pipes¡¯s surface. Kalesi could easily leap ten meters with her wargear¡¯s natural assistance, and it was enough to allow easy travel between metal roads. After several minutes of searching, Kalesi found what looked like an abandoned settlement. Not trusting the area at its face value, she stealthily crept at the edges of the abandoned colony. After ten minutes of waiting and watching, Kalesi confirmed there was not a soul within the old dwellings.

    Kalesi spotted the most secure building in the colony. An old tower, one of the ancient buildings that once covered the surface of the Pipes long ago. Kalesi carefully made her way within, her pupil was still mumbling in pain and confusion. What to do next would entirely depend on Mevi¡¯s ability to recover, as Kalesi had no knowledge of a Magicae¡¯s abilities or limits. The only option of early escape would be to somehow travel to the edge of the Pipes, and retreat back into the city. The distance their transport had deposited them was great, and if the Rust was infecting settlements and populations close to the edge, they would need to skirt its perimeter to escape safely.

    Kalesi finally decided to set Mevi onto the ground, finding a mostly clean and flat spot where she could rest. This mission was becoming too much for the both of them to handle. Kalesi¡¯s information told her that all local populations were running away from the Rust¡¯s influence; she hadn¡¯t even thought raiders and scavengers would brave the infection. Their timing and ambush was almost like they knew where Kalesi would have landed, the chances of running into such well armed and well trained individuals so close to a Rust infection¡­ Kalesi stopped her thoughts in their tracks, before they could lead to more blasphemous ideas.

    Kalesi looked down at Mevi. She was calming, and her skin almost looked to be healing. But at the rate it was progressing, they would be resting for some time in the dark depths. Kalesi set herself up to keep watch, nothing would ambush her while she guarded her pupil this time.

 Chapter 19: The Rust

    Mevi was mostly conscious when Kalesi had saved her. The writhing pain was like hot irons under her skin that tried to infect and travel within her blood vessels. Yet as Mevi closed her eyes, in the safety of her mentor¡¯s arms, she felt the light around her disappear and with it a dull cold air enter. The cold was almost soothing against her burning skin. She tried to open her eyes, only to be met with a dark expanse and rushing air as the two traveled at a marvelous speed downwards. After an agonizing amount of time, the fast movements stopped, and the cold chill permeated around her.

    The worst of the pain dissipated quickly, morphing from an agonizing fire into a sharp throbbing. Mevi could feel her skin shifting under her clothes, and she ripped at the fabric. Invisible hands seemed to sense her discomfort and helped remove the robes. Those invisible hands, presumed to be Kalesi, attempted to pull free the gloves to no avail. Mevi settled against a cold metal, noticing only now that she was laying down. It was flat and chilled beneath her. Grime and dust seemed to cover it, but the stimulation of the filth was a preferable distraction.

    Soon the pain disappeared fully, or at least comparably so. A dull ache throbbed under Mevi¡¯s skin if she moved too suddenly. As her senses became fully her own again, she realized the darkness around her was thick and real. She didn¡¯t like the dark, and wished it away so she could find Kalesi. She wanted the one stable figure in her life so far, the one person that seemed to try to protect her in this short span of time. She wished for light, but remembered the resulting pain from her previous explosion. Her mind almost naturally attuned a dim glow that slowly started to fill the darkness with a warm orange hue.

    Mevi and Kalesi were revealed as the slow light crept around corners and up walls. Mevi felt a quiet complaint from her body, but it dissipated as she lowered the strength of the light slightly. Kalesi looked concerned, but only spared a few glances at her pupil. As the light fully illuminated the two, Kalesi moved to the only entrance to their lopsided hideout. She began pulling at weak metal and loose frame, closing a decrepit door to block the outside. Mevi noticed a shrill wind blowing outside that echoed against the metal husk they had made camp in.

    Kalesi confirmed the security of the door, and moved to Mevi¡¯s side. Mevi took the chance to glance at her arms. There were dark veins sprawling from her wrists and chest, where her Maige conduits rested against her skin. Before their eyes the dark veins were retreating to their beginning, and most of the bubbling welts had completely disappeared. Mevi was recovering surprisingly quickly, but she didn¡¯t know why that was surprising. Kalesi bent down to inspect her young ward¡¯s skin, ¡°What happened? Do you know?¡±

    Mevi was unsure, ¡°I activated the Maige¡­ I summoned a light in my panic and excitement. It was too strong. I should have tempered it like I am doing now, but I was almost¡­ consumed, by the moment. It was strange.¡±

    ¡°You are at least healing. We escaped the bandits, and both of us are safe. So that is all that matters right now.¡±

    Mevi was curious about her new surroundings, ¡°Where are we Kalesi? It is almost impossibly dark here.¡±

    Kalesi sighed, ¡°We are in ¡®The Depths¡¯, or at least that is what I have heard it called. It is an accurate description, if anything.¡± Mevi¡¯s confused look was an adequate response, Kalesi unconsciously sighed thinking about the situation they were in. ¡°There is a strange, and incredibly dense, layer of¡­ well everything. The Rust, it is an ancient infection of the body, metal, stone, and anything else it touches. It can be dealt with using thorough, and civilized, cleaning methods. But here, they haven¡¯t the tools or means. The Rust eats away at material, then begins to spore like a fungus. Those spores make up the dust, rust, and debris that billow like wind. I have heard it begins to become as thick as water far enough down.¡±

    Mevi was fascinated, and waited for Kalesi to continue explaining. Yet Kalesi stopped and entered a pained contemplation. Turning around, to keep her face towards the door, Kalesi grimly said ¡°This Rust can turn any and all into simple air. It infects a host like a parasite and makes them deranged. Before they are completely eaten away. Then they become one with the infection that claimed them.¡± Kalesi sat down on a slanted pillar that once stood by the door. The two sat in silence, save for the shrieking wind battering the metal hull of the fallen tower.

    After a while of waiting, and silent thoughts, Mevi¡¯s affliction subsided into almost nothing. The black veins receded into nothing, and few hints were shown that they were ever there. Mevi¡¯s skin was as perfect as it is after a fresh wash, save for the growing layer of grime and dust. Kalesi helped Mevi back into her robes, as the chill was beginning to set in. Mevi was wondering what their next step was, and if Kalesi¡¯s expressions were translated correctly she was planning that very thing. Kalesi eventually turned to Mevi, ¡°I think I will let you make our next decision. Despite my initial concern, the ambush left us mostly unscathed. Your ability to recover was faster than I could ever have assumed, or maybe it looked worse than it was.¡±

    Mevi chuckled grimly, ¡°It was quite painful in the moment, but I am fine now I think.¡±

    ¡°Then¡­ Our choices are to continue this Barge-cursed mission, or begin our escape. Both are dangerous, for various reasons¡­¡±

    A thought plaguing Mevi finally won its way out, ¡°Would we be helping people with our mission?¡±

    Kalesi smiled at her pupil¡¯s undaunted innocence, ¡°Yes, I think. From what I was provided, we need to head towards known population centers. We would gather who we can find, and attempt to evacuate them outside of the Rust¡¯s influence. We shouldn¡¯t have run into any bandits or scavengers, but that is something to report later.¡±

    Mevi thought for a moment, but her mind was mostly recalling the strange exteriors of those ¡®bandits¡¯, ¡°I think I would like to continue. This is my first mission, and if we are sent to help people I don¡¯t want to abandon them.¡±

    Kalesi¡¯s smile widened a bit, she tousled her pupil¡¯s hair playfully, ¡°Good choice. If we weren¡¯t sent to help people we would already be returning to the nearest uninfected edge.¡±

    The two were in agreement, as much good as that did in the situation. After resting for a few more minutes, Kalesi scooped up her pupil once again, and they escaped their metallic cover into a sharp breeze. Kalesi looked down to her pupil, and then at the light emanating from her gemstones. Picking up on her mentor¡¯s thought, Mevi silenced her light, and in the shroud of darkness Kalesi traversed the abyss.

    From Mevi¡¯s perspective, within Kalesi¡¯s arms, she could see very little. As they suddenly soared then quickly landed, Mevi could see only the briefest impression of ground beneath them. Then they would soar back into the air again, apparently jumping from ledge to ledge. Kalesi¡¯s vision seemed to pierce the darkness in a way Mevi¡¯s couldn¡¯t. Yet as they rose, small pins of light shone above their head like stars. The small stars grew steadily in size after every new leap into the abyssal space. As the light grew, their sources began to move and shift. The most potent light from above stabbed through the shroud laid out by the ambient material created by this strange ¡®Rust¡¯. As they grew higher and higher in altitude the shifting storm of debris overhead eventually softened to allow some small amount of light.

    Almost suddenly, from the perspective of Kalesi¡¯s powerful leaps, the light flooded back into full view. One ledge there was darkness, with thousands of small pricks of light peeking through the blanket of fugitive dust. Then suddenly, after they landed on the newest ledge, their full view was coated with grimy light again. The swirling clouds allowed the shining ambient light to enter the world once again. Kalesi stopped for a moment, and motioned for Mevi to look down. Below them, only one or two meters, was the thick darkness that created an impassable shield to block light. The winds below were slow and sluggish compared to the virulent storm above. Yet even the above storm held no sway or influence over Kalesi¡¯s strong movements.

    The two had evaded the darkness that seemed so permanent just moments before. With their newfound vision the pair began soaring from one ledge to another again. Mevi could now properly see the outline and description of their targets. The massive pipework twisted and spiraled in impossible directions. In every facet of her vision, Mevi saw nothing but rusted metal or twisting pipework. The amalgamation of construction around them made it difficult to discern how far any given target could be, and the swirling gusts of material shadowed any further investigation. Yet while Mevi marveled at the strangeness, and density, of their surroundings Kalesi seemed to know exactly where and how to travel. Despite the intercorse of metal and stone that persisted its confusion, the travel across and up continued after the brief rest for awe.

    After several leaps upward, traveling at least one hundred meters after exiting the darkness, the density of construction lapsed. Loosened, and suddenly extremely large, the platforms Kalesi traveled were easier to discern between near and far. The time they spent climbing upwards was twice, if not more, as long as their adventure downward. When Kalesi eventually found a large pipe-road she was satisfied with, and put Mevi on her own feet again, the winds settled to a slow breeze.

    Around them was, once again, the vast expanse of metal and stone that descended to unknown depths. The platform chosen to be their path was much wider than the one they were dropped off at. Many meters across, it was more similar to the large winding roads within the city than any type of plumbing. The material transported within such a large construct could only be imagined.

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    After Mevi had recovered her barings, and was finished exploring the vastness around them, Kalesi readied herself to move. Mevi hadn¡¯t initially noticed, but Kalesi had stopped as if to rest briefly once Mevi was released to the ground. Mevi was concerned, but was waved off quietly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I am fine.¡± replied Kalesi, as if anticipating her questioning pupil.

    Mevi was still concerned, she hadn¡¯t ever seen Kalesi winded or truely tired, ¡°We can take a longer rest if you would like. You are the only one who knows where we are going after all.¡±

    Kalesi sucked in air, only to release it in a deep breath followed by coughing, ¡°I can rest while we walk. My wargear is similar to your Maige, I think. Even its more robotic enhancements can tire someone¡¯s muscles. Turns out, ¡®normal¡¯ people aren¡¯t meant to soar several hundred meters as fast as we did.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t hold back a small laugh, and Kalesi chuckled herself. The clarity of oddness of the situation seemed to return in lapses to the both of them. She seemed to have fully recovered herself, and the two began walking their path once again. As they walked, Kalesi was noticeably on edge, but smiled when she caught Mevi¡¯s glances. As if to reassure or calm her pupil, while she redoubled her own perception of potential dangers.

    The duo walked for a while, and nothing seemed to change. Yet as they continued along the chosen path, the air seemed to become thicker. Subtly, and almost unnoticeable to Mevi, the air made itself denser and slower. Less wind was blowing, as if the materials in the air were actively resisting the billowing currents. What light that shined through was dimmed, where before its ambience was like a clouded day it was now like an evening shroud.

    The terrain around them was still perceivable, and Kalesi hung on every motion or noise, but the dark tint continued to thicken. It eventually became stuffy, almost hard to breathe, even with their masked mouths and noses. They continued and as they did Mevi couldn¡¯t help thinking to herself that she missed the open air in the city, despite its claustrophobic towers. Then Mevi realized something, and looked down to her gloved hands. The clear gemstone was dull and dead, deactivated by her own command. She had been trying to maintain a consistent command of suppression on it, just in case her mind wandered and it activated again. Yet now she saw a potential use.

    Quietly grabbing at Kalesi¡¯s sleeve, who turned to see what was wrong, Mevi realized she wasn¡¯t sure if they should be talking or not. Pointing at her glove¡¯s gemstone, and gesturing around her, only caused Kalesi to look confused. Mevi¡¯s attempts at charades continued until Kalesi whispered softly, ¡°Mevi, just speak softly. We should be safe for now.¡±

    Mevi summoned her breath, and realized her charades were almost required with the lack of good oxygen, and she managed to squeak a reply, ¡°Should I try to make an air bubble?¡± Her voice was scratchy and like a prolonged gasp, she didn¡¯t realize how in need of good air she actually was.

    Kalesi thought for a moment, ¡°You can try, do not strain yourself. If you revert to your previous condition again I will carry you out regardless of your opinion. Our safety comes before this mission.¡±

    Mevi nodded eagerly, deciding further speech might be too difficult. She focused on the idea of her gemstone, and it pulsed slightly as if to respond. Unsure how to proceed, she tried to summon the idea of pushing air away, or creating wind of some kind. After several moments of nothing happening, Mevi attempted to summon wind around her again but with less conflicted feelings. This time short gusts emanated from her palms, blowing the ground below her. Both Kalesi and Mevi were surprised by the reaction, and Mevi was invigorated to attempt an additional experiment.

    Focusing on a single, solid, mental image Mevi held her arms out, palms pointed forward. She imagined a gusting wind to blow away the particles that clustered around them. As she did, the child of wind billowed from her hands, a stream of low current air pushed outward and into the heavy fog. Mevi jumped up in excitement and looked to Kalesi, who was surprised and seemed confused but impressed at the short outcome. Kalesi gave a nod as if to encourage a repeated attempt, and Mevi focused once more. Imagining a current, a bubble of wind, to blow around them and dispel the thick fog. Mevi¡¯s instincts moved her body, she held her hands at her center as if holding some delicate orb. As she focused, air began to swirl in a small concentration around her hands. The effect began to expand as she tempered her desire to explode the effect, she maintained her precise control over her excitement and eagerness.

    The bubble of wind expanded beyond her hands, to her elbows, up to her shoulders, and eventually past her knees. Then her entire body was engulfed in a whirling wind that pushed away the heavy fog around them allowing clear crisp air, Mevi began to expand the bubble further when Kalesi placed a hand on her shoulder. Mevi looked up, Kalesi had ducked into the bubble of clean air, ¡°I think this is enough. This is amazing, Mevi!¡±

    Mevi blushed, she was impressed with herself as well, ¡°I think I can make it bigger, so we can both fit!¡±

    Kalesi gripped her shoulder with a warm smile, ¡°I think this is wonderful, and incredibly impressive I might add. If I need a breather I will duck into your little bubble, my lungs are more durable than yours so don¡¯t strain yourself.¡±

    Mevi was still maintaining her hands at her center, and half of her focus was on maintaining the wind bubble¡¯s form, ¡°I think I can do this for a while. I got a headache before I hurt myself with the light.¡±

    Kalesi looked serious when she said, ¡°If you feel that sense coming over you, dispel this air bubble. Or whatever you are doing, unless vitally important.¡±

    Mevi nodded with an excited grin. The strange novelty of this tool was amazing to her, to be able to summon wind without any fan or propeller. No real device beyond her own hands and a strange gem. It defied what she thought possible. Regardless of her prior beliefs, she continued to maintain the bubble of pure air. Maintaining its form eventually became easier, and she could soon walk normally while maintaining its shape. As the two walked, Kalesi occasionally ducked her head in to breathe. The further they traveled into the heavy fog, the less often Kalesi stopped for breath, instead preferring to keep a constant vigil around them.

    While the fog was dark, Mevi could still somehow see through the thick material. If this was in part due to her Maige, or the natural feature of the fog, she couldn''t tell. As they progressed, it almost seemed like Mevi could see and hear better than Kalesi. Mevi could notice a falling rock, or hear a crumbling strut, before Kalesi¡¯s head darted in its direction. While on a smaller level than before, Mevi¡¯s natural senses seemed heightened again. It was because of this that Mevi could soon see writhing bodies below on a distant pipe-road. Dense with old structure and fallen architecture, it looked like a strange hanging city kept up by old struts and strong wire. Few structures were built directly into the pipes, instead being attached by wire that wrapped around the thick pipe or attached via ancient hanging struts that looked older than the reliant buildings. Mevi could see stumbling bodies on the rusted pathways, shambling forms of various sizes. All slowly moving forward along the suspended walkways and eventually onto the main pipe-road above the hanging ¡®city¡¯. The stumbling figures then continued along the pipe, into the darkness of beyond. But as Mevi stared in the direction they traveled, she realized it wasn¡¯t darkness.

    The forms of creatures, of people, below were traveling along the metal roads to a great wall of dark. As Mevi quickly realized, it was exactly that; a great wall or cliff stretching impossibly high up. The upper lengths were lost on her, its cliff¡¯s edge was out of sight and well beyond the dark fog¡¯s length. The shambling forms seemed to crawl against, and up, the great cliff. Unnaturally motivated to climb such an intimidating structure.

    Mevi pointed down to the movement below them. Kalesi looked hard, and after several moments seemed to spot what Mevi saw. Her eyes strained against the dark fog. Mevi, despite being told otherwise, subtly expanded her air bubble¡¯s reach. The upper edge was now high enough to reach Kalesi¡¯s head at her full height. Now encompassed in the less-corrupted air, Kalesi seemed to spot the bodies gathering below them. Her face fell grim as she seemed to notice something beyond Mevi¡¯s initial survey. Kalesi¡¯s eyes darted back and forth, then beyond to the imposing cliff. Kalesi turned to Mevi, with some amount of sorrow in her eyes, ¡°Mevi I think we should leave. I doubt there are many left to save.¡±

    Mevi was confused, she could see many people down there, and several different clusters of buildings, ¡°Aren¡¯t we supposed to go down there?¡±

    Kalesi seemed to debate with herself, as she sometimes does when determining what to say, ¡°Those people, they are already lost Mevi. Those people are what we call ¡®Rusted¡¯, they are infected. Their minds are scrambled, and can only move towards the newest movement or sound. They are herding themselves up the cliff, following each other because the one in front moves and so the one behind follows.¡±

    Mevi looked down with a sadness gleaned from Kalesi. As she peered out towards the several clusters of homes, buildings, and small villages, almost every single one was filled with dark figures. Each stumbling forward with a slow, but unstoppable, progress. What even was this ¡®Rust¡¯, it infected people like a fungus? How could so many, who are native to the Pipes, fall victim in such a vast quantity? Mevi searched below, peering into the abyss. As she followed the trails of marching figures, she found an oddity. Far off, further past the largest cluster of population, the figures were marching the wrong way. In much smaller quantities, one or two noticing from the main horde every minute or two, a short line of figures progressed away from the cliff. Mevi was curious, and began to walk carefully up the pipe road. Kalesi followed, sighing out the depression felt in her chest.

    The two traveled further along the pipe road, Mevi leading them this time. Kalesi content to allow her pupil to explore this grim reality at her own pace. Yet as Mevi continued along the winding path before her, following the trickle of shambling forms, she noticed something hopeful.

    Far detached from the main cluster of population, there was a partially detached pipe coming out of the cliff that was thinner than the rest of the strange colonies. Few bridges led in its direction, and those that did had to wrap and curve around various connected pipes and cliff structure. Yet there was a small collection of buildings, built into the side of the cliff itself rather than hanging against their thin pipe. The cluster of buildings were attached near the base of the pipe that exited the cliff, bent and twisted, yet serving as a main road out and into the Pipes regardless. In the small settlement there was some kind of mounted effort for survival. Mevi could see fast moving figures, many people that were rushing in more directions than forward. At the edge of their settlement there was an attached metal strut that stretched farther than normal. Its wide frame produced a natural road, and on said road were the detached groups of Rusted. Only a few here and there, spaced out by several meters. Accumulating at the metal road¡¯s end, and the entrance of the small settlement. There was a large wall built up, and many shambling bodies tried to rip and climb at the metal protecting the small village.

    Mevi pointed out the rebellious natives as they fought desperately against the march of Rusted. Kalesi was in disbelief, she hadn¡¯t noticed the individual Rusted nearly as clearly as her pupil apparently had. Kalesi¡¯s hope was rekindled, and she smiled at her pupil¡¯s discovery. Before Kalesi could congratulate Mevi, Mevi¡¯s head began to throb. Mevi instinctively grabbed at her head and closed her eyes, the sudden wave of nausea and ache washing over her. Kalesi caught Mevi as she wobbled, ¡°Mevi, if your senses are telling you to stop, do it. Do not strain yourself, I can guide us to our goal now. You¡¯ve done well.¡±

    Mevi was glad, she helped in some small way. She allowed her Maige to deactivate, and the clean air was absorbed back into the dark fog. Suddenly very little could be seen other than vague shapes and the dark towering cliff before them. But Mevi had done her part, and will focus on her own recovery so as to help her mentor again. But now they had a clear goal. Their reconnaissance finished, experiments with the Maige underway, and now to move onto evacuation. To finally help people, and to do so with her strange powers however they might manifest. Mevi dedicates herself to master these abilities, and vows no harm would come to Kalesi if her will prevails.

 Chapter 20: Survivors

    Mevi was led by the guiding hand of Kalesi, who brought them quickly in the direction of the rebelling village. The spiraling infrastructure made for complicated travel up and across any distance within the Pipes. Kalesi had mused about Mevi needing to practice her own navigation and climbing skills, in case of emergencies. So the two scaled across their path slowly, with Kalesi¡¯s guiding and protective hand to explain Mevi¡¯s every move.

    As they came closer to the village¡¯s outskirts, Kalesi became quieter and very few words were shared as they continued the climb. Kalesi seemed to make an effort to silence her own movements, and Mevi tried to follow suit but could not stop the clanging of boot against metal. Mevi assumed they needed to be silent for some reason, to avoid Rusted or some other purpose. The path they took was empty of souls or bodies, so Mevi wasn¡¯t sure who they were hiding their presence from.

    As they rounded the final approach, the final stretch was a short slanted platform that threatened to loosen Mevi¡¯s footing and slide her down the slick metal. From their grand viewpoint of the entire rusted county, they had made short work of scaling down to the verge of the village. Their entire journey was only twenty or thirty minutes, time had escaped Mevi in several moments of excitement and physical strain. Yet in their last vantage, a short leap downward would put them on the outskirts of the cliff-side village. Instead of descending, Kalesi had them wait and watch. Kalesi seemed to be searching the hamlet structures for something, or someone. Mevi patiently awaited her mentor¡¯s advice and direction, and as they waited sounds of cries and clashing occasionally echoed from within the village.

    Mevi completely trusted Kalesi, and her judgment, but could feel her anxieties rising as her blood became impatient. Her hair stood on end and she snapped her head at every sound that echoed from the distance, then began to notice how she had started acting in a similar way to Kalesi on their arrival in the thick fog. Mevi watched her mentor patiently, and Kalesi searched the town for something. Eventually Kalesi looked back to Mevi, then gestured for their descent.

    Attaching themselves against the cliff face, Mevi made slow progress climbing down such difficult terrain. The cliff was metal, stone, and decaying structure. As if something had cut out a section of the Barge yet left the Pipe¡¯s infrastructure intact. The  wall was smooth in many places, the only hand holds being those formed by Kalesi¡¯s stabbing energy gauntlets or rogue strut and wire. Regardless of the difficulty, the two arrived at the edge of the town. Kalesi kept herself low to the ground, still maintaining some level of secrecy, and Mevi followed as best she could. As they both navigated the alleys and short roads that had gaps or crumbling holes populating most of the leverage, the sounds of conflict continued to rise.

    Mevi and Kalesi arrived at the edge of what could be called a town center, where the main road would have intersected the middle of the cliff village. Buildings begin rising above and down the cliff as the road impacts against the wall, then branches off into the main strut pathway that is currently under the most attention. The main pipe road leads off, further down in a steep decline, while the main strut pathway leads up towards what once would¡¯ve been other communities. A hectic array of individuals sprawl about the center of the town, most reinforce or repair the large metal barricade that is keeping the Rusted at bay. Shouts ring out, metal clangs against metal, and somewhere within the din a child cries. The bodies that scurry about the chaos carry dim lights fueled by oil fires from small pots, and they illuminate their path like bright torch bugs. The quick running darted the points of light across the growing inky black fog that threatens to blind Mevi.

    Kalesi seems to be thinking about how to approach these individuals, and Mevi can understand her hesitation. Each person seems panicked, if not outright feral in their interactions. When one body bumps another screaming and yelling pursues only to be stopped by the responding crash and cutting of metal just beyond the barricade. Those that have them bare their fangs at other survivors as if each person is another enemy. Madness breeds in the tension, any single drop threatens to break the fragile cooperations between the scarred and maimed peoples within.

    From the crowds of people, a few stand out from the rest that attempt to order and direct everyone¡¯s efforts. One tall man, who is missing his left arm and is covered in scars, directs the effort to repair and reinforce the barricade. His diligence and attention notices every small flaw and points it out to a nearby passerby who quickly scavenges whatever material they can find to fix the issue. Another woman is directing water, or liquid of some kind, to be distributed to those reinforcing the barricade. She wears very little beyond ragged cloth tied over her chest and a short skirt with one leg under pant coverings. Finally an elder of the village, withered and leaning on a metal staff, is tending to cowering children who are clustered against the cliff wall.

    Kalesi seems to make her decision about where they would appear, and Mevi is taken back into the alley the way they had come. Navigating around the main center of the village, they end up exiting against the cliff wall, and begin slowly heading towards the older man and his gaggle of children. Staying within the shadows, Mevi and Kalesi slowly approach the group. When they are in the shadow of the last building before their target, Kalesi strides out with her arms raised above her head. Kalesi motioned for Mevi to back up and stay put, or at least that was how Mevi interpreted her hand movements. So Mevi moved backward and watched.

    The elderly man shouts in surprise, calling attention to himself from those working to protect the village. Several people yell incoherent language that doesn¡¯t seem to make sense to Mevi. The words reach her, but with blanks between their statements where instead Mevi only hears a dull rining. The elderly man shouts, ¡°depth back demon host begone!¡± and similar other statements about ¡®Depth Demons¡¯ are shouted. A burly man grabs a loose rod sitting near the ground and charges at Kalesi, who easily dodges and pins the man. A gasp rings out, as if the onlookers hadn¡¯t expected Kalesi to defend herself. Kalesi releases the man after kicking his weapon to the side.

    As Mevi listens to the calling and yelling of the survivors, she finds herself becoming confused and almost dizzy. As she sways from side to side she catches herself, but stumbles out of her cover. The people who were staring at Kalesi now turn their attention to Mevi as she leans against a nearby wall. Mevi¡¯s head is becoming fuzzy, and her body feels strangely heavy. Kalesi runs over, just as some nearby survivors begin to ready themselves to engage Mevi. Kalesi easily intercepts them and reaches Mevi first, brandishing her energy shield to intimidate the survivors who thought to attack. Kalesi¡¯s words arrive to her ears jumbled just as the other people¡¯s, ¡°difficult wind without must create breath.¡± Kalesi states with urgency. Mevi sits to fathom what she says, and it occurs to her what Kalesi might be asking. To create her wind bubble again, Kalesi must need some fresh air.

    Mevi, suddenly understanding Kalesi¡¯s request, begins to draw her mind to focus. Her head strains against her own thought, and a throbbing pain stabs into her mind as she feels what little air in her lungs slowly disappears. Her throat feels scratchy and she now notices her lungs feel laden down and struggle to inhale. Regardless, Mevi hears her mentor repeat some of the jumbled words and she focuses, concentrating to create gusts of wind. Her body remembers the procedure, but random bouts of wind gust out of her palms and into Kalesi¡¯s face. Kalesi grabs Mevi¡¯s hands and points them at Mevi¡¯s own face. Brief gouts of air rush past Mevi¡¯s face and small amounts of crisp sustenance fill her lungs. Her clarity increases, and begins to realize her own panic at not having the ability to breathe. Realizing Kalesi¡¯s motivations, Mevi forces all her strength on her Maige and a small pocket of clean air is created.

    Real air rushes into Mevi, and the throbbing begins to subside as she can fully hear the words of those around her. Yet a ringing persists over Kalesi¡¯s voice for a few moments. Eventually the ringing stops and Mevi feels the world return to some kind of normal again. Kalesi urgently asks, ¡°Mevi! Are you alright, I didn¡¯t even anticipate this blasted fog.¡±

    Mevi can hear and perceive things clearer, and realizes she worried Kalesi, while coughing and fighting to take in air Mevi says, ¡°Thank you, I didn¡¯t realize what was happening.¡±

    A man standing far away, wielding a sharp blade of some kind, demands, ¡°What devilry is this? What plague does she bring, is she infected?¡±

    Kalesi snaps back, still brandishing the shining energy shield, ¡°As I said. We are here to help you, she is not infected. This fog and rust was suffocating her.¡±

    ¡°We are all suffocating, how can you possibly expect to ¡®help¡¯ us if that kid can¡¯t even breathe on their own?¡± calls a voice from the village.

    Kalesi looks angered at the responses, and helps Mevi to her feet before giving a retort, ¡°We are here to guide you to safety. Pilots await to evacuate you once we escape this fog.¡±

    The elderly man approaches, stepping past the survivors wielding various weapons, ¡°If we could escape this fog we would have. The moment any of us leave the barricade will break and the Rusted will be at our heels. How could we possibly hope to outrun them?¡±

    Kalesi ensures Mevi can stand on her own, and turns to face the elderly man. Instead of speaking she simply produces a small device. It is rectangular but seems to have a sort of nozzle at the end, a hand-sized interface lights up. Kalesi displays the item and explains, ¡°This device can create small quantities of certain substances. I plan to create explosives that will detach this village from the main source of the Rusted. If we plant it by the barricade¡¯s base, it will blow away those behind it and create enough holes to stall our pursuers.¡±

    There are only five adults listening to Kalesi¡¯s words, the rest seem to cast glances towards the group but continue their defense. The survivors seem skeptical of Kalesi¡¯s promise, or possibly of her intentions. The elderly man seems to listen and think before turning to hobble towards the one-armed leader who is directing their survival. The man shouts at the elder for distracting him and his efforts, but after mumbled responses the angered man turns and appraises Kalesi. Kalesi, who still wields her energy shield at her side, remains cautious and alert against the various survivors. Mevi had regained some amount of herself with the help of her Maige, and as she looked on at the conflicted and scared faces she noticed several of the huddled children seemed dazed or confused. Mevi approaches Kalesi¡¯s side and whispers, ¡°Kalesi, I think their children are dying. They don¡¯t look healthy.¡±

    Kalesi holds a pained look as she watches the huddled children, half of them laying on the ground barely breathing, ¡°Mevi do you think you can help them breathe from here?¡±

    With the challenge posed, Mevi tries to concentrate. She focuses what wind she can create around herself and blows it in a current in their direction. The children huddle against the cliff, some four or five meters away. Mevi begins the spreading of her air bubble, but as she soon realizes it won¡¯t reach if she expands it evenly she instead shrinks it so it barely covers her own upper body. Focusing the wind, she projects an oval current from herself towards the nearest child, a nearby villager cries out as they notice the strange billowing gusts approaching a barely breathing adolescent. Before they could do anything, Mevi controls the wind to further expand it enveloping the first body, then another, and those few children that don¡¯t jump up and try to escape are now held within a thin blanket of pure air. Their chests fill with the essence they had lacked only moments before, taking in great breaths to supplement an unknown amount of negligence.

    There looked to be ten children in total, and only three managed to notice the wind and tried to escape it. The rest were blissfully unaware or simply had so little strength they couldn¡¯t resist. Yet as the clean air billowed into their lungs and bodies, the once vacant eyes brightened and energy began to fill them. The breath of fresh air awoke several of them, and invigorated those that were already conscious. The onlookers stopped yelling towards Mevi, and even several of the active defenders stopped to gawk at the apparent miracle. The children were breathing properly again, and as they gulped greedily at the air all but one awoke fully with confused glances and aware eyes. Several adults ran towards the group, and the three escaped adolescents submerged themselves into the current of wind to partake in the sustenance themselves.

    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    A shout for order called from the barricade, the adults who tried to abandon their post to reach their awoken children stopped in their tracks. After some exchanged longing looks with their apparent children, a redoubled effort to support the barricade ensued. The barricade¡¯s leader, the one-armed man, called out towards Kalesi and Mevi, ¡°I don¡¯t give a damn about your Magi or what reason you came here. You aint Demons, and want to help? Get helping.¡± The gruff voice rang over the din and clamor of metal and work. Those that watched Kalesi and Mevi with cautious suspicion dropped their guard and returned to what they had once been doing. Most of the residents seemed to continue eyeing the pair, and most of the attention was firmly placed on Mevi.

    Mevi maintained the air bubble, but could feel her concentration slipping as she focused on such a strange command. The billowing air wavered until it eventually began to slowly collapse, to the dismay of the children inside. Most of the children looked to be just younger than teens, yet were hardened and dirty from their difficult life in the Pipes. As Mevi fully collapsed her current of air, she suppressed her Maige to join herself with the difficulties those younger than her faced.

    Mevi looked up to Kalesi, who was cautiously watching the progress and efforts of the survivors. While she maintained her vigil over them, she interacted with the device she showed before. The small interface, with a nozzle at the end that seemed to allow the production of something. Mevi felt it was almost familiar, and remembered the jumbled memories of her learning at the Education Forum. Similar devices were used in her training, and Mevi wondered if explosives could really be made from such a small device. Just as Mevi began to wonder what it was capable of, an angry beep squeaked out of the device and Kalesi cursed to herself. A red symbol shone on the interface, the text below it reading ¡®Access Restricted; Not Enough Power¡¯. Kalesi clenched a fist, but calmed herself down and decided now was the time to deactivate her energy shield. Most of the survivors, beyond the elderly man and children, were back to the defense of the invaded road.

    Kalesi seemed to be fighting against the device¡¯s desires, imputing commands and fervently attempting to process her requests, but received only error messages of restricted access in various forms. After several additional attempts, Kalesi threw her hands in the air in frustration at the small device. Mevi was confused why it wasn¡¯t working, and Kalesi was becoming upset with its temperament. Mevi, however, had an idea, ¡°Kalesi, do you think my Maige could help power the device, or remove the restriction somehow?¡±

    Kalesi thought for a moment, using the opportunity to calm herself fully, ¡°I am not sure, I¡¯ve seen Magicae do strange things, and some have more ease of access with certain devices¡­ I don¡¯t even know how you could possibly power it without some kind of stable connection.¡±

    ¡°I think I might have an inclination. Or at least if my Maige listens to my request.¡±

    Kalesi didn¡¯t mull the idea over long before relinquishing the device to her pupil, ¡°All I ask is that you don¡¯t strain yourself, and I will continue to remind you of that temperance.¡±

    Mevi eagerly took the device, it was a simple interface with a sort of complex search feature. Kalesi showed Mevi how it worked, the components and chemical compounds desired could be imputed and then produced. Simple elements were easy to make, but Kalesi warned that many came out unstable without strong molecular bonds. Mevi wasn''t sure what exactly that meant, but didn¡¯t need to understand to try her idea. Placing her gloved hand on the top of the device, Mevi imagined a current of power. A small current, only a few sparks, but enough that it would stream into the device. She thought of the idea from her use of wind, if she could produce wind then maybe she could create electricity as well.

    Small sparks arced from Mevi¡¯s fingers and into the device. For brief moments as the electric current spread into the device, its interface lit up a brighter hue. Mevi continued to increase her Maige¡¯s output, and the device responded with a growing glow from its interface. Kalesi noticed the effect, and began typing in her various requests. Inputting complex algorithms with combinations of foreign materials, the device sputtered into a slow production. The constant stream of power seemingly enough that it could produce whatever it was just programmed to create. The ability it had to create materials from seemingly nothing was as miraculous to Mevi as her own growing abilities. She had used synthesizers before, but those were always large and intimidating machinery with hidden substructure and mechanics. This device was little larger than the tablets her previous family used to view old texts and information.

    The constant stream of power arcing from Mevi supplied the device with its requested additional power. The energy stream out of Mevi¡¯s fingers was a warm orange that  shone its hue regardless of the oppressive dark around them. Several onlookers gawked at the strange display of light that stood out so greatly from the dark and grim around them. As the device finished its processing, small dough-like materials exited from the short nozzle at the end. Kalesi caught the odd material, and held them carefully. She made several of these items, and seemed to be inclined to make more before a sharp pain stabbed once again into Mevi. As the pain plunged itself suddenly into Mevi¡¯s mind, her body spasmed in a jolt and accidentally increased her electrical output and she shot a violent blast of orange power into the ground. The sudden pain weighed on her heavier than when she manipulated wind, and it almost sent her collapsing to the ground. Kalesi grabbed her pupil with her empty arm, and Mevi immediately suppressed her Maige.

    Mevi could feel the throbbing pain railing against her mind¡¯s gates. The worst of the symptoms subsided, but Mevi¡¯s hands were already covering her ears instinctively. The sudden pain ambushed her senses, and her body seemed to have a delayed reaction to telling her about the oncoming exhaustion. She was so focused on her new ability, and helping Kalesi, she had ignored the slight headache and forgotten for a while that her Maige produced such violent pain if used too much. Kalesi lowered Mevi to the ground slowly, and placed her strange materials on the ground nearby. Kalesi held onto Mevi to ensure her stability, and the pain eventually began to dissolve into a memory.

    Kalesi silently appraised Mevi, who was still clutching at her head as the memory of pain slowly faded. Counting what materials she had, it seemed to be enough to begin their preparations. A dull ringing was all that was left in Mevi¡¯s head, the pain gone but leaving behind some token in her mind. The ringing eventually began to also fade, and Mevi shook her head as she tried to clear herself free of the effects, ¡°Kalesi, I think I am better¡­ I apologize for not letting you make more¡­¡±

    Interrupting her pupil¡¯s speech, Kalesi demands, ¡°Do not apologize for prioritizing your safety. It was the exact order I gave to you, and the only directive you need to truly follow on any mission. We produced plenty of explosives thanks to your smart thinking. I think I can begin our preparations while you rest.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be able to make more soon, I think. I just needed a moment¡­¡±

    Mevi attempted to rationalize to herself, but Kalesi wanted none of it. Kalesi sat Mevi against the cliff wall, not very far from the other children and commanded her to rest. Then, leaving Mevi behind, Kalesi gathered the strange doughy materials and left to cross the village center and explain her plan to the one-armed man. Mevi did as she was told and rested against the cliff, but noticed Kalesi left behind the odd synthesizing device. Gathering it up, Mevi began attempting to search its features in idle fancy.

    The hand-held synthesizer seemed fairly similar to those they used at the apartment, save for the fact that those at the apartment had pre-programed materials put inside. This device seemed exclusively capable of inputting ¡®ingredients¡¯ together to attempt to create things. Mevi looked on towards the children, who were now awake and aware but covering their faces as if to hide from the dense fog. Mevi wondered how long it had been since any of these people had eaten, most seemed emaciated and showed the outline of bone under their skin. Using the device, and supplying a much smaller amount of power to reactivate its full potential, Mevi attempted to produce some idea of food. The device¡¯s system seemed to understand the separation of food and other uses, and attempted to automatically help with the assumed desire. After some inputs, and guesses, Mevi produced a strange meaty paste.

    The smell of the paste began to spread out from the device quickly, and was more pungent than anything Mevi had experienced before. As the smell spread, the nearby children reacted instinctively, almost like animals, their heads darted up and spun around to face Mevi where she sat. The food paste didn¡¯t look amazing, and smelt strange, but according to the device it was a healthy concentration of vital nutrients. As Mevi inspected the substance, one child slowly made their way near to Mevi. Keeping a cautious distance, as if Mevi was some kind of feral animal that might attack at any moment. Mevi used the child¡¯s curiosity and offered the doughy paste to them. The odd food¡¯s form maintained as a floppy cylinder of reddish brown. The child eagerly snatched the food away, and without a second thought devoured the nutrients.

    The remaining children got up and made their way over, as if to beg for their own portion. While Kalesi helped direct, and plant, the use of her explosives, Mevi was now feeding starving children. And Mevi felt some strange amount of glee helping so many, even in this simple way.

    By the time Kalesi seemed content, and finished with the preparations, Mevi had already befriended the collection of children. Producing more than enough food for each of them, and giving each extra enough that they were simply snacking on the food while they sat down in a protective collection around Mevi. The elder had left before Mevi dolled out food paste, and now returned to the curious sight. All but the still unconscious child were now gathered around Mevi like she was their hen mother. The elder approached with a bemused expression, ¡°I came to ready the children, but it seems most are as prepared enough as can be. I need them to come with me now, we will be leaving before the barrier is destroyed.¡± The children groaned and became sad at the idea of leaving their new source of nutrition, but with additional strips of food paste printed the group gathered themselves to leave. The elder began leaving, but seemed intent on abandoning the still conscious child, and Mevi called after him, ¡°Sir, what about this one? You can¡¯t be thinking of leaving him would you?¡±

    The man looked towards the unconscious boy with a small amount of sadness in his eyes, ¡°The boy was wounded by a Demon, what you call Rusted I think, and his parents have perished. There is none to look after him, even if he was able to wake. Most suspect his infection of the Rust, but his coma saves their wrath and focuses it on other things. He is too much a burden, and those that are our burdens must fend for themselves or die.¡±

    The matter of fact statement jarred Mevi. The young boy looked to be the eldest of the group but still barely a teen. Filthy and comatose, was being abandoned so easily. The elderly man and his group of children left for deeper into the village, leading away from the road that would soon be subject to explosives. Mevi moved herself over to the unconscious boy, and sat with him. Deciding to allow clean air to flourish in her lungs again, Mevi projected a bubble of air around herself and the boy. Her small hope that additional healthy air would wake him, and allow him to escape, failed as she exposed him to almost a minute of fresh air. He made no motion to stir further beyond his quiet breathing. The idea of him being a burden, that because of this the entire community would abandon them to die¡­ It reminded her too much of the reasoning and excuses her previous family made for her mistreatment.

    Eventually Kalesi returned to Mevi, and Mevi collapsed her bubble of air. Sad, Mevi looked up at her mentor who seemed concerned at what Mevi was doing. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what to do, but didn¡¯t like the idea of leaving this child behind, and she looked up with confusion and slow-growing sadness. Kalesi wasn¡¯t sure what was going on but kneeled down to Mevi¡¯s seated height. Mevi wasn¡¯t even entirely sure why she cared, but told Kalesi, ¡°They are going to leave him here because he won¡¯t wake up. What do we do, Kalesi?¡±

    Kalesi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what to say, and looked at the unconscious boy as she rationalized her words, ¡°It can sometimes be difficult, in places like these. Even if we bring him ourselves, who would take care of him? If he remains¡­ asleep, then how would he eat and survive on his own?¡±

    Mevi was conflicted, because she knew the words to be true, but felt some need to help the young boy who reminded her of herself, ¡°Can¡¯t we protect him? With all our space in the apartment, we could take him with us if we brought him away from here.¡±

    Kalesi looks at Mevi and with a firm, but gentle, tone said, ¡°Mevi, he isn¡¯t an animal we can simply adopt. The society we live in¡­ It is not kind to those that abandoned the Magi, or their descendants. And if we try to save this one boy, what about all other lost and orphaned children? We couldn''t possibly save them all.¡±

    Mevi understood the words, and knew the logic, but still felt conflicted about purposefully leaving the child behind for some malady outside of their control, ¡°What do we do then?¡±

    Kalesi thought for a few moments, ¡°You and I will transport him. We can offer him to those that come to evacuate the survivors we save. I am sure they can handle it, and see to him as is appropriate.¡± With her words fair, and Mevi content with his promised rescue, Kalesi states, ¡°We will begin our flight soon. The explosives you helped create are set, and what remains of the village is gathering to leave. Only a few will remain behind, myself included. I want you to travel with the survivors and help if you are able, but prioritize your own safety¡­ I will retrieve this boy when I escape myself, and return to you. With my speed and power I won¡¯t be gone for more than a few minutes, so don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Mevi understands, despite still feeling her strange attachment to the boy and concern for both him and Kalesi, but reassures Kalesi regardless, ¡°I will keep myself safe. I will wait for you. Please be safe, and return with as much haste as you can muster.¡±

    Kalesi smiles at her pupil, and pats Mevi¡¯s head, ¡°I will, have no fear.¡±

    With their words exchanged, and promises made, Mevi rises to leave. Directed by Kalesi, and following the hustling survivors, Mevi arrives at the large group as they cluster to escape. Those in front mount an effort to begin climbing up a decrepit platform towards a high pointing strut that would lead upwards to an escape. Those at the top assist the others as they reach the top, and move them along the path above. Mevi looks back towards the center of the city, and prays to silent ancestors for her mentor¡¯s safety. Then turns back to begin her own ascent out of the village.

 Chapter 20.5: Kalesi, Fallen Walls

    Kalesi watched as Mevi ran off further into the dilapidated hamlet, venturing to brave this strange and hostile place alone. Their task was to evacuate survivors, and Kalesi found some confidence that Mevi could do this even without her help. As her young pupil disappeared from sight through a turning alley, Kalesi returned to her own task. A duty to perform that would require all her remaining strength and agility to survive.

    Few of the settlement¡¯s survivors stayed behind. Kalesi spoke to their one-armed leader, a gruff and blunt man who speaks as if death looms over him at all times. He probably only agreed to Kalesi¡¯s strategy because it was the only plan anyone had even attempted to give him. The remaining survivors had focused all their energy into building and maintaining a large wall, an attempt to postpone the inevitable but not to stop it. The people¡¯s agreement to an outsider¡¯s request was received surprisingly well, and accepted without any complaint. Those few that remained were only the ones who were injured, maimed, or too battered to properly escape without great strain on the whole of the group. The survivor¡¯s scarred leader stayed behind as well, saying his deformed body would likely not reach much farther than the first climb. He might have been right, but his trained and powerful muscles told a different story. His almost vacant eyes and grim determination explained his real reasoning, and no words needed to be said about his true goal.

    Kalesi had finished her explosive preparations, and enabled one of the bombs to connect to her neural interface for remote activation. When it activates, the chain reaction would hopefully be enough to destroy what is left of the metallic strut the village called a bridge. Yet even once the bridge is destroyed, the horde of Rusted will inevitably spill over the gap and large portions of their mass will make it over and into the village remnants. Kalesi told a small lie to Mevi, she can¡¯t leave immediately to return to her pupil. She, and those remaining to maintain the wall, will need to hold back and fight against the Rusted advance. Even now, the horde beckons them on the other side of the barrier. With so few people, even now the Rusted continue to break through and destroy the barricade faster than those remaining can repair it.

    Just as Kalesi returns her focus to the barricade, the last of the able bodied adults retreat from their posts to escape their ravaged village. The great wall the survivors had built is several meters high, and an unknowable thickness. The Rusted destroy all they touch, their affliction can melt through the very metal they walk upon. When one section of the barricade opened, by the angry claws of the Rust, the survivors replaced the section that would erode into dust. This process forever expanded the barricade¡¯s width and size, and used the very walls and foundations of their village as the supply for the construction.

    Grim and determined faces prowled the remnants of the wall. Few still attempted to maintain the falling architecture that protected them. All were waiting for the signal, the sign to unleash hell and to die for someone that wasn¡¯t themselves. When all of the survivors who could escape mount the first checkpoint, a tall wall leading upwards onto a bridge to spirit them away from the village, hell would break loose. Kalesi stood vigilant with bated breath, thinking back to her words of promise to return. She will return, and she will survive this. The idea of leaving Mevi to whatever designs the Magi have for her, it simply was not an option.

    Just then a sound was heard echoing over the settlement. A shrill howl careened over their heads. It came from a whistling device, one that was thrown from the group who led the escape. It was their signal that all who were fleeing had made it over the perimeter and were beginning their flight away from the village. As the sound flew and died away into the abyss, all eyes turned to Kalesi. Those who were attempting to repair the barricade put down their tools and watched the outsider. It was their moment of truth, if the bridge didn¡¯t fall into ruin the Rusted would quickly overrun those that fled. Kalesi prepared herself, pushing away the memories of flesh and pain she recalled as Rust. She activated the device, and began to back away from the wall. Activating her energy shields and making herself ready for whatever marched through the gates.

    A loud explosion crashed into being not far away, and soon the chain reaction Kalesi had hoped for followed. One explosion after another, the last triggering the next. The ground shook and ears rang from the force of impact. Loud lights of fire mingled with the dust, lighting it aflame and producing a brilliance of ash and singed dust. Before Kalesi could maintain her bearing, a foul odor pushed past the billowing heat. Charred flesh and burnt hair wafted from the scene to penetrate past Kalesi¡¯s defenses. Just as the smell reached her, the sound of cries followed.

    Screeching beyond the smoking gap, hundreds of voices rang out in anger and excitement. Shrill cries and insane exclamations pushed forward now without a barrier to prevent their entry. But just as soon as they charged the sound of falling calls, disappearing into the deep below, echoed from below in the abyss. The remnant defenders readied themselves, it would not be long before some managed to breach the gap and begin charging into their line. Men and women, all maimed or scarred beyond the reach of medical miracles, readied themselves with crude weapons and makeshift shields. Kalesi stood at the front of their feigned militant line, a glowing aspect of determination and power. As the echoing voices fell below, the tension grew exponentially. Those few who remained were suddenly becoming aware of what was asked of them, to die holding themselves against an unstoppable force. To become one with the horde in an attempt to delay the assault on those that fled. Men and women alike wavered, and Kalesi could not blame them. She regretted knowing she would soon flee with the unconscious boy, and would likely be the only survivor of this cluster of afraid defenders.

    Just as the line of defenders started to visibly waver, a scratching was heard past the billowing smoke. A hard scrape like stone against metal, a jagged blade carving into a metal surface. The Rusted were leaping now, and clawing against the remains of the platform the colony stood upon. A loud thump echoed into the settlement. Then silence, even the horde hushed to a distant groaning. Then the excitement built, their cries heightened, the yells echoed, and evil began to charge through the smoke.

    The first Rusted rushed out of the smoky cover, off center to Kalesi¡¯s left, sprinting at an inhuman speed. Their body was decayed as rigor mortis set in, but the flesh didn¡¯t melt or rot away as might be normal. Instead it decayed into a hard chitin, then began falling away as flakes shaved from metal. Their body opened up, exposing vital organs which were being transformed into bone and chitin, leaving a gruesome display of twisting fibers that reached out as if to escape their own body. The thing¡¯s head and torso were strewn aside, almost entirely converted into the hard material with only the eyes remaining. Those eyes stared with a hatred that burned hotter than fire, its almost imobile body being propelled forward by some fell possession. The creature leaped and fell upon a surprised defender. Their body collapsing to the ground with the weight and momentum of the monster, yelling for help the defender writhed against the monster¡¯s assault. But others couldn¡¯t come to their aid, more Rusted rushed through. A dozen mangled figures, all having been ripped open at different parts of their body, quickly charged randomly at any present peoples.

    The attack was now in full swing. Rusted burst through the smoke, the few that held some idea of a defensive line did their best to hold against the onslaught. It was more of a formality than an actual attempt. The creatures assaulted every angle and had a cruel method of spreading their disease. As the Rust infection needed to be ingested, the Rusted who attacked would swarm an individual to disembowel themselves onto the living, or to try to consume the dying or dead into themselves and the gaping chasm opened to the air on their body. Bile was thrown and the bodies of defeated infected piled and then were used as weapons by the furious storm of monsters.

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    Kalesi fought against the afflicted, and many others who remained repelled the first few attacks. Blunt instruments worked best against the Rusted, crushing what remained of their brittle bodies or immobilizing them. Yet any who fought needed to ensure they didn¡¯t touch any substance that spread out of the mangled corpses. Even a small drop of blood that was infected could reach your skin and be absorbed. The Rust invaded quickly, where skin met vital fluid a black welt formed and began to ossificate into hard bone and chitin. Kalesi¡¯s energy shields provided a unique protection against the assaulting horde. Her shields burned hot with power, and could singe and char any that touched it. Cauterizing wounds she made and preventing the spread of ichor and spilt bile.

    Kalesi engaged the brunt of the horde, being at the front of their formation, and her trained prowess prevented any of the crude attacks from landing. Yet as she fought and slew one Rusted, one of her fellow defenders fell, and as she killed two more another survivor was infected. Their plan to stall the bulk of the horde was failing rapidly, and Kalesi entertained the idea to retreat before their line was fully broken. Just then a rumbling clatter sounded from behind her. Had the Rusted gotten past and around their defenses? Kalesi spared only one look to her rear to ascertain the new front, but was surprised beyond imagining.

    Clattering out of the village verge and into the town center was a constructor frame, a large exoskeleton-type suit that could double a normal humanoid¡¯s size and quadruple their potential strength. It had been modified to wear welded plates of metal sheet and barbed wire. Some crazed lunatic was charging forward with utmost speed from within the village, and crashed hard into the wave of Rusted.

    The individual in the constructor frame looked crazed, and covered in scars. His body might once have been the peak of male physique, but now instead bore countless scars and half burnt flesh. From Kalesi¡¯s right she heard the voice of the maimed village leader, ¡°Makenar! Bastard, you came late!¡±

    The bellowing voice from within the constructor frame yelled in a crazed response, ¡°My captain, I had upgrades to make. Now lets die together you old slug!¡±

    Kalesi was initially surprised by the interference, and wondered why she wasn¡¯t made aware of such a great advantage to their defense, but was regardless happy for the added support. With the mechanical suit, that was in remarkably good condition, the Rusted refocused their efforts to assaulting the large mecha. Those that still lived and could move made their way to close the gap and shorten the defensive line. With the mechanical monstrosity at their side their defense might bear fruit. Yet while the attempts to stall the Rusted were redoubled, Kalesi could not shake her impatience at her own retreat. Regardless she still fought, keeping a close eye on the unconscious boy behind her who was leaning quietly against the cliff wall.

    While things seemed to be initially going well, with their added support, the Rusted were too many. As more and more flooded over the bridged gap, more added themselves to a writhing pile of bodies that intermingled into making a grotesque pathway over the large gap. The horde¡¯s numbers were too great and ferocious for even the constructor frame to push through and dismantle their amalgam pass of flesh and bone. As they fought longer, more bodies could cross the ever growing connection between the village and the rusted pathway to hell. Soon the Rusted would span the entire pathway and their crossing would be as if the explosives never went off.

    Their group was quickly being pushed back, and as every injury transformed into infection the fighting power of their force weakened. With every redoubled push from the Rusted one or more defenders were wounded, and with each new wound their progression to becoming Rusted themselves developed. Kalesi had fought long enough, she decided. Their progress would soon be halted, and only the constructor frame would be left to become overwhelmed and ripped apart. Their efforts had spared the fleeing mass of survivors several minutes longer than Kalesi had initially hoped. It would have to be enough, and if it wasn¡¯t Kalesi needed to find Mevi again and remove her from this threat as quickly as possible.

    The one-armed leader seemed to notice Kalesi¡¯s internal plight. He had made his way to fight by her side at some point, and they made a deadly duo that could rip apart Rusted with little effort. The man grabbed Kalesi, who almost dismembered him in response, and threw her back and away from the fight. Taking over her spot and his own, the man threw himself against the Rusted. As Kalesi began to interject she noticed his reasoning. He was covered in marks, wounds, and infections. They all were. Only Kalesi had protection enough to prevent an infection from taking hold of her. Some of the remaining defenders didn¡¯t even bother to fight, preferring to wrestle against the writhing horde and simply hold them back with what physical power they had left. Kalesi¡¯s heart reached out to the selfless act, sacrificing themselves to buy time for the rest of their community. Not wanting to squander the effort, Kalesi did not hesitate to return to the unconscious boy. Gathering him into her arms, and deactivating her shields, she gave one last look to the struggling warden protectors. While she didn¡¯t know them, she would have liked to fight by their side in another life.

    With the comatose child in her arms, Kalesi darted to the direction of the survivor¡¯s retreat. She needed to enact the final stage of her plan. This required her to find the village¡¯s escape route, and to destroy it.

    Kalesi rushed through the small hamlet, its winding and twisting alleyways making for a confusing amalgamation of structures. Yet with her speed she found the cliff by which the survivors escaped. Placed carefully in one of her satchels kept under her robes, Kalesi retrieved the last two explosives Mevi had helped create. Placing them at the base of the cliff, and beginning to connect what small signal they produced to her interface, Kalesi worked to stall the Rusted further. After each of the explosive materials were synced with her interface, she began to scale the face of the cliff that led to a higher platform. The only potential escape route the large group of refugees could use en masse.

    The climb was not difficult for her, even with one arm dedicated to the carrying of an unconscious adolescent. Yet as she reached the top, a clatter and yells rang out from the center of the village. What remained of the defense had fallen, and soon the Rusted would search every structure for any uninfected bodies. Their single minded purpose would have them scale and search for any sign of life, and once one of the monsters found a trace of potential life the rest would begin to follow.

    The Rusted were smart, for a horde of seemingly single minded monsters. Their sole purpose drove them to incredible heights of improvisation and cleverness. Their heightened physical prowess seemed to spread to hearing and smell, to some degree at least. It would not take long for the shambling bodies to detect the traces of survivors retreating from the village. So without further choice, Kalesi activated the explosives at the base of the cliff. Ripping asunder any hint of foothold or climbable surface.

    The vibrations from the explosions were greatly lessened by the thick wall that led up to the final escape route out of the village. Yet its devastation would be enough to stall the grasping hands and claws of the Rusted for a time. As the shaking ground settled, Kalesi turned and ran up the slightly sloped strut that promised to lead to salvation.

    Kalesi now needed to focus all her remaining strength on finding and protecting Mevi. Her pupil could not have gotten far with the large collection of survivors, and hopefully the survivors knew well enough how to navigate the Pipes that they would be making a quick escape. If they were not at least a few kilometers away by now, despite what little time they were given, any hope of their escape would be lost. If they had not made enough progress, Kalesi steeled herself to take her pupil away from the group and escape without them. She could not risk herself or Mevi for the lives of these people, regardless of how merciless and cruel that promise to herself was.

    Kalesi ascended the pathway and escaped from the village¡¯s sight. Leaving behind the mangled bodies of those she fought with, the few within the Pipes that showed true honor and sacrifice. If they had chosen a life under a Magi they would have been powerful warriors and wielded great influence. Yet the curse of being born into the Pipes hung over even the most honorable souls. Kalesi couldn¡¯t help herself from cursing their ancestors for choosing to willingly abandon the Magi, thus abandoning their descendants to death and squalor.

    With her last thoughts of her temporary comrades purged from her focus, Kalesi became redoubled in her duty to Mevi. Kalesi activated her suit and flew over the surface of metal and rust, her only true goal now ahead of her and awaiting her return. Whatever happens, Kalesi promised to herself to keep Mevi away from the Pipes from now on.

 Chapter 21: Escape To a Renewed Battle, Part 1

    Mevi followed quickly behind the leaders of the village that left with the surviors. The group of remnants dashed forward up the sloped metal pathway. Keeping her eyes keenly behind the group, Mevi monitored the progress of the slowest members of their escape. As the last dredges from within the village passed over the first height, and scattered onto the pathway to their freedom, one of the villagers stopped and surveyed the number of survivors fleeing from the doomed village. The individual stood only slightly taller than Mevi herself, but commanded some stern personality that made the fleeing survivors dart around them without pushing or shoving. When they determined the group had no late arrivals, they brought out a hollow metal cylinder with strange drilled holes. Taking the object in hand, and fastening it to a long wire, they spun the object quickly around their head. The object made a whirring noise similar to the hum of some electrical contraptions that were processing a great amount of information. The oddly electrical buzz almost hypnotized Mevi for the moments it spun around the individual¡¯s head. Suddenly they loosed the object through the air, and it soared high into the dark clouds surrounding the desolate village. As it flew a shrill screech echoed from its travel through the air.

    The individual, who was cloaked with heavy cloths and bandages covering most of their skin and body, turned and began rushing with the wild escape of the other survivors. Mevi thought the ritual some kind of signal, she had heard very little of the established plan beyond what Kalesi directly ordered her to do. Following close behind the slowest members of the survivors, the rush to escape continued up the metal slope until it crested atop an intersecting pipeway.

    The group of survivors couldn¡¯t be more than forty souls, and those that could escape were mostly the young and strong. Mevi saw most of the elderly or infirm stay behind to maintain the barricade. Likely they wouldn¡¯t last long, even if the entire village had stayed behind to reinforce their ever shrinking wall. Mevi had to displace the thoughts that sprouted around the sacrifice so many were planning to make. She needed to do what she could, and protect those that needed it as some strange repayment to those that stayed behind. Thus as Mevi watched the escaping survivors, she kept a close eye on the slowest and youngest. Their pace struggled to keep up with the bulk of fleeing villagers, and if one fell or stumbled whoever was behind them would vault over the fallen body. Mevi took it upon herself to watch and usher the stragglers forward and back to their feet if they fell.

    It didn¡¯t take long for some complication to arise at the front of the group. After less than two minutes of running, the group had stopped to an uneasy idle. Those at the front were calling for someone, but the wind and murmur quieted all calls less than a shout. As the survivor¡¯s eyes looked wearily around themselves, a stout woman pushed through the crowd and arrived to look sternly into Mevi¡¯s eyes. The woman was shorter than Mevi, and demanded something from her. Not hearing their first statement, the woman repeated with frustration hanging over her words, ¡°Girl, you and your associate promised safety. Where do we go, or do you plan to have us run to some place randomly?¡±

    Mevi¡¯s mind and memory danced around the question, she hardly remembered the path they took to reach the village and couldn¡¯t imagine how to escape it safely, ¡°We need to escape the fog. So we should find a path away from any old villages, I think. Kalesi, my mentor, promised to return to lead us after she helped with the last defense.¡±

    The woman seemed annoyed, and looked around frustrated, ¡°Girl, your master is probably dead if she chose to stay behind. There are old cities and villages in every direction, where will our ¡°saviors¡± meet us?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t told exactly how that would work, but refuted the idea that Kalesi would not return to her, ¡°My mentor will return, and she said once we escape the fog we can signal for an evacuation. I think we should pick a direction, and try to ensure it mostly avoids where you remember large communities¡­¡±

    The woman threw her hands in the air, ¡°This is useless, you don¡¯t know anything do you?¡±

    Before Mevi could retort, the woman returned to the front and several other villagers began talking quietly to her. As they discussed what to do, many of the remaining survivors glared at Mevi, as if their plight was somehow her fault. Without Kalesi here, Mevi didn¡¯t know how to proceed forward. So Mevi sank into the background and tried not to be noticed, and as the group began to rush forward again she followed behind the group. Only interacting with the scared peoples when they needed help up or forward to keep moving.

    The entire situation was strange, and incredibly delicate. Mevi didn¡¯t know where they were, or what exactly to do. She also got the sense that Kalesi wouldn''t have much concrete advice for the group either. The noise they made in their escape across the metal pipeway echoed around them, and if they came too close to a group of Rusted they would almost certainly hear. At least that is if the Rusted could hear at all.

    The survivors continued to path along the large pipe they had escaped to. It brought them away from the cliff edge, and this was hopefully good. From Mevi¡¯s memory the Rusted were actively scaling the cliff not too far away, and anywhere away from their target would lead them to a safer place than where they currently were. Or at least that is what the group seemed to hope. As their progress continued, hope seemed to be in low supply. Most of the survivors had grim and vacant expressions as if they were already contemplating their own demise. Despite this, they seemed to make good progress along the pathway and the stragglers had only some small troubles keeping up.

    As they continued on their path, a yell was heard near to the front. Suddenly the group of survivors were turning around, and pushing against Mevi. Those in the back didn¡¯t understand what was happening, and were being trampled against the feet of the stronger who led from the front. Mevi pushed past and ducked around the bodies who rushed past her. Then she was exited past the horde of frightened bodies, and was suddenly in the front of the group.

    Before Mevi there was a brief scene of carnage. A body laid still on the ground, and a partially destroyed pipe, that conjoined with their chosen road, opened with a gaping maw of rusted metal. From inside growling and clawing could be heard echoing out. Two stalwart men stood by the still body, and in front of them there was a crawling form of mutated death. What Mevi only assumed was a Rusted. The remains of some idea of a humanoid body, bones jutting out of its spine like twisted spikes. Its body inverting through the open hole in its back, their chest being pulled through the gaping rupture. What looked like vital organs spilled out and became hardened like some kind of chitinous material. The macabre display of gruesome mutation crawled along the ground, and seemed to have originated from the cracked pipe. A new claw pulled at the edge of the metal opening, and soon a second decaying body pulled itself out and onto the platform.

    The two men held no weapons, and carefully watched the crawling body, and now kept their eye on the new entity who squirmed to its feet. The new participant quickly regained its balance and then threw itself towards one of the men. Collapsing on top of its chosen target. Then the crawling Rusted pulled itself forward with unnatural strength, leaped into the air onto the other man who was too distracted to see the sudden jump. The clawing and scratching from within the pipe echoed louder, as if whatever was inside became excited at the sounds of struggle. The two men fought against the writhing bodies, who threw themselves violently at their faces with fell claws and corrosive breath. One Rusted corpse spat red bile at its counterpart, who fought against its grip, and the man barely avoided being caked in the substance.

    While the two struggled the group of survivors behind them continued to back up. Yells of panic and cries echoed as unease and fear set in. Mevi wanted to help, but couldn¡¯t think of what to do. There were no obvious weapons she could use, and creating a current of pure air wouldn¡¯t help. She didn¡¯t even know if the creatures needed their eyesight so using light was not something she thought would be worth an attempt, especially if it risked blinding the struggling survivors. Then Mevi recalled a brief memory of pain. When she had attempted to charge Kalesi¡¯s synthesizer device, she was overwhelmed by a sudden hurt that surged her senses without her command. She had shot out a bolt of electricity, albeit briefly. Her theory of weaponizing her Maige was the only viable option she could think of.

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    Mevi focused on her memory, and recalled the momentary surge of power, channeling her will into the Maige. Mevi conjured the image of a surge of electrical power blasting out like a projectile. With her mental image in place, she pointed her palm in the direction of one of the Rusted. Forcing whatever power she could form to take hold, Mevi channeled a bolt of energy that soared suddenly out of her palm and blasted into the surface of the metal pipe. Surprised by the sudden emission of power those in the front of the crowd silenced as the energy manifested. Mevi was surprised herself, such a potent effect forming so quickly. Yet Mevi had to refocus, two lives were at stake.

    Mevi conjured her mental image of a streaking bolt, and focused her mind to strike the body of the Rusted while avoiding the still living. Aiming her thoughts at the Rusted who had crawled on the ground, Mevi channeled what willpower she had and fired a second blast. The congealed energy formed and struck true, slicing into the side of the Rusted who wrestled with the struggling man. The power cauterized the impact zone almost instantly, and sent shocking electrical arcs up the body of the Rusted that caused it to spasm and convuls. The man took the opportunity to throw the stunned Rusted away from himself. The body continued to spasm on the metal ground, and the rescued man took no time to kick the body off the edge of the pipeway. Mevi quickly refocused, ignoring the man after confirming he was saved. Channeling another blast of power, Mevi struck the final Rusted. The last Rusted violently spasmed, cringing into itself to form a pained ball of bone and flesh.

    The two men pushed the final Rusted off the side, but the clawing from the pipe continued. As the group recovered in the small moment Mevi bought them, the collapsed corpse began to stir. An angry decaying welt formed on their shoulder, and it began to slowly grow as the skin curled onto itself and hardened. Before Mevi could intercept the developing Rusted, one of the cowering survivors strode out to kick the pained body, and with the new addition and the two men they tossed it over the side of the pipeway before it could fully develop.

    The group was stunned by the display of strange power, but one of their number called out to run. Snapping back to reality, and noticing the growing noise from within the open pipe, the group began its flight anew. Spurred on by the sudden development of her own powers, Mevi followed the group as fast as she could muster. Several of their group seemed to slow, and urged Mevi to take point at the front. Mevi was hesitant, as her body ached from the manifestation of her Maige and she didn¡¯t want to leave any from the group behind. As they ran some distance ahead, putting themselves away from the source of Rusted, Mevi felt the headache steadily approaching. Her physical strain of the rushed pace combined with the new use of her untempered power was causing her strain. Mevi began to slow down, and her hand instinctively went to her head as the throbbing pain erupted.

    The group was surprised by the disability of their savior, and one stopped completely to speak to Mevi. Their words were muffled, as the headache blocked out most noise and attempts to speak, but mevi understood they were asking if she was alright. Mevi managed to squeak out soft words, ¡°If I use this power too much, my body begins to hurt¡­¡± The person seemed to understand, and in some strange sequence of decisions one of the more fit men gathered Mevi into his arms.

    Mevi was confused at their sudden appreciation of her, but allowed herself to be carried as she cautiously continued to watch their surroundings. As the group continued to run, Mevi regained herself completely, only being disabled for a minute or two, a fraction of her previous burnout. Mevi tried to negotiate to be let down, but the young man who carried her seemed content, and able, to continue the group¡¯s pace with her still in his arms.

    As the group continued, and Mevi was carried like some delicate weapon, their pace slowed then stopped completely. As Mevi was carried to the front, embarrassed at the eyes that watched her, she was allowed down. Placed at the front, Mevi could see before them. The pipe road led slightly down, and it intersected what looked like a collection of rusted buildings long since forgotten. One of the leaders who watched their path carefully turned to Mevi, the thick fabric that wrapped around every body part made it almost impossible to guess the gender or appearance of any beyond those that were most inhuman, or wearing less. The collection of cloth spoke to Mevi while pointing downward towards the old ruined settlement, ¡°Miss, we need to enter through there. But we have no weapons¡­¡±

    Mevi guessed what they were getting at, ¡°You want me to go ahead just in case?¡±

    A curt nod was her response, as another nearby voice called to her, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you Ma¡¯am. I think a few of us might be able to help just in case.¡±

    Mevi was embarrassed after being called ¡®Ma¡¯am¡¯, but agreed. With three others following close behind, Mevi descended into the small ruined settlement. It was only a few buildings that were dangling precariously as an artificial intersection between two large pipe roads. The one they traveled suddenly turned downward, into the Depths, and the hanging settlement¡¯s wire pathways promised a crossing to the opposite pipe road that continued a mostly straight path. Climbing up the precarious footholds, and arriving at the start of what once might have been ten small structures, Mevi carefully traveled into the settlement proper. Keeping her senses on edge, and watching carefully for any hint of movement, Mevi passed through the settlement without incident.

    Mevi made her way to the opposite side of the settlement, and disembarked onto the next pipe roadway. At the base of the new pathway, what seemed to be the remains of a corpse sat silently. Cloth decayed and eaten away by the ambient erosion of billowing winds and metal. Only a decayed corpse, that was mostly bone without flesh, remained. The body seemed without spirit, and didn¡¯t seem to be a Rusted, but the following survivors cautiously watched the corpse.

    With the settlement cleared without incident, one of Mevi¡¯s followers waved to the waiting group to signal them. The group cautiously delved into the ruined settlement. As they disembarked they cautiously stared at the decayed corpse, and Mevi stood at the base of the road to ensure the disembarking villager¡¯s safety.

    With their new path set, the group continued forward, and the man who previously carried Mevi offered his services again. He was quickly turned down, and Mevi continued on her own. They were making more progress than Mevi would have assumed they could, but she couldn''t tell if it was in the right direction. As they continued on the new path, Mevi wondered how much longer it would be until Kalesi returned to her. Their path was straight, and very little branching directions were available to the large group of clumsy villagers. Hopefully Kalesi would be able to easily follow them, or that their group left some kind of trail Kalesi¡¯s keen senses could find and track.

    One of the villagers saw something, and it drew the rest¡¯s attention. As Mevi fully caught up, and the group slowed to little more than a walk, Mevi could see what they directed attention to. The path they took had wrapped around and now allowed a vantage to see their village in the distance, at the edge of vision¡¯s length the collection of buildings against the cliff face could be seen in the dark. The grim sight brought many spirits to gloom and sorrow. The village looked fully overwhelmed by shambling bodies at this point. The Rusted crawled and tore at every structure in search of new bodies to infect and swarm. From their distant vantage point, they could see what might¡¯ve been some vestige of battle. Pressed against the cliff the shambling bodies swarmed around some kind of writhing machine. As the village watched, whatever was inside the metal frame of the machine was ripped out, and clawed to pieces. The attacking Rusted scattered and all evidence of rebellion was wiped clean. Another villager shouted for attention, and pointed at the cliff ledge they had used to escape. It was marred and crumbling, the climbable ledge mostly destroyed. The Rusted clawed at the lack of climbable surface and instead piled on top of each other slowly. From their pace it would only be a matter of minutes before they piled high enough to start trickling onto the pipe pathway that would inevitably lead in their direction.

    The group paused for a somber moment, but quickly resumed their pace to cross the pipe roadway to escape what fate consumed their decrepit village. Mevi knew the collapsed ledge had to be Kalesi¡¯s work, and reassured herself that Kalesi was soon on her way. As the group continued their trek into the dark pathways away from their village, the din of murmurs grew quieter and quieter. All talk and dread was silenced and any energy was refocused on their speed and traversal.

    While hope was not growing as it should, the survivors did what they could to stave off the looming dread that was the memory of their village. As they passed through the darkness, the path they chose seemed to be a good one. As the group pressed on the air seemed to become less dense, and the dark less oppressive. The looming dark lessened and it spurred the group onwards with a new eagerness that they didn¡¯t have before.

    As the group of survivors continued, light slowly began peaking through like small stars that forced their way through the fog of dread. Openings in the shroud billowed gusts and brief winds around them. The air became more breathable and soon the soft wind, that Mevi had almost forgotten, lightly blew around them. The panicked and downtrodden had escaped, and the dark was less powerful here.

    As the group started to slow, seeing themselves as free from the threat of the Rusted, an echoing laugh broke the silence. Its source came from ahead of them and was being carried on the wind that had once promised some amount of safety, the almost deranged cackle that Mevi recognized from only a few hours ago descended on them. As the confused stares and worried glances darted around the fog, an electrical ignition was heard. Mevi pushed past the crowd, and there stood a single shadowed figure, wielding a fell energy blade of crimson. Arcing electricity popped and singed the material and dust around it. Small angry explosions of electrical charge arcing through the air. The bandits had waited for them.

 Chapter 21: Escape To a Renewed Battle, Part 2

    As Mevi realized who the assailant was, the leader of the raiders who had accosted them when their mission had only just begun, the man walked forward. As he revealed himself, Mevi was able to fully see just how ironically evil he seemed. The thuggish man didn¡¯t bother to wear cloaks or heavy cloth, admitting his bare chest to the metallic dust in the air, yet seemed unaffected. His scaled skin and an angular face reminded her of old pictures of ancient serpents. The man¡¯s right arm was badly burnt, welts of burnt and charred flesh bubbled out of the tough scales. The wound was likely from Kalesi¡¯s battle with his group of thugs, and as he approached his eyes screamed with ferocity and deranged anger.

    Before the bandit leader noticed Mevi, she ducked slightly behind some of the taller adults in the group of survivors. The members of her little band of refugees were on edge, and seemed to understand what might be going on. Some of the people in the front of the group began sinking into the back, as everyone now fought to skirt away from the bandit but refusing to return into the dark that promised a Rusted¡¯s embrace. The bandit seemed to enjoy the cowering, and began swinging his crimson blade back and forth as he slowly progressed forward. The survivors backed away, fearful of the electric weapon, and were being corralled backwards like animals to the slaughter. Some fought against the shuffling, refusing to return from where they came, and the group fought against each other as none could decide a direction that was deemed safer.

    The man stopped in his tracks, laughing to himself, as more of his damaged retinue began to approach the scared villagers. Exiting from the dark that hung like a wall before them, the thugs approached cautiously, but were unwilling to enter so far as their leader into the shrouded fog. Still swinging his sword back and forth, spraying sparks as he slashed against the metal ground before him, the man called out with an amused tone, ¡°Well well, look at the bounty delivered unto us! Oh praise be the bastard Magi. Looks like we have a herd of walking paydays, boys!¡± At his remark, the others in his crew chuckled and a few called out to intimidate the terrified survivors. The leader continued, lightly laughing to himself, ¡°You know? I was following this bitch and her brat. Went straight into here. Thought to myself, well she¡¯s dead and we¡¯ve got nothing but losses. But what do I hear? A loud bunch of idiots who managed to run away from all that rust! My lucky day!¡±

    As the man talks to himself, the tension in the crowd rises. Some of the more fit adults put themselves in the front, holding themselves defensively in between the deranged man and the cowering crowd behind them. Yet even as they attempt to bolster themselves against the intimidating presence of the thugs, what moral might¡¯ve been is actively draining. Several large frames are easily visible in the dark fog, and many more are shadowed behind them. The red blade illuminating the dark figure at their center. The group thugs¡¯ leader seems amused by the growing anxiety, and takes in the tension like a breath of fresh air.

    As the crowd continues to push back, against the will of those in the front, Mevi trips and stumbles to the forefront of the crowd. Admitting herself to the gaze of the deranged bandit leader. He stops his fearless flaunting, but only for a few moments, as he stares hard at Mevi. Mevi is thoroughly wrapped, but she and Kalesi wore almost identical outfits save for the difference size. A wicked grin crosses the man¡¯s face as he realizes who Mevi is, and he calls out to her, ¡°Hahaha! You are the brat that tried to run away! Where¡¯s the bitch that burnt me? Don¡¯t tell me, did she get lost? Oh that¡¯s a shame, seems a waste.¡± A sick grin passes onto his face as he looks Mevi up and down. He changes himself to feign concern for her, lauding after her, ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry. You¡¯ll be wonderfully taken care of. You seem better fed than any of these half-starved pieces of meat. I am sure you¡¯ll make plenty of people very happy!¡± Mevi is disgusted at his insinuations, but is beginning to grow worried as Kalesi is still nowhere to be found.

    Mevi had been frantically darting her eyes back and forth, hoping for some sign of her mentor, Kalesi. But the powerful woman was nowhere to be found, despite how long it had been since their initial flight away from the village Mevi had no doubt Kalesi was safe. But Kalesi¡¯s delay was draining what hope of rescue the group still had, and Mevi was not confident in her ability to help evacuate and protect them. Frantically searching her mind for any ideas, she realized there was no way Mevi could fight the bandits. There were too many, and even just a few blasts of her newfound ability drained her substantially. She instead needed to protect, or somehow get rid of any threat of attack. But how could she possibly do this?

    Mevi¡¯s thoughts raced leagues in just a few moments, and thought back to her Maige creating effects for her based on her projected desires. She had influenced them, but the form and function seemed decided by the Maige and then maintained by Mevi after she realized what to focus on. She needed something to protect herself, and the villagers, now more than ever. Mevi began focusing on her Maige, instinctively closing her hands together near her chest. The bandit¡¯s leader seemed amused and watched her with a growing grin. Mevi ignored him and closed her eyes to focus.

    Mevi began forming some beginning of an idea in her mind. Forcing onto her mind the need to protect herself and others, to keep the bandits away until Kalesi arrives or they can otherwise escape. Mevi focused, and begged her Maige to think of something, some way that the bandits couldn''t reach them or hurt them. As the desire was given, Mevi could almost feel her soul and spirit being forced out of her body. As if her breath was being pulled out of her lungs faster than she could take in air. It felt as if all her blood was racing towards her chest, and being forcibly removed. Opening her eyes, Mevi could feel her very vitality being drained away. It was like what her Maige did, but instead of instant pain it was prolonged or the process slowed. But as she looked out, a great and tall wall of orange energy had erected itself across the span of the metal pipeway.

    The, seemingly magical, energy barrier erected itself tall and across the width of the large pipe road. Spanning at least ten meters wide, and fading out of sight several meters high. The bandits reeled after the effect, several scattering to the ground in surprise. Even their, previously fearless, leader beheld the sight with a momentary terror. Mevi didn¡¯t see what the eruption of energy looked like, but could feel her vitality draining away from her the longer she held up the barrier. It was like a beacon of power and light, and it drained her substantially to maintain it.

    Reordering himself, and shouting an angry cry of challenge at Mevi, the bandit leader lifted his weapon and struck at the wall of orange energy. Sparks flew, as the barrier sizzled at the touch of another source of strong energy. But the blade was reflected, and its holder was sent backwards and onto their back from the impact. The barrier pulsed with energy, waves emanating from where the blade struck, but maintained its form. Mevi could feel a minor surge in her soul as more of her vital being was leaked away in reinforcement of the barrier.

    The crowd of frightened survivors stood in amazement and fear as they looked on at the mystical projection. While they watched, Mevi wheezed and fell to her knees. The feeling of being drained was almost worse than the sudden experience of pain and agony, it was a more drawn out pain like she couldn¡¯t find breath or was drowning in a sea of her own making. It took all of her willpower just to keep the barrier up, and to prevent herself from succumbing to the desire to shut off her focus maintaining the protective wall. Mevi assured herself of the Maige¡¯s intuition, if this was its answer to her needs then she needed to maintain it until a new answer presented itself. Yet just as Mevi reassured herself, a call from behind them terrified her anew. The bright display must¡¯ve been more obvious than she could have known, the wailing cries of monstrous voices called out in response to the barrier. Far below, and a distance away, but the Rusted could see it. Mevi, with her senses heightened by the use of her Maige, could hear them even at their most distant. Only some in the group of survivors seemed to also have heard something, but weren¡¯t as quick to understand the source as Mevi was. As their location was now widely known, Mevi could only hope that this beacon would bring Kalesi to them with haste.

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    As Mevi continued to intake all the stimuli around her, the sounds, smells, and her suffocation, the bandits were not idle. Several braved themselves against the barrier, throwing objects or even attacking it with weapons. Each attempt bounced harmlessly off the wall of energy, but every deflection drained Mevi just a little more. Pulling at her sleeves, Mevi could see the beginning of the dark veins. Not nearly as progressed as when she had made a brilliant flare, but dark infection¡¯s sudden presence was evidence of how quickly the protective ability was debilitating her.

    When Mevi realized how fast her power was waning, the bandit leader seemed to also pick up on her plight. Watching her carefully after he had been sent flying to the ground. His wicked grin returned, as if he realized her weakness. The leader called out, ¡°Boys! Hit this wall with everything we¡¯ve got! It can¡¯t stay up forever! Then we can claim who we want, and eat the rest!¡± Mevi was thus struck, time and time again, with more and more intense draining. She didn¡¯t even have a moment to fully understand the man¡¯s words, or the discomfort that plagued her dormant memory of the statement. Her entire being was focused on maintaining the barrier, until when she couldn¡¯t risk its sustenance any longer. To her benefit, the bandits seemed dumb to how tall the barrier really was and only attacked the base of the energy wall. Mevi could not stand the extreme stress of maintaining such a large wall, and focused on lowering the height while hoping none of her assailants would notice.

    Mevi¡¯s Maige seemed to respond to her need to decrease its consumption of her, and the wall was lowered. With the almost invisible energy that faded away into air at the top of the wall, none of the assailants seemed to notice or care that she had subtracted several meters of protection. Kalesi would¡¯ve been able to easily leap over the wall, but none of the thugs seemed smart enough to look up or attempt to scale the barrier. Instead they all gained some sick pleasure in attacking the wall, and watching as Mevi¡¯s body unconsciously reacted to every attack. The villagers around her had no idea how to help her, and cautiously tried to tend to her, but they could do little more than watch as the young girl was progressively more drained and wracked with a stacking agony that began to burn her very blood.

    Mevi could feel her power begin to wane, and knew it would be moments before her consciousness, or very life, was in real danger. The black veins had spread well past her elbows and up her robe¡¯s sleeves, and while she couldn''t see her face the grimacing looks the worried villagers gave her made her assume it had spread to her face. Hoping for one last hurrah, and to create a final beacon for Kalesi, Mevi focused all her spare vitality into creating a great beacon. One that might stun the assailants, if only for a moment after the barrier fell.

    Focusing her energy and redefining her desire, Mevi turned the wide wall into a sudden bright beacon. The villagers shielded their eyes as the light suddenly cast over all on both sides of the once-barrier. Shouts and cries of surprise called out from both the survivors and attacking thugs. As her power exploded the light into being, she forced herself to subdue the rest of it. Writhing in a redoubled pain, and her hands began shaking uncontrollably, Mevi could only watch as her own vision blurred. The forms of the surprised bandits recoiled as the sudden flash blinded some of them. While others had been able to shield themselves, and were quick to recover.

    With the barrier gone, and Mevi¡¯s body drained, the bandit leader quickly recovered. Laughing to himself, the thugs¡¯ leader walked slowly towards the fully collapsed and weary girl who had tried to stop him. Deactivating his weapon, he effortlessly kicked away the few villagers or tried to shield Mevi. Grabbing Mevi by her leg and tossing her aside, Mevi felt as she impacted against the hard ground. Sprawled out on the metal surface, the thug leader walked over to kneel down next to the weakened girl, ¡°You know, I didn¡¯t expect that. I¡¯ll be honest. You are more and more desirable the more I get to know ya. Nice try, but you¡¯re still just a brat.¡± The man stood up to his full height, and stepped on Mevi¡¯s ribs as he announced his claim, ¡°Any other idiots want to try and fight? Or can we get on with this already?¡±

    At that very moment, a whirring discharge flew through the air. It was targeted directly at the bandit leader¡¯s head, but he managed to duck out of danger¡¯s way before it would¡¯ve impacted. The weak blast of energy careened into the metal floor, melting the surface slightly where it landed and splattered into hot plasma. Mevi couldn¡¯t see what had fired the blast, but as she turned to face its direction the bandit thug yelled out with excitement, ¡°There¡¯s the bitch! Ha! I¡¯ll burn you to char!¡±

    Mevi turned just in time to see Kalesi falling rapidly from some unknown height. Still holding the formerly unconscious boy, who was now drearily awake. Kalesi landed only a few meters away from where Mevi laid, and as she landed the craterous impact shook the vicinity. The bandit leader was shaken slightly off balance, but it was enough for Kalesi to take advantage and charge in to kick him square in the chest. The man was sent flying backwards, and almost slid off the pipeway ledge if not for one of his subordinates just barely catching his outstretched arm. Kalesi cursed to herself for failing her attempt to be rid of the man. Setting the boy on the ground, Kalesi told him firmly, ¡°Watch her.¡± Then Kalesi turned to face the deranged man and his gathering of still wounded followers.

    Kalesi¡¯s robes looked torn and battered, as if she had only just escaped some kind of fight. Yet she stood tall, and radiated hate. Cocking her head to one side to crack her neck, and then raising her hands ready to brawl, Kalesi stared death into the bandit leader. The deranged man pulled himself to a standing position, as if to match Kalesi in fury and power, but held only insanity in his eyes.

    With an almost imperceivable speed, the two opponents flew at each other. An exchange of blows that was too quick for Mevi to follow, yet caused small gusts of wind to billow between the brawling figures. Each exchanged blows, blocking the other attacker¡¯s strike only to attempt to counter with their own. The two seemed evenly matched, but the man quickly began to lose ground and attempted to reposition farther away so as to ignite his energy weapon. Kalesi, however, was wise to his goal and chased quickly after him to prevent his use of any weapons beyond his fists. In an outright brawl Kalesi seemed to have the advantage, fists and close quarters seemed to be her preference, and her superior skill shone through the fight. The thug continued to take blow after blow, each landing on him at a critical joint or close to a vital point. It seemed, for every blow deflected or parried, the thug received a different one some place else on his body. Kalesi leaned heavily into attacking his right side, which was evidently still badly injured from their last encounter. Mevi could hardly understand the exchange of attacks between them.

    As the two whirlwinds fought, several of the outlying bandits attempted to join into the fray but with their non-super speed they were simply flung away from the fight as Kalesi spent only an eye blink¡¯s time dispatching the incursions. After realizing attacking Kalesi would only wind them up dead or wounded, the remaining few bandits turned on the survivors. Bolstered by Kalesi¡¯s return, and in some part by Mevi¡¯s self-sacrifice, the surviving refugees turned from cowering crowd to angered mob. The adults descended on the bandits, who were greatly outnumbered due to so many being already dispatched by Kalesi. Even some of the children came to Mevi¡¯s defense, wielding rocks and scraps around the ground to throw at nearby thugs while they stood over Mevi¡¯s weakened body.

    The fight seemed to be over in less than a minute. Kalesi beat back the bandit captain, blocking any of his attempts to escape or wound, Kalesi returned all her hatred for the serpentine man back with strike after strike. As Kalesi tore through their leader, and several of the more ambitious bandits, the rest of the thugs were dealt with by the angered villagers. In only a few moments they had gone from cowering close to defeat, to a resounding victory. As the last of the bandits were beaten to death or to unconsciousness, Kalesi finished her superhuman battle with the bandit¡¯s leader. The man was thrown and landed past the mob of villagers, not far away from Mevi herself. He was beaten, bruised, even with chunks of scale and skin torn free from his body. As he frantically searched his surroundings, he began to crawl towards Mevi as if to use her as leverage, only for Kalesi to descend upon him crushing both of his arms at the elbows with hard stomps. Despite his grievous injuries, the man was possessed by some deranged spirit and only began to laugh through broken teeth, ¡°You¡¯ll regret this! I already called my buddies, they¡¯ll make sure none of you get out of the Pipes alive! We¡¯ll throw you back to the Rust where scum like you-¡± before his speech could reach its climax Kalesi crushed his windpipe with a solid stomp. His body flailed for a few moments before succumbing to the incredible wounds and falling dead or unconscious.

    As Kalesi¡¯s anger, and combat enhancements, wore off she turned to face the wounded and beaten Mevi. Rushing to her wounded pupil¡¯s side, she knelt down with regret and fear in her eyes. Scouping Mevi into her arms, Kalesi held the girl tight to her chest. Mevi managed to stifle out a groan, and Kalesi relented slightly before speaking in a pained tone, ¡°I''m sorry. I should¡¯ve come faster¡­ I didn¡¯t think¡­ There were Rusted¡­ I''m sorry.¡±

    Mevi managed to reach up and pat Kalesi on the face, having aimed for the top of her head but missing, ¡°He didn¡¯t hurt me much, not as bad as you look to be. You¡¯re here now¡­ But can we go home?¡±

    Kalesi stifled some welling emotion, and simply responded, ¡°Of course.¡±

    With Mevi in her arms, and the frenzy subsided from the surviving villagers, the group hurried to continue down the pathway. Mevi now safely returned to Kalesi, she felt herself relax. She could endure her Maige¡¯s side effects, and really looked worse than she was. It was a strange idea to Mevi, that she was so unfazed by her own pain. Maybe her use of so much of herself when she first used the Maige¡¯s power had desensitized her. She didn¡¯t really mind her own pain, but hated seeing Kalesi so battered. Mevi was glad to be heading back to their home, where soon they could both rest after rescuing so many.

 Chapter 22: A Malicious Obstruction, Part 1

    Mevi recovered surprisingly quick, having not been entirely consumed by her power like once before. While Mevi was recovering, she was still physically weak from her attempt to defend the surviving villagers. So while they traveled, Mevi spent her time in the care of Kalesi, or the strong man who had offered to carry her before. She would be passed off when Kalesi had to lead the group in pathfinding or otherwise scout ahead in their chosen course. Mevi focused all her energy to recover faster, as she didn¡¯t want to be carried or act a burden to others. Yet her caregivers heard very little of her complaints as they continued their journey.

    The group of survivors were now led by the commanding presence of Kalesi, who was never hampered by Mevi¡¯s lightweight frame on their convoluted journey. Yet the fog seemed everpresent. Small specks of light peaked through the thinning darkness, but it still remained blanketed over the terrain they traveled. Kalesi would occasionally stop and interact with her invisible interface, only to look frustrated at their surroundings. Mevi could do little to help or reassure Kalesi, and could only watch as her mentor¡¯s stress seemed to mount.

    Kalesi tried her best to lead the group in a mostly straight line, when they were able. The twisting and spiraling pipes, struts, and naked infrastructure traveled the group in many different directions. A completely straight path was only viable for a kilometer or two before it suddenly stopped or turned. Then Kalesi, with some of the more adept survivors, would search the area for a new path to take. The scouts would report dead ends often and they begrudgingly turned around several times to find new pathways that led them partially along their previous course.

    When Mevi was able to, she attempted to steal a glance at the boy Kalesi had brought back. She had seen him, running with them, and finally awakened somehow. What had happened, and if he was ok, piqued her curiosity. She had seen him darting in and out of the crowd, and caught a glimpse of him when they would need to turn to change course. Yet he seemed to avoid her entirely. Kalesi seemed busy, and serious, about leading the group quietly, so Mevi didn¡¯t bother to ask her mentor what had happened. Yet anytime Mevi and the boy¡¯s eyes might¡¯ve met he darted away faster than she could get a good look at him. She eventually gave up, since she couldn''t chase him while being carried anyway. Relenting to herself that if he didn¡¯t wish to see her, she wouldn¡¯t force her curiosity on him. Instead focusing on trying to convince Kalesi that she could walk.

    Mevi eventually convinced her caregivers to let her travel on her own, having recovered remarkably fast; she was able to walk on her own without assistance after only twenty odd minutes. With her recovered, Mevi tried to help calm and lead the survivors who had adopted her fully at that point. Mevi noticed several times, when she would use her Maige to help create light or fresh air, that the fog seemed to be thickening if they ever turned around to backtrack. Almost as if the oppressive dark was chasing them as they attempted to escape. At the verge of her heightened senses and hearing she knew there were Rusted. Mevi ignored the signs at first but after creating a great orb of air to cover most of the group, and thus drastically increasing her Maige¡¯s consumption of her vitality, Mevi could confirm the faint scratching, incoherent calls, and echoing of thumping feet could only be the Rusted. Somehow they were being followed.

    Mevi was hesitant to approach Kalesi. The group had regained some small amount of hope, and were determined to escape, and Kalesi led the way by example. If she stopped and became frustrated it didn¡¯t take long for the crowd to begin murmuring and anxieties to relight. Yet the issue of the Rusted shouldn¡¯t wait, and could not wait, for a convenient time to be revealed. Approaching Kalesi as the group walked at a brisk pace, Mevi mustered herself to expose her suspicions, ¡°Kalesi, I have something we might talk about without prying ears.¡±

    Kalesi seemed confused, and almost concerned, but stopped the group¡¯s march, ¡°We¡¯ll break here. If you have supplies, like food, I recommend eating now.¡± Kalesi brought Mevi away from the group as the survivors idled while watching the two suspiciously.

    ¡°What is it, Mevi? Are you ok?¡± asked Kalesi, obviously concerned.

    Mevi didn¡¯t know how exactly to tell Kalesi what she had begin to suspect, so decided to be blunt, ¡°Kalesi, when I use my Maige it seems to make me hear and see better. I don¡¯t really know why, but the stronger I use my power the better I can hear, see, and sense things around us¡­¡± Mevi hesitated and ensured none of the survivors were listening, but talked in a hushed voice regardless, ¡°I think we are being followed by Rusted. I can hear them, sometimes¡­¡±

    Kalesi¡¯s expression became grave, ¡°Are you certain about this? There are many creatures in the Pipes, most who hide away at the fringe of even my sight.¡±

    ¡°I cannot be entirely sure, but they sound the same as when I heard them in the village. Human¡­ but not.¡±

    Kalesi thought for a moment, and looked out to the remaining peoples. Many of their number had perished in the fight to escape, and another had died soon after their escape from their village. They had begun dividing and eating what little food they had packed. Some eyed their ration with suspicion and squirreled it away into their pockets or what bags they carried. Yet even in the dense fog and dark, they chatted and were hopeful. Several watched Kalesi and Mevi with suspicion, or curiosity, but waited patiently regardless. After Kalesi¡¯s contemplation she turned to Mevi, ¡°We will increase our pace. If it comes to it, we will try to escape¡­ I am having difficulties navigating out of the fog, but we should press ourselves regardless.¡± Mevi nodded to her mentor¡¯s decision, and as their discussion ended Kalesi called out to the group, ¡°We leave in a few moments. We will increase our pace, we won¡¯t have another break after this.¡±

    After Kalesi¡¯s proclamation of a rushed pace, many in their group groaned or otherwise seemed downtrodden by the news. But the reason why was masked and Kalesi provided no explanation. Some watched on with a growing concern, being tormented by the command¡¯s mystery and their two guides¡¯ private conversation. Still, all the group agreed and after less than a minute they had evolved from a brisk walk to a steady jog. Mevi moved herself to the back, but probably would have ended up in the back regardless due to her poor speed, and watched for stragglers who fell behind or stumbled.

    The group of escapees rushed along the metal pipeway, still stopping and searching for new paths when their previous ended. The growing tension was added to with the increased exhaustion. With the trials living in the Pipes created, most were fit enough for prolonged jogging but Mevi had not experienced such specific needs. She quickly fell behind, and several in the group slowed to stay with her. It became evident of her fragile stamina when two of her escorts began debating who should carry Mevi, while the subject in question listened with embarrassment. The conversation didn¡¯t reach a conclusion as the group reached another dead end.

    The group let out their disappointment and dismay at the sudden dead end. Some began turning around again, the closest pipe roadway was several meters away and not nearly close enough for normal people to leap across. Yet with the growing need for haste, Kalesi stopped their retreat. Calling out to the group, as Mevi caught up with her attach¨¦ of worried villagers, Kalesi declared her intent, ¡°We do not have time to continue becoming side tracked or diverging from a straight path. I will leap to the other side and create rope for us to climb the distance. While I do so, stay here and rest.¡± The group seemed content with this decision, many collapsing to sit or crouch as they rested from the long jog. Kalesi easily leaped the short expanse, and began to use her portable synthesizer. It seemed content to work on such a simple task as fibrous cable, and from Mevi¡¯s vantage the device didn¡¯t seem to struggle or complain like when it attempted to create Kalesi¡¯s explosives.

    The exhausted troupe of refugees rested for a while, and to Kalesi¡¯s credit she created a strong-looking wire in only ten minutes. With their method of transit created, Kalesi began the process of attaching the cable to her side of the pipe, then quickly flying over the gap to the onlooking spectators. As Kalesi landed, there seemed to be exactly enough slack in the cable to allow her to land just past the ledge, but no further. Landing with a precise expertise, Kalesi began the process to attach the cable to the metal surface.

    While Kalesi began readying the cable, Mevi was flowing currents of pure air in and around the group of survivors. While she did so, Mevi was keeping a trained perception on any hint or sign of the Rusted. They seemed distant, so much so that just to hear them she had to focus hard enough that her Maige threatened to dissipate. They were safe, for now at least. But while Mevi listened for the lumbering bodies behind them, she heard other noises as well. The usual gusts of dust-filled wind, clattering of rusting metal falling onto some distant platform, and noises of creatures unknown scurrying around the unseen places of the Pipes. Yet as she filtered out the usual background noise, she could hear a clattering of something distant in front of them. The sounds she heard were almost similar to the Rusted, but more trained and coherent, almost like their own group¡¯s movements when she listened to the footsteps of their travels.

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    As Mevi brought herself out of her meditative state, focusing all her senses to listen and understand faraway stimuli, the survivors were already crossing the cable. The gathered people were terrified of the crossing, and only one had made it to the other side, while another slowly climbed across the gap with hands and legs firmly grasping the cable. The still-climbing individual was more than halfway across when another brave soul began their own attempt. Mevi thought the unknown sound must¡¯ve been other survivors, or residents of the Pipes, so forgetting it and resolving to tell Kalesi after they crossed to their new pathway, Mevi sprung into action to help encourage the group. Seeing the worried faces of those gathered she declared, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the climb! You are all incredibly skilled, I¡¯ve seen that much already, and I might be able to catch you if you fall.¡± Some of the worried gave pained appreciation at her words, but most seemed unenthusiastic at Mevi¡¯s assurances.

    Even Kalesi looked on with some amount of disbelief, ¡°I think that may be out of your realm of power, my eager Mevi.¡±

    Mevi wanted to believe she could muster enough strength and focus to save a falling person, but thought Kalesi was probably right. If the worst happened she would still try with what she could muster to catch someone if they fell. Mevi thought about what she would conjure in her mind to create an effect strong enough to lift an entire person to safety, and silently hoped she would be fast enough in her imagination to create a beneficial effect on the first try.

    Mevi continued to manipulate her Maige¡¯s abilities to give the waiting survivors fresh air to help bolster them before their turn to cross arrived. As Mevi was keenly watching the crossing, a light tug came at her robes. Turning to see who, or what, was pulling at her, Mevi saw the previously unconscious boy staring up at her. Only a head shorter than her, with dirty black and brown hair that poked out of the wrapped cloth around his head, and probably no more than twelve. The young boy seemed bashful as Mevi gave him her attention. The boy stuttered noises that might¡¯ve intended to be words before finally speaking with a soft tone, ¡°Thank you¡­¡±

    Mevi was confused, looking around briefly at what she might¡¯ve been doing, then asking, ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    The boy emboldened himself with silent words of encouragement, ¡°Your master, she told me you asked her to save me¡­ I wanted to thank you¡­¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how she felt, warm but still sad, her heart was touched in a strange way. The boy had lost his parents, and been effectively abandoned by his community. She saw herself too much in his small body. Reaching down to ruffle his hair, like Kalesi does to Mevi¡¯s hair, the boy flinched back. Pulling her hand away, and simply nodding her response, Mevi could not help but feel some strange sad nostalgia when looking at him. The boy escaped from her and back somewhere within the crowd. Difficult memories threatened to return to her, before she forced them back down within her as deep as they would go. Focusing on her self-issued job to provide clean air, Mevi returned to her strange task.

    Before long more than half of the survivors had reached the other side. Only children and the older individuals remained. The children were too afraid to cross, and the older survivors took a little bit longer to cross than the others. As Mevi listened to the distance, she heard the Rusted getting progressively louder. The entire process this far had been forty, maybe fifty, minutes of waiting. Kalesi was becoming impatient, but seemed reluctant to carry anyone across herself. Mevi wondered how her body was affected by so much use of her suit¡¯s enhancements. If they were anything like Mevi¡¯s Maige, it could be excruciating. Kalesi had fought impossible odds at least twice today, and won both encounters. Added with her jumping, and emergency traversal away with Mevi at the beginning, she had used her suit¡¯s abilities many times. Mevi could only assume those enhancements didn¡¯t wear off as quickly as Mevi¡¯s own ailments, as her own seemed almost mystical in nature. Kalesi seemed tired, and frustrated, while still forcing herself to valiantly lead the group of struggling survivors despite the odds against them. As they had crossed, Mevi had begun officially counting who was with them, excluding herself and Kalesi there were forty four survivors. With so many souls reliant on one person¡¯s abilities, Mevi could only imagine what stress Kalesi might be under.

    As the next two of the remaining survivors began to cross, with only eight still behind, Mevi could suddenly hear a rumbling. Not from the Rusted, but in front of them and beyond their future path. Kalesi heard the noise as well, leaping to the aid of the people at the end of the cable. As she landed, a figure burst out of the fog that blocked most unaided vision. A large behemoth humanoid, two trunk-sized legs with equally large arms and torso, was charging forward. It was a massive, hairy, creature that haphazardly barreled towards them and was easily twice the size of Kalesi. The creature seemed intent on raming the accumulated people, before a call from behind him demanded it halt. The creature clawed the metal ground to pull itself to a stop, breathing heavily with a dark hunger in its eyes.

    As the large humanoid stopped itself, several other figures were revealed. Walking calmly into plain view. First only a few became easily visible, with dark shadows behind them, then more followed, and soon there seemed to be a small contingent of people slowly approaching down the metal pipeway. The previous bandit¡¯s party could have been thirty, but in just the approaching front there was easily more than thirty. Many more dark figures stood behind, shrouded by the heavy fog that hung thick.

    Kalesi approached the front of the now terrified group of survivors. Mevi watched on with fear and worry as her mentor would likely force herself to fight again. As the panting behemoth grew restless, a figure in the front whistled for its attention. Obediently following the command, the large creature turned and stood next to its summoner. A tall, crimson red-skinned, creature stood unaffected by the billowing dust around it. Fanged tusks could be seen even from Mevi¡¯s distant viewpoint and it sported long black hair that hung around its waist. The creature wore a similar suit to Kalesi¡¯s wargear, but it wasn¡¯t decaying with rust and wear like the previous bandit¡¯s. This man stood casually, watching the cowering group like a predator sure of its hunt. Kalesi didn¡¯t wait for him to introduce himself as he slowly walked forward with confidence, she shouted out, ¡°What do you want? We have nothing of value to you!¡±

    The red-skinned leader maintained a cool gaze, stopping to look Kalesi up and down and then inspect the estranged children on the other pipeway, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that. I got news, one of mine got beat up pretty bad and a few blinded by some weird weapon. Wouldn¡¯t know what did that, do you?¡±

    Kalesi hesitated, choosing not to respond and scowled at the inquisitive figure.

    Acting offended, the man speaks up again, ¡°Oh, you wound me with silence. But I figure you¡¯re the one who hurt my toys. You wouldn¡¯t happen to be trying to use a neural link would you?¡± The man chuckled and then gestured behind him vaguely, ¡°I might¡¯ve accidentally brought a jammer with me. Just ended up in the luggage you know, forgot to leave it at home.¡±

    All Kalesi could do was mutter, ¡°Bastard¡­¡±

    The man laughed at her, ¡°You know! I did get told there were two nice looking toys around here, looks like I found a couple more than that. You a collector too?¡±

    ¡°You are sick, what you people do is sick.¡± responded Kalesi.

    The man thought for a second, putting his hand up to his chin, ¡°You know, I think I remember getting sick a long time ago. I got better, getting new toys always helps. So I think I¡¯ll take yours, make me feel better right?¡±

    Kalesi was obviously searching her surroundings for something she could use to her advantage. Desperately, Kalesi looked for some kind of advantage but they were against a dead ended pipeway and the only escape was a cable that could only support a couple people at a time. As Kalesi looked around herself the red man began to speak again, ¡°You seem to be confused¡­ Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. Some people call me Malicious, catchy right? I had a name, probably, better to change with the times though.¡± Amused by his own joke, Malicious chuckled to himself again before continuing, ¡°I¡¯ll give you a choice. You seem tough, tough enough to annoy me and maybe break some of my toys. So I¡¯ll cut you a deal. You can run along out of here, or join up with me. If you don¡¯t choose one of those I¡¯ll just have to break you, and I don¡¯t think you want that.¡±

    As Malicious continued talking, Kalesi seemed to come to some grim conclusion that there was no use searching her surroundings. She instead pulled her full attention to glaring at the accurately-named man. Kalesi seemed to seriously consider his offer, and then suddenly stomped the ground in frustration hard enough to leave a small dent. Malicious threw up his hands slightly to feign fear, ¡°Oh scary! So what¡¯ll it be?¡±

    Kalesi looked up and stared furiously into Malicious, ¡°If I leave, I need to bring her with me.'''' As she finished speaking, Kalesi pointed at where Mevi was standing. Mevi was surprised, and scared that Kalesi was even thinking about leaving the survivors behind.

    ¡°Oh! We are negotiating now! I love negotiating, its easier when the other party is dead though.¡± Malicious finished his mocking and then looked at Mevi, studying her carefully before replying, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I am already letting you go and you¡¯re the finest toy here, really. I don¡¯t think I could let two of you go¡­¡± He began to mull over the idea, pacing slowly as if spending a great deal of effort considering the request, ¡°Here, you gave an offer so I reply with a counter offer. I¡¯ve got this really strong guy, uses a suit kinda like mine! If you can kill him, you can go. If he beats you up, we get to take you and everyone else too!¡±

    Kalesi¡¯s face fell slightly, what hope of her and Mevi¡¯s escape had seemed to drain significantly, ¡°Fine.¡± was her only reply.

    Malicious clapped his hands together, and a man of similar height to Kalesi approached. A strong build, and wearing a tight black suit with metallic modifications to look like some kind of ancient armor. The man approached and walked slightly past Malicious, standing ten, or so, meters away from Kalesi. At this point most of the survivors were silently weeping or cowering. Kalesi readied herself, and the strong-looking man did the same. Malicious seemed to get excited, jumping up slightly like an eager child. Calling out, as if he was an announcer, Malicious declared, ¡°Alright folks, to battle for the freedom of this bitch and that kid over there, we have some random woman I¡¯ve never heard of before! Opposing her, we have my faithful hound, Turnar!¡± Malicious paused for effect, eagerly searching the crowds for any reaction, outside of his own bemused followers he found only dread. A little unsatisfied, and focusing back on the two prospect fighters he yelled, ¡°Now rip each other to pieces!¡±

 Chapter 22: A Malicious Obstruction, Part 2

    As Malicious shouted his command, the man named Turnar rushed forward with a familiar inhuman speed. Kalesi quickly matched with her own skillful blocks and parries, but seemed slower than her opponent. From Mevi¡¯s perspective, Kalesi was almost being thrown around as she jumped and dodged the man¡¯s attacks, she was moving at normal paces more often than not and Turnar used his fresh stamina to press Kalesi putting himself in advantageous positions.

    While their fight began, the remaining children and Mevi stood helplessly on the other pipeway. Mevi yearned to help Kalesi, but with the leering eyes of their assailants she wouldn¡¯t dare do anything to disrupt the sparring. The last thing Kalesi needed was to be worried Mevi might fall from the cable, or be somehow captured by one of the villans who followed Malicious. Those very individuals stood with mixed faces of amusement, boredom, or even slight confusion. Their master¡¯s sudden whim seemed to not be what was expected, as most ignored the fight preferring to eagerly watch the assembled bodies who had been attempting to flee from the Rust.

    Mevi frantically sought some way to aid Kalesi, even from such a far distance. What few abilities she had learned to use would only be useful if she could get closer. Even if she could use something like her flare, or to project a barrier, it would almost certainly cause the currently docile bandits to turn on them the moment they got the chance. Mevi¡¯s only chance was that Kalesi had some sort of plan, she brokered a deal for them to escape and Mevi refused to believe they truly planned to leave the survivors behind in these people¡¯s clutches. As Mevi raced to think of a way to aid Kalesi, she remembered something Kalesi had mentioned. Some Magicae have the ability to aid or heal others, Murano evidently was able to do this for her in fact. If, like her other abilities that seemed to manifest where she desired, Mevi could learn to heal or bolster someone¡­

    Mevi began setting out to her own strange work. Sitting down and focusing all her attention and imagination into her desire to heal and aid. Her primary test subject would have to be herself, so as to not draw attention. Mevi could vaguely remember what Murano did for her, waving his hand over her body while a dull and warm glow engulfed her. She pictured that, and found the spot where she was stepped on, it felt like there might be a large bruise forming. Focusing on her memory, and channeling her desire to help and heal, Mevi forced herself to be enveloped by her own healing rays. Opening her eyes, each of her Maige¡¯s gemstones glowed a soft orange light. As she maintained the small luminescence, her pain began to fade away and she felt almost invigorated. Yet as she did so, her senses warned her of a two headed danger.

    As Mevi¡¯s power channeled, and her senses heightened, she could clearly hear the rapid shambling of Rusted approaching them. Soon they would be descended upon the remaining children and Mevi herself. In the same instance Mevi could feel the creeping sensation from her wrists and chests telling her of oncoming pain and discomfort. The ability to heal her body physically and bolster herself seemed to drain her quickly, despite it seeming to have barely affected Murano during his mystical treatments. Regardless, Mevi knew she had limited time, and limited chances to use the newfound ability of rejuvenation. She might be able to separate some of the effects, but she had to hurry regardless.

    Mevi returned her attention to Kalesi, who at this point was struggling to keep up with the powerful gladiator she fought against. This, Turnar, seemed to gain some kind of enjoyment while fighting against the struggling Kalesi. Mevi hurried her thoughts to her mentor, focusing what willpower remained within her to reach out to Kalesi. Mevi¡¯s thoughts were conflicted, her mysticism untested and unsure, but she focused on her single desire to make Kalesi stronger. Her injuries were minor, but her strength was fading, with every deflection or doge more of her stamina was sapped away. Mevi channeled what strength she had within herself and voided it from herself and into Kalesi.

    Mevi felt a great strain enter her body, the same feeling of her vitality draining by the second. As she continued to focus, she stole a glance at Kalesi. Kalesi had been cornered, being beaten as she covered her head and neck against a relentless assault from Turnar. The wicked man seemed to enjoy the beating, increasing his ferocity with every attack. Yet unbeknownst to the man, or even Malicious and the assembled crowd, Mevi could sense her power. It gently flowed into the air currents, and blew its strength into Kalesi. While it was at first difficult to notice, Kalesi began standing taller and could take the blows without flinching. As she rose to her full height, deflecting and avoiding attacks all the while, Kalesi seemed powerful. Her looming stature seemed to rise above her opponent, and for a solitary moment Kalesi basked in her own renewed strength. Then the fight was redoubled, what once was a one sided beatdown turned to an evened duel. The two exchanged blow for blow, Kalesi switching to a combination of offense and defense from her previous strategy of endurance.

    Both Turnar and his master Malicious, seemed surprised by the turn of events. The chosen gladiator had been reveling in his unmatched power from only moments before, but now he was becoming quickly overwhelmed. Kalesi was unaware of Mevi¡¯s attempts to aid her, but seemed cautious of her new strength regardless. Yet taking every given advantage was something Kalesi exploited well, and soon the fight had entirely turned. The superhuman speed and power sent echoing clashes across the chasms around them. Turnar tried to maintain the fight¡¯s presence in the gap between Malicious¡¯ raiders and the survivors, but Kalesi¡¯s pure power drove him to seek out alternate platforms in his own attempts to avoid her and escape injury.

    While the two gladiators sparred, Mevi continued to maintain her conscious desire to bolster Kalesi. The power it consumed from her drained her quickly. Her untrained talent with her Maige was rapidly causing the strange blackness to creep up her veins and into her body. Maintaining the link between herself and Kalesi, Mevi didn¡¯t know how much longer she could hold before it was forcibly snapped. The farther Kalesi traveled in her fight, the more strain Mevi was put under.

    While Mevi watched on with divided attention, the sounds of snarling Rusted continued to become louder and less distant. A howl suddenly rang out, all attention was drawn from the battle to the direction the survivors had fled from. From out of the distant mists a Rusted¡¯s form charged with a hobbled sprint, clearly targeting the clustered group of estranged children. As the beast charged, the gathered bandits became shaken, and soon several other Rusted entered plain view. As the creatures approached, Mevi forced herself to release her aid from Kalesi and erect a barrier as she did before. The pipeway they took shelter on was less wide than the last, but the barrier would need to be tall to prevent the decaying bodies from attempting to scale the distance.

    Just as the few Rusted would have jumped at the terrified children, an orange glow erected itself as barrier between threat and threatened. The awe and surprise struck into the bandits, even Malicious himself, stunning them for a few moments. Kalesi took the opportunity to ambush her foe and with a swift strike, through his vacant guard, Turnar was knocked into the crowd of assembled bandits. His now unconscious body flew and tumbled into the assembled enemies, collapsing several as they fell under the man¡¯s weight and momentum. Turning towards Mevi¡¯s group, Kalesi shouted her pupil¡¯s name in desperate worry. Mevi called backwards, to the children who were still terrified of both ends of the cable, ¡°Cross the cable! I can¡¯t hold this long!¡±

    As the sudden voice, sound of a clattering body, and snarling shouts all rang out in the same moments the children snapped back into reality. Realizing what was happening, they all began to assemble towards the cable. Yet their rush and panic sent each of them onto the cable at the same time. The thick wire wavered and shook under the weight of eight bodies, eventually becoming too much for the simple cable. As they rushed and pushed to crawl across the expanse, the end on Mevi¡¯s side trembled and collapsed under the weight. The terrified children cried out as gravity suddenly took hold of them. Clinging to the wire with all their might, they managed to swing back and forth as the cable was suddenly falling with speed. Just as the previous anchor, the remaining cable¡¯s latch wavered, but before it could snap some of the survivors rushed to grab the cable¡¯s length and begin to heft it, barely stopping the cable¡¯s snapping and fall.

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    As the children dangled above an endless chasm, and Mevi maintained a barrier against a handful of Rusted bodies, more ferocious calls and cries echoed out in the distance. As the panic consumed the bodies present, more Rusted charged forward. A small horde had somehow followed and tracked their escape. The numbers of now charging, and clawing, Rusted could rival the retinue following Malicious. Many now writhed amongst themselves, some falling off the edge of the pipe in their attempt to reach the still living, but the bulk of them clawed and attempted to climb the orange barrier. Their flesh seared and burnt, but Mevi could feel their weight was rapidly draining what little strength she had left.

    The bandits seemed still stunned, and now scared, being slow to react to what was happening around them. The few survivors who rushed to grab the wavering cable called for assistance. Kalesi looked back and forth, between her struggling pupil and the imminent death of the dangling children, and quickly made her decision. Activating her suit, Kalesi charged over the gap to rush to Mevi. Landing on the other side, Kalesi looked briefly at the horde beyond the barrier, but then gathered Mevi to activate her suit again to cross the distance.

    As Mevi felt her body lurch into the air, she let free her focus on her barrier. The Rusted stumbled and fell atop each other as their angry momentum carried them forward. As Kalesi flew over the gap, a discharge of energy electrified the air with a loud blast. Kalesi seemed to see something Mevi couldn''t, and managed to shift her body and weight to point her back towards Malicious and his bandits. The tight grip on Mevi loosened, and then the two crashed into the metal pipeway.

    Mevi gathered herself, disoriented and confused at what just happened. The Rusted wailed and cried out across the gap, but it didn¡¯t take them long to notice the still-dangling children. The Rusted quickly began leaping, attempting to reach and grab the almost fallen children. As Mevi looked out at the growing horde, only separated by a short expanse, she looked down at Kalesi. Unsure why they crashed so suddenly, Mevi worried her mystical aid somehow drained Kalesi¡¯s stamina and she couldn''t land normally. To Mevi¡¯s terror, Kalesi was hunched over in pain. Kalesi¡¯s entire back was scorched with hot fire. The heat and burn dissipated, whatever discharged into her delt its damage and dissolved into the air, leaving melted wargear melding with charred flesh. Mevi lost her understanding of the situation, not knowing what she was seeing or what to do with panic quickly consuming her. As Mevi watched in horror, Kalesi pushed herself up and limped to the unstable cable. Her right arm was almost entirely scorched, but she reached down with her left and activated what was left of her suit¡¯s enhancements. Yanking hard, she managed to do what five panicked adults couldn¡¯t, she forced herself to pull the terrorized children upwards to freedom in one great toss.

    The children flew up with an alarming speed, as the cable flew above the group¡¯s heads, and they landed with clattering thuds into the metal surface. After performing her last duty, Kalesi collapsed to her knees and began to fall forward off the edge. Mevi¡¯s body moved before her brain understood what she saw, and despite her own immense pain from both the barrier and her aid given to Kalesi, Mevi lunged for Kalesi to save her. Mevi grasped what remained of Kalesi¡¯s right arm, and several of the adults among the survivors grabbed her as well, and Kalesi was pulled from the side of the pipeway to relative safety.

    Mevi was speechless, and as Kalesi¡¯s body tumbled to solid ground she quietly sat over Kalesi¡¯s now still form. Unsure what had actually happened, and still processing the last few second¡¯s string of events, Mevi caught a glimpse of Malicious out of the corner of her eye. The presence of evil seemed to be standing where Malicious once was, it held a smoking weapon that had obviously discharged. The creature¡¯s red skin seemed to boil with evil anger, while his wicked smirk perceived him as a satisfied devil looming over its slain prey. Some great darkness began to overwhelm Mevi¡¯s senses, enough that all ambient sound silenced itself around her.

    Mevi began to feel as if she was losing consciousness. She felt her mind slipping away. But instead of drowning into sleep, she was beckoned by a fell voice within her chest. It summoned her to take revenge, and with her Maige she could force her will to be done. Her foggy vision clouded further, and sounds echoed around her but without any meaning. Her hallucination of Malicious¡¯ devilish form twisted further, sparking some unknown passion within her. An overwhelming hatred that promised to well over and burst its anger like a volcano. This vague feeling, a voice without a source, promised to avenge Kalesi and make those that caused Mevi¡¯s pain to disappear. Mevi gave into this fell voice, some dark thought from the bottom of her soul at the deepest level. It overtook her, and promised to make things right, she would only need watch. And so she did.

    Spreading out from Mevi¡¯s knelt form, a wave of dark dread spread across the perceivable expanse in all directions. A whirlwind of hate billowed around her, and all color and sound was drained from the space darkened by Mevi¡¯s overwhelming presence. The survivors seemed to try and call out, to yell and scream, to talk to the silently weeping children, but no sound was allowed to exist. Mevi¡¯s ragged cloth robes began to tear from the pressure and power around her, any who once stood next to her in worry were forced to back away as razor sharp wind began like a tornado, tearing into anything that wasn¡¯t Mevi or Kalesi. Rising to her feet, with a will that wasn¡¯t her own, Mevi¡¯s skin had completely blackened from the infection of her Maige, the warm orange glow shifted to a piercing white that promised only death and bone.

    The shrill cries of the Rusted were silenced, their mob had seemed to somehow calm and stop as the overwhelming darkness enveloped all in a layer of despair. The panicking bandits began to try to shout, or to escape back the way they came, but most quickly found no purchase beyond the fog that was now as thick as stone. Malicious stood, in basking horror, watching the monster he created. Words attempted to reach Mevi¡¯s ears, but no sound but her own heartbeat echoed in the void. The slow thumping of a double drum echoed in the world now devoid of color. The overwhelming power of fear, hate, anguish, and pain pressured all but the most willful to their knees in flattened supplication. Malicious fought against the growing pressure, but Mevi simply pointed at him. The man attempted to say something, to shout out at some eldritch creature he couldn''t understand, but instead his voice was mute and his vitality drained. Before the eyes of those gathered, Malicious was drained of all that he was and had been, what remnant of colored tint disappeared, his bones brittled and became dust, his hair fell out, and his body crumpled becoming one with the dust around them.

    As Mevi stood in righteous fury, no longer truly herself, she felt something grab her leg. Looking down, the weak frame of Kalesi had pushed herself towards Mevi¡¯s feet and her left hand grabbed vainly at Mevi¡¯s leg.

    Suddenly, Mevi could understand things again. She was overwhelmed by something, something completely alien to her own soul. It held control over her, and lulled her into a dazed state of hate. Kalesi was alive, and in desperate need of help and medical attention. In her state, focus was impossible. Mevi¡¯s psyche was focused on all things around her at once, every minute detail of sound, movement, and energy was transmitted to her all at once with incredible speed and detail. From her strange perspective, looking into herself and being able to perceive all things around her at once, she could feel a distant rumbling from high above. The watchful eyes of floating devices, transports maybe, buzzing across the artificial skies with incredible speed. Kalesi needed to reach these people, she needed to survive. Mevi needed to force this to happen, even if she declared war on some unknown part of herself.

    Mevi seemed to be tearing the assembled bandits apart one by one. With the overwhelming stimuli, their screams and decimation was ignored as like all the other randomly processed information. Some attempted to flee by jumping free of the pipeway¡¯s platform, but the dark presence that controlled Mevi simply retrieved them with shadowy appendages and forced them to watch the carnage. This possession wasn¡¯t her will, it couldn¡¯t even be part of her deepest desires. Something had taken over, and she fought against its usurpation with all her might. This entity within herself seemed to almost cackle in its glee, performing heinous acts against those that had wronged Mevi. Twisting her memories into wells of extreme hate, it was all that Mevi could do to fall into the temptation of destroying the bandits and all of the Pipes.

    Mevi remembered her Maige, it responded to her desire and formed a method to achieve it. Yet now she had two desires within herself, and was fighting for dominance. Mevi focused all she had into Kalesi, her desire to protect, help, and be with her. She didn¡¯t need death, revenge, or power. She needed Kalesi, and her life alongside her. Mevi fought in a mental duel against the presence within her, its inane cries of revenge echoing into meaningless noise. Mevi held strong, and its own conflicting desires ate away at its own consciousness. What remained of Mevi¡¯s want for vengeance and battle dwindled, and the dark form that had possessed her seemed to become docile. With her conscious thought, and desire against the useless slaughter, her strange power responded by quelling the presence within herself. The dark mind that invaded her soul was quiet and bound.

    As Mevi put away the dark thought, displacing it back into the darkest depths within herself, Mevi could see the color return to the world. What dust that had once billowed in the air was now displaced. An empty space was left in its place, where the bare metal of the pipes shone by the bright light that always emanated from the Barge. Far above, as Mevi collapsed to the ground, many strangely shaped ships flew and intercepted one another. Radiant blues flew alongside glowing silver, seeming to fight against stone gray and pitch black.

    As Mevi¡¯s last conscious thoughts began to disappear, a large vessel of unknowable form descended, casting a shadow above her. The radiant blue shone like a memory of bright skies over a canvas of empty pasture. As the vessel landed, blasting strange lights and energy in random directions, Mevi could not fight against her body any longer. Mevi was forced into her deepest dreams, once again.

 Chapter 23: The Endless Sky

    Mevi found herself, once again, drifting in the infinite expanse of her own subconscious. Her lucidity within her dreams had been less frequent, during the few days of peace she afforded with Kalesi. Here, in this realm of strange and ever changing shapes and colors, Mevi seemed truly alone.

    She drifted within the empty void for a time, she was partially aware of her physical form in the waking world. As she had fallen to the ground, something grabbed her. Who, or what, had retrieved her from the rusting battlefield was unclear. She had vague memories of ships, darting and attacking one another in short skirmishes. Her few visions of the clear skies were fleeting, and blurred from her all-consuming exhaustion. A strong tension hung around her physical body, so potent that it infected her senses within her dream. Some degree of chaos outside of her mind was jostling, and affecting, her body, which in turn created stress that formulated into twisted clouds projected in her dream-scape.

    Mevi recalled, suddenly, Kalesi. Her burnt and wounded body had laid beside her. What had happened to Kalesi, was she saved? Was Mevi saved? What few pieces of this unending puzzle Mevi could quantify showed little sense. The last few day¡¯s events showed some strange connection that Mevi couldn¡¯t fathom, and yet she knew there was some strings of connections that tied her fate to the actions of others. Pondering by herself, in her empty dream plane, would not help her to accomplish anything, especially if even Kalesi wasn¡¯t able to fully understand these strange events.

    Kalesi made some show of confidence, for her pupil¡¯s sake Mevi thought, in the last few days. Yet as Mevi marveled over her scattered memories, she was sure Kalesi had little more understanding than Mevi herself held. Whatever secret plots hid behind the recent events Mevi didn¡¯t find or see the connections, even within her essence of memory with her perfect lucidity.

    As Mevi attempted to comprehend the unknowable reasoning behind her fate, a dark shadow began to creep into her mind. A familiar feeling, and her dread companion of many years. As the dark began to crawl into her mind, Mevi was almost relieved to sense something so familiar. Her darkness, whatever it was, had nested within her dreams for as long as her memory lasted. Yet after her days calmed, or when cared for by Kalesi, it seemed warded away. This stalking depression within her deepest soul, it had finally returned to seek some amount of retribution for her days of peace. The miasmic entity drifted towards her, and began to consume her entirely.

    As the darkness fully engulfed her, Mevi was almost curious of its meaning. For the first time in her life she wanted to understand the entity that stalked her, rather than fight and flee in its presence. Mevi held some small amount of clarity in her lucid dreaming, where before her nights were strife with terrorized escapism she instead now reached out to the abyss. Her every memory and sense told her to avoid the dark, but the last few moment¡¯s events forced her to recognize something was indeed within her.

    Reaching out, in the way only a dreamer can, Mevi melded with her soul¡¯s shroud. Its overwhelming presence began peppering her with cruel memories. Her childhood: the days she was locked away without light, in starvation and fear. Yet Mevi knew better now, she knew something within her could somehow manifest in the waking world, and she willed it to ward away the evil memories. Her focus was staggered, and what thoughts she could coherently process revolved around forgetting her terrible memories, but as she drew from within herself a new power coalesced at her command, placed upon her mind was now a shield. The dark entity wailed in anger against the wall that prevented its advance, but as it lamented Mevi was confused.

    Mevi had attempted to ward away this darkness before, in stronger fits of dedication than now. Yet what little focus she maintained was somehow powerful enough to block the advance of her perpetual daemon. As Mevi beheld the dark power, it seemed entirely feeble; or perhaps weakened. Her attention was drawn further into the dark abyss, and within its own core Mevi could sense something that¡¯s origin was neither hers nor this darkness¡¯.

    Binding some strange core of the monster within herself, were three hot-white ethereal locks. What small amount of miasmic power could seep out of the locks made up her now-weakened daemon. Three powerful white starlights, glowing with an overwhelming authority; beautiful, if not for the hanging terror that rivaled the dark abyss¡¯ own.

    Mevi didn¡¯t understand what these locks were, or how they came to be. Had these always been within her, or had they recently developed? Her instinct told her they were invaders, something recently put into place. Yet she didn¡¯t realize what they were until she approached closer. What she beheld as mystical locks, gleaming stars of pure power, were in fact ephemeral gemstones projecting a near invincible authority. Ethereal chains strung out of them, wrapping around the core of her monster. These chains dung into, and infected, the dark entity as the chains seemed to spread deeper inside the daemon¡¯s core as she watched. The more the dark power struggled, the more it used itself to rail against Mevi¡¯s meager defenses, the deeper the chains spread. It seemed as if the chains harvested something from the monster, small tendrils of its dark essence streaked into the chains; the angered daemon writhed against the chains as they harvested steady amounts of power from it, but it could do nothing against the powerful gem¡¯s power.

    Mevi knew she should feel glad, the forceful taming of this power could no longer haunt her, yet this method felt wrong somehow. This wasn¡¯t her taming whatever daemon lurked inside her, it was akin to enslavement. Whatever enabled the process was wrong, and she felt some small desire to set free this daemon that had terrorized her dreams for countless nights.

    As Mevi investigated her inner self, she suddenly felt a new presence near her corporeal body. An amount of time, unknown to her, must¡¯ve passed. The area around her sleeping body felt somehow more stable, the tension she could sense moments before was erased. Even within her chaotic dream-scape she became calmed. Whatever danger stalked outside of herself must have disappeared. While the tension had left, she could still feel the occasional touch and firm grasp.

    Suddenly, as Mevi carefully investigated her inner daemon¡¯s core, she felt a great cold wash over her body. A vision of bubbling liquid, a cold embrace of water, flashed across her dream. The momentary image dissipated, but her mind had been shaken. As her body fully dove into the unknown waters, the dark power began to cower and shriek within itself. The white locks were almost cooled, dimming from their previous power to a more moderate light.

    While Mevi¡¯s daemon writhed within itself, Mevi was curious what was happening. Yet without entering the waking world, she couldn¡¯t guess what might go on around her. She focused hard, remembering how she activated her power in moments of need. She demanded sight, and remembered Kalesi; Mevi needed to know where her mentor was taken and if Kalesi was safe. As she summoned further desire, the white locks burned brighter than they had before, and seemed to absorb a large amount of essence from her caged daemon. As her desire burned with command, the dark substance within her daemon¡¯s core was rapidly absorbed into the glowing chains reaching out from the locks. The black power snaked up the ethereal chains, and its fashion was reminiscent of her own veins becoming infected by a black taint. As Mevi watched the glowing chains, she forgot her initial desire and realized what those three locks might¡¯ve been. Her Maige.

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    As her desire faded, and the glowing chains reduced themselves to their normal state, she felt a sudden wave of worry in the air around where her body slept. She felt like it wasn¡¯t her own, like she could feel the drifting emotions in the air of others who might be around her. Some amount of panic had briefly possessed the presences around where she slept, but had begun to pass as her command to her Maige was dismissed. She still needed to see Kalesi, she needed to know she was safe, and this need trumped her own safety.

    Mevi, knowing how her Maige drew power forcefully from her imprisoned daemon, couldn¡¯t use her abilities. The sorrow she felt at its torture, it was strange to describe her feeling anything but fear towards something so terrible within her. Yet she didn¡¯t want to harm the entity, she felt it was part of her in some way, and her mind fought with itself to decide what desire would win over. Her need to see Kalesi again or preventing further pain to this thing inside her.

    As Mevi fought against herself for what to do, an overwhelming presence slowly became obvious to her senses. Gradually at first, a great blue expanse in the far distance of her mind, but it quickly grew in power. This presence approached her, both spiritually and physically. She knew it was there, and it was entering her consciousness to reach out to her. What she could understand of her own mind was then overcome with a great blue sky, stretching farther than fathomable. No obvious avatar of this effect came into understanding, instead an all-encompassing gentleness. A great curiosity, some creature that longed to see the end of an endless space, an insatiable desire to see and know all under this strange ever expanding sky. Then it entered.

    The great presence, showing itself as an avatar of the sky itself coalesced into a humanoid form. From the far distance Mevi could see its approach. This being was somehow familiar, yet completely new to her. As if some forgotten memory was dredging its remains to the surface, but only scraps of the scraps remained. This far presence, it stood still and watched as Mevi seemed to be slowly approaching it. Indeed, both Mevi and her chained daemon were approaching closer and closer to this alien calm.

    This entity remained at a far distance, but Mevi was steadily traveling nearer without her own effort. Mevi could barely sense her corporeal surroundings, what senses she had left in the waking world were preoccupied with the swirling water that rushed around her. She was traveling somewhere, and this state she found herself in was somehow diluting her abilities to understand the world around her. Kalesi¡¯s condition was still unknown, and this new entity desired to block her vision in some strange way. Mevi would not allow this. While she regretted using her chained darkness, Mevi needed power to see her mentor and confirm her safety.

    Channeling what little energy Mevi had within herself, she supplemented her mind by drawing power from her dark daemon through her Maige. The dark taint was drawn into the glowing chains, which quickly shone with an unnatural light the color of pitch. With the power she now possessed, Mevi reached out to her surroundings in attempt to ascertain where she was. Images did not come to her mind, but instead she could feel the presence of many. A vague understanding of a body, and their shifting emotions, was all she could understand of any individual. There were many creatures near her, but she could also sense a great open vastness below, as if they were in birds of a flock among the skies or over a great trench in a vast ocean.

    Mevi could only remember glimpses of Kalesi¡¯s wounded form, she had been so quickly and fully consumed her enraged mind turned away from Kalesi¡¯s condition almost instantly. Yet the image of charred skin, metal fibers bonding with soft flesh, like a host of ragged flesh fighting to melt away from its metal casket. The memory she conjured in her mind was made of pure emotion, terror, and skewed perception. Mevi refused to believe it was an accurate memory, and Mevi searched for some hint of pain or deformity that might be detected through her mystical radar. As she searched, sifting through the minds and bodies became exceptionally difficult. The longer she used her power, the more frantic the bodies around her became. Their panicked attitudes stalled Mevi¡¯s search, as the unknown people¡¯s psyche made such wild noise that it cascaded against her senses.

    Just as Mevi was beginning to give up on her search, a faint thought seemed to reach out to her. Despite the overwhelming chaos of those around her, and the overwhelming presence the great sky avatar created, a single thought pierced through the chaos to touch her spirit. A damaged, weak, and pained psyche was also searching for her. Some small fragment of Kalesi was submerged in unconsciousness and weakly probed the dream-scape Mevi traveled across. Mevi rushed her focus past all other creatures that swarmed around her, and placed her full attention on this faint spark of her mentor.

    Kalesi was drifting in and out of the waking world, dipping into unconsciousness only to be thrust back into wakefulness by shots of pain. She was wounded, and in such great pain she found no rest. Kalesi¡¯s mind raced with memory, thoughts, regret, military strategy, and all the things that Kalesi always paid attention to. The tiniest detail of her surroundings were ingrained onto her memory for every moment she breached into the waking world and opened her eyes. Even in her agony Kalesi was assessing her surroundings for threats, strategy, and searching for information. Within her mind was a great concern, and its importance rang like a bell to awaken and force her search to renew. Kalesi was looking for Mevi, in her delirious state she still worried about the girl. In her thoughts few words, meanings, or reason could be detected, but Mevi could sense Kalesi¡¯s need for Mevi to be alive. Her want to keep her safe, so as to keep herself alive occasionally breached the surface of her thoughts. But most of all a strange attachment pushed out all other concerns and proper reasoning. Mevi could not accurately decipher the message, as she had no true experience as to what it looks or feels like, but Mevi thought the emotion was that of love.

    Mevi knew where Kalesi was now, and refocused what power she had left. She could not accept Kalesi being harmed. Mevi channeled all the power she could draw from into her wounded mentor, Mevi forced her body to endure great pain so she could harvest more power to heal Kalesi¡¯s wounds and scattered psyche. Mevi¡¯s own pain increased, what had been there before seemed to be stalled by the strange water she rested within. Yet as Mevi drew more and more of herself to heal Kalesi, the pain overcame what little comfort the sky avatar¡¯s presence provided and what numbness the water produced. As the pain grew more, a new mind forced its way within her dreamworld. An unknown creature, foggy mind and weak fortitude, this new entity thrust itself upon Mevi in a crude and inefficient way. As if they were climbing through an air duct rather than using a door, all the while they shouted Mevi¡¯s meaning. Not her name, but called out to what she was. This entity finally breached what few defenses Mevi could hold against it, and a single clear voice echoed for a brief moment in her mind, ¡°Stop! Don¡¯t use your Maige! We will help your master, just stop!¡± The voice rang with such a faintness, and an infecting echo, that what tone or gender might¡¯ve existed was completely lost. Mevi realized what the bodies around her were panicked about; they were rushing and tending to Mevi¡¯s corporeal form in a crazed response as she used her powers. Her pain grew greater and the daemon within her screamed out in response to Mevi¡¯s thievery of its being.

    Without realizing it, Mevi had been siphoning a great deal of power away from the daemon that was chained within her. It was shrinking, and dying, as she took more and more from it. Noticing Kalesi¡¯s mind was calming, and more and more bodies rushed away from Mevi to interact and treat Kalesi, Mevi calmed herself and stopped her usage. She was promised Kalesi would be looked after, and the various panicked minds rushed away from where Mevi was in the cosmic plane to instead be with Kalesi. So Mevi decided to trust this crude voice that had attacked her defenses simply to send a message.

    The crowd of clattering thoughts and emotions calmed themselves, after a time. As their work was divided evenly between Mevi and Kalesi, Mevi felt some comfort leaving the work to whoever was outside of herself. Yet as time went on, the great sky grew in intensity. After a while of waiting and observing the dream world, the overwhelming presence had grown so vast and bright that Mevi had to hide against her weakened daemon to shield herself in its leftover miasma. They seemed to be orbiting the entity¡¯s avatar, who was watching with an overwhelming calm far below. Mevi could sense many other loose consciousnesses far below herself, less potent and almost unnoticeable in comparison to the power that shone like a great star.

    Then, as Mevi hid from the great light, her position began to lower towards the bright avatar. As they delved lower and lower, inching slowly towards the vastness coalesced into a coherent form, Mevi¡¯s consciousness began to wane within her own plane. Within her dream, and into her own mind, drove a great weariness that slowed her thoughts and calmed her. A strange rest that wanted to take over and force her into a blank, singular, thought. To think of, and be, nothing while she rested. Her grasp on the cosmic plane within her dreaming mind was slipping, she was falling into true unconsciousness. With her last vestiges of strength Mevi reached out to reassure herself of Kalesi¡¯s presence. Kalesi was there, nearby, and healing. Whoever had tended to Mevi were now fully focused on her mentor. With some semblance of satisfaction, and hope, Mevi slipped into a true sleep. One without lucid memory, and without an invading darkness to escape from. Simple dreams of better places.

 Chapter 24: Memories and Freedom, Part 1

    Mevi felt something, something was stirring from within her peace in sleep. It was as if she was awakening, but also wasn¡¯t. As she was roused from some deep slumber, her awareness attuned to her familiar space. She found herself within her dreams, lucid once more. Her senses felt dulled, drowsy almost, as if she was greatly exhausted and was moments from collapsing in on herself. What strength of will she had, before her entombment into dreams, vanished as if it was never there. The mystical adrenaline had worn off, and her memories began to flood back in slow order. Her first glimpse into her memorial visions was of her body¡¯s possession and rage. Then her memory of Kalesi¡¯s wounding, and their fall.

    Mevi shook free what memories pressed their return, forcing whatever tried to follow behind them away. She remembered little of the last few days, if these events even happened days ago. Mevi felt lethargic, she was almost tired of sleeping. As if someone was keeping her in a forced unconsciousness well beyond what was necessary. In fact, some strange sense within her told her that might exactly be the case. Tracking the sense to its source led her back to her entrapped daemon. The dark core that resided within herself was quiet and calm, it was almost communicating with her. In some strange way it was trying to tell her something, that she had been away for a time. That it had been attacked. These thoughts and messages came in the version of emotions, fits of panic, flashing colors, and alien sounds that were transmitted through an ethereal link between only themselves.

    As Mevi absorbed the hastened report from her once enemy, she felt a presence that was unknown to her. Now noticing she was being observed, and her slowly awakening senses only now coming into realization of her cosmic surroundings. Great eyes, disguised as the wide cosmos above, watched her every movement, or what was considered movements in a formless realm. As Mevi gazed upwards, meeting the intent stare of her watcher, the eyes shut close and disappeared. As they disappeared from her mental sight, the feeling of their presence remained clear. Mevi could track the ethereal movements of this new entity as long as it remained within her dream domain. The presence stopped suddenly, after invisibly circling her several times in complete silence. As they did, a booming voice echoed around her, suddenly talking as if very far away and muffled through thick doors but also so loud she wanted to bind shut her ears. The distant voice communicated, for the first time in her dream world, in coherent words she could understand, ¡°Strange. Your abilities progress faster under extreme stress, I will archive this for later study.¡±

    Mevi felt the oppressive voice was, somehow, reducing their presence despite the great sound that was their echo. Mevi tried to shout back a reply, but could not formulate normal words. Even her own message was skewed and misunderstood by her own senses, a shout of confusion and fear of the unknown was all that could be produced. The great eyes, who remained invisible, studied her carefully as Mevi flailed her senses in vain. After a time of intent observation, the voice echoed once more, ¡°I see¡­ Not as developed as previously assumed, I will archive this regardless. You can understand me, to some degree, at least?¡±

    Mevi responded with whatever feeling of affirmation she could, as if mentally nodding her head furiously.

    ¡°Good. Then you might assist me. My wife has bid me aid you, and remove your parasite. What walls are produced within your mind prevent me from directly removing it, without internal assistance.¡± said the booming voice matter-of-factly.

    Mevi was confused, and as she translated her feeling the invisible entity didn¡¯t seem surprised or concerned. In a way that only raw emotion could communicate, Mevi felt some amount of superiority leak from the on-high being.

    Speaking as if beginning an academic lecture, the voice began to explain, ¡°I can only guess what you may, or may not, see or understand. Regardless, it is not of immediate importance. Rather, I must know if you have the ability to perceive the crude device you use as a ¡®Maige¡¯ or not.¡±

    Mevi was not sure if she should trust this bodiless voice, but affirmed to it she could comprehend the Maige.

    Before Mevi¡¯s message was fully translated the voice somehow knew her answer and began quickly, ¡°I will mark the time for spacial awareness development¡­ Then, if you have identified it, you must allow me to lend you my intent. You will then use it for its purpose: to remove your Maige safely from your body.¡±

    Mevi was surprised by the sudden offer and following command, refusing to allow some new alien power within herself.

    ¡°Interesting. You are unwilling to accept power when it is freely given, I will archive your decision. Regardless, your Maige is slowly going to kill you. It was placed there with malign purpose, and will only do you harm. Even now it steals away vital parts of you for unknown motives.¡±

    Mevi was conflicted, the voice was new but somehow felt trustworthy. Like it was so honest it couldn¡¯t be lying, but that idea could also be caused by her skewed perspective within her dream-scape. Even without the voice¡¯s reassurance of her Maige¡¯s alignment, she had been wounded so much from even simple use of the device; the device had even somehow taken over her body and forced her to commit devilish acts against her foes. Yet, to trust some new and unknown disembodied entity and willingly allow it within herself? Mevi needed guidance, and could not decide which option was the less of the two evils presented.

    As Mevi debated within herself, and the watchful eyes observed her every emotion, a slow feeling of familiar origin caressed her soul. Looking behind where her perceptions focused, a distant but familiar sky began to roll into view. Faraway, and very faint, the blue expanse stretched out not towards Mevi but to the invisible entity in her mind. The feeling of calm washed over her regardless, but the other entity encircled the scrutinizing gaze with a firm grasp. Not a grip to threaten or banish the unknown entity, but rather a soft envelopment with some unknown firm message. As the expanse¡¯s influence fully trapped the entity in its warm embrace, it was fully illuminated.

    Where the calm, warm, and curious entity was like the ever expanding sky and the curious expanse of space. The new entity was their earth, the ground that those who wished to gaze up had to stand on; a solid foundation, where truth and fact could be engraved into stone. Two halves of one whole, one cold and old by nature while the other was new and promised warmth of exploration. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure why, but she trusted the endless sky, or more so longed for the familiar warm embrace if brought with it.

    After the familiar entity departed fully, its message seemed clear to Mevi. It believed the watchful eyes were somehow trustworthy, or otherwise important in some way. And without a clear alternative, being stuck within her own wakeless dream Mevi realized she needed to accede to the eye¡¯s demands. The, now invisible again, entity reacted as she came to her conclusion without emotion. Instead the voice echoed out again, as instructional as it was before, ¡°I will archive your trust in warmth, and things considered traditionally benevolent. I will attempt to breach into your mind, slowly and without real power, and you must open the way in whatever manner you can fathom. Imagining a door being opened for a guest may help, I am told. Once you allow me in, I fear tampering with your fragile ego myself for the chance of untold damage to your psyche. Instead of my own, you must use your wits to break the seal on yourself that is emplaced by the Maige.¡± Then, despite Mevi¡¯s confusion and slighted pride, a foreign power began tapping at her mind. While the voice was, for the most part, a distant echo muffled by her mental walls, this was as if someone was tapping hard against a thin pane of glass. At any moment where the tap used slightly more force than intended, the glass might shatter, but it was expertly moderated to only produce a slight annoyance on Mevi¡¯s psyche.

    Mevi followed the source of the tapping, traveling further into her own subconscious. The ¡®sound¡¯ was found, if you could call it a sound or say it was found within a formless space. Yet as the voice had said, Mevi couldn¡¯t fathom exactly how to let it in. So she did what made sense from the tapping it produced. Within her mind, Mevi imagined her mental barriers as a wall and the tapping coming from a balcony window, not unlike her and Kalesi¡¯s apartment. The tapping came from a peculiar source, with Mevi¡¯s imagination of solid objects the entity was fathomed into existence alongside her mental space. At the balcony window of the home Mevi longed to see again soon, a small and annoyed squirrel tapped at the glass with an acorn in hand. Mevi had seen pictures, and read what she could understand, within the texts and data from her house¡¯s library. The unknown entity seemed less scary now, but its watchful eyes still gazed up at her unblinking as the tapping continued. Mevi moved to open the balcony door, and as she did the squirrel sprinted in without hesitation. Once entered the, previously squirrel, entity¡¯s form shaped and changed while growing to a stature well taller than Mevi.

    The once-fuzzy creature now changed into an amalgamation of stone and earth, in the idea of some crumbling man¡¯s statue. An ancient thing, gripping tightly to memories that fought against nature and thus wore away with time. The crumbling thing turned to Mevi, his eyes and mouth now made out of the dusted and cracked face of a plain-faced stone man. He almost began to sigh, in a way that projected creaking rock and echoing stonefalls, but gathered itself to a mostly solid shape to address Mevi, ¡°I will archive that you prefer to change something you see as intimidating, into something you found cute in your childhood. Now, as I am unfamiliar with your mind, proceed and I shall follow. We should make haste to your Maige.¡±

    ¡°I think I can show you the way¡­ We just need to float¡­ This way¡­¡± As the words slowly exited her mouth, she was almost amazed at their formulation and vocalization.

    The earthen statue was less surprised than Mevi was, off-handedly stating, ¡°Curious, your development will be further archived.¡±

    Mevi looked down at herself, and what had always been mists of colors now presented her solid form. There were moments when parts of her, the pieces that were used or thought about less, would vanish and return to their misty form but for the most part she was whole again. It was almost as if she had fully awoken, and was returned to Kalesi¡¯s household apartment, if not for the strangely liquid state of the walls and world. When Mevi focused on an object it could solidify to a perfect memory but if she focused less the edges of her vision, or less remembered items, would shift and change like a floating liquid suspended in space. She could almost be fooled into the hope that she was awake, but the presence of the crumbling stone man, which followed her like a looming shadow, continued to prove she was still in a wakeless world. Said statue roamed close to Mevi, but investigated the terrain intently. Mevi thought he might know what was happening, the space she could once understand with her expanded consciousness suddenly became restricted to her dream body. The statue turned to face Mevi, and studied her face before speaking, ¡°I can no longer hear your expressions, nor what thoughts you hide within your second mind. You stare at me as if to wonder something, but you must speak.¡±

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    ¡°I am sorry¡­ I am still getting used to this. Do you know what is going on? I thought to take us to where I think my Maige is, but instead we are in my home.¡± replied Mevi.

    ¡°Strange, you seemed to create this realm but it is now outside of your power. I will archive this development. As for your question, if you do not control this realm it must be created from the Maige defending itself. It may know what I am, and try to block me by using your power, but I am only a passenger to you, and cannot directly interfere with this realm.¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what the stony creature meant, but was suddenly afraid. She could no longer control her own dreams? How could something else infect her mind enough to take hold of it, even her daemon could only creep and chase but never control. Suddenly possessed by a fear of powerlessness, Mevi began straining her willpower against the world around her. The terrain shifted, and unfocused, melting into a liquid before erupting, in parts, into mist. Yet as she strained, she felt her body stress under her own command and in the far distance her daemon writhed and screamed in response. Mevi forced herself to take hold of the dream, but her willpower buckled under the mystical pressure that fought against her new ethereal body. The world shifted back to its, mostly, coherent shape. Mevi heard the statue mumble something, probably ¡®I will archive this development.¡¯ but she ignored the entity¡¯s idiosyncrasy. The entity watched silently, with a stone and emotionless face, and then spoke up when Mevi gave up, ¡°If I may make a suggestion: The Maige is attempting to keep you, and me, at bay but can only use what you already have and know. It has likely created a maze of memories to keep you occupied. Our only course, without inflicting permanent damage to your psyche, is to progress deeper into these memories until we reach wherever the Maige hides.¡±

    Mevi hesitated, the creature¡¯s logic seemed to make sense but she was still not entirely sure if she could trust the entity, ¡°I think that makes sense¡­ But what do I call you? I am having trouble knowing what to address you as.¡±

    The realization passed over the entity¡¯s crumbling face as a brief moment before returning to its stony expression, ¡°Indeed. You may call me Odion. Now I, again, suggest we make haste.¡±

    The strange entity was named Odion, Mevi wasn¡¯t sure why it having a name at all surprised her. Its physical form, at least within her dream, was so far from a coherent human that she thought it might have some vague title or claim no name at all. Odion studied her carefully, as Mevi marveled to herself about its strangeness. Regardless, Mevi turned and began formally entering her home. The layout was identical to how she remembered it, and as she progressed into the main parlor, Mevi felt drawn down the hallway. Almost as if she was being directed by some unseen guide, Mevi followed the sensation past Kalesi¡¯s room and into her own.

    Mevi opened the door to her room, and as if passing through a thick wall of fog she exited her apartment and entered onto a new landscape. With Odion following behind, Mevi found herself in the familiar hallway of the Unending Spirit; the same ship that was owned and commanded by the dreadful Magi Falcier. Odion nodded to himself, as if he recognized the location, but Mevi wasn¡¯t sure where exactly they were. She only knew, by the coal-black sleek walls, that she was on the ship that transported her to a new life.

    Deciding that exploration was the only way forward, Mevi began walking down the hallway and hoped it was a good direction. As the two of them traveled the dream seemed to quiver and blur in places. ¡°Interesting, the dream maze seems to dematerialize somewhat in areas of presumed vague memory. I will further archive this.¡± remarked Odion. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if that was correct, but she did recall often staring at the ground out of nervousness and fear so perhaps Odion¡¯s assumption made sense. Just as Mevi began to feel completely lost, one of the strange doors opened next to her. The creeping passageway melted away from itself, pulling back as if the metal was a type of muscle retracting into itself. On the other side Mevi saw the room where she was brought into this new and strange world. The walls lined with strange capsules, ordained with gold and silver, bubbling blue liquid seemed to boil inside the human containers. Inside each capsule was a person with the signature white hair and fair complexion of her people. Mevi searched the decorated tanks slowly, investigating each one carefully, but they all contained sets of unfamiliar faces. Until she arrived at the center, where a taller than most capsule loomed high. Inside she saw a face that was indisputably recognizable, it was her own.

    As Mevi confirmed her own body was inside one of the alien capsules, she suddenly felt her spirit ripped from her old form and into the gold and silver prison. Her eyes shot open, panicked and scared, she was suddenly submerged under the strange blue liquid, and a dark tint on the glass prevented her from seeing details outside. Mevi struggled to wail against the glass, to break free, but her arms and legs were bound by strong chains. Deformed shapes of people stood outside her suddenly small confines. The walls pushed tightly against her, almost crushing her in the claustrophobic space. Voices shared unknown words and sounds just beyond the glass barrier. Mevi begged for one of them to notice her plight, to take some hint that she was awake and ready to be released. She shook and thrashed against the chains that bound her to the small space, hoping that someone could free her, if she could only show that she wasn¡¯t asleep. Then she remembered, Kalesi had set her free. Mevi searched the deformed shapes hunting for some hint of Kalesi¡¯s fox-red hair, which stood out against most crowds.

    As Mevi continued to struggle against the bindings, her panic only grew. Some of the formless people outside approached her capsule, only to watch briefly then leave the circular room. One after the other the room, slowly, was removed of any figures mimicking humanoid shape. Then, after Mevi began to give up hope of anyone returning, the door opposite her pod opened wide. From the opening a figure stepped into the room, red hovered around its head like falling leaves billowing in the wind. Its form was not entirely functional, and what little of it Mevi could see was blurred by the tinted glass and blue liquid. As the new entity approached, it stopped near Mevi¡¯s container to interact with something. Mevi knew this was Kalesi, she had somehow pierced her dreams to save her. Mevi could rest peacefully, she would soon escape the tight confinements.

    As if to answer Mevi¡¯s prayer for release, the upward-swinging door to her small prison opened suddenly. Her bindings were cut as the door opened, and Mevi fell down to the metallic floor. Looking up, hoping to see her savior was Kalesi, the horrible form of her kidnapper stood. With spiraling mists of blood and terror orbiting his head, the Magi Falcier loomed over her with a smile made of shadow and eyes ready to consume her soul. His body was made of insects and dead flesh, writhing in a terrible horror as his gore and body dripped down onto Mevi, and the floor. Looming closer the form of Falcier grew to eclipse what light was ambient in the room, leaving his dark shadow cast over her that threatened to devour her whole. Just as the dreadful form of Falcier began to descend, some small part of Mevi¡¯s mind screamed to fight the plagued monster. Mevi channeled what little rebellion hid within her, and summed a word to defeat Falcier¡¯s echo. A shouted command, in an eldritch language, caused the once-terror to disintegrate into dark dust at her feet.

    Mevi was almost surprised that she defeated the echo of her worst memory, and looked around herself. Behind her, standing just to the side of her once-prison capsule pod, was Odion and his earthy and crumbling statue form. The statue seemed equally surprised to see the effect of Mevi¡¯s word, inquisitively asking, ¡°Very intriguing, how did you know to use the word in such a way? In what place did you learn the Magik Speak? I must archive this, if you know any other words please elaborate.¡±

    Mevi was astonished with her own ability as well, ¡°I am not sure. I just spoke something that I was reminded of, and Lord Falcier was killed¡­ Oh no! I hope you won¡¯t tell anyone I did this, I don¡¯t know how it would affect Kalesi!¡±

    ¡°Worry not, this version of Falcier was barely an echo of a memory, a fragment of some small percentage of himself he showed you. I will, however, archive your continued confusion between reality and this realm.¡±

    Mevi realized that Odion was correct, and became almost bashful, but before she could respond the world began to crumble and change around her. As she fought to catch herself, and maintain what little understanding of her surroundings she had, Mevi accidentally fell onto Odion to catch herself. To her surprise, the stalwart statue held her willingly as she stabilized herself. With Mevi holding onto Odion¡¯s side, the two descended into a new memory. One of bright light and great noises.

    Mevi was put into her first memory of the City of Light. The overwhelming dazzle and brilliance blinded by infinite colors, while echoing noises of enormous magnitude pounded against every surface in an attempt to reach her ears and deafen them. The great city sprawled before them, thousands of creatures hurried up and down the street as they pushed and clawed past them. It became a boon that Mevi had held onto Odion for support, the churning masses seemed to tear and grab at her as if to sweep her away into places unknown. Odion¡¯s large, and concrete, frame broke the tide of creatures as they passed over the two while Mevi retrieved her barings.

    Mevi was stunned by the glory, and size, of the dream city. Even after the length of time she had spent within its real domain, Mevi could not even begin to get used to the bustling ecumenopolis within the Barge. As Mevi looked out across the crowd, something seemed to diminish the bright glory that always shone greatly across the city. Some darkened shroud faraway clouded the amazement of the city¡¯s expanse. Mevi looked to Odion, she had no idea what was going on and he had been shown to be some kind of authority. Odion was investigating the horizon intensely, looking far in the direction Mevi had sensed the darkness. ¡°Odion,  what do we do now? I can¡¯t understand what is happening, even if these are my memories they aren¡¯t playing out the same as they should.¡± asked Mevi.

    It took a moment for Odion to quantify a replay, his unblinking eyes watched the distance with a studied gaze, ¡°Interesting. I will archive your skewed perception of the city. Regardless, it seems you are being placed into memories you find difficult to face. It is my assumption that you must seek out the controller of these dreams, and relive your memories so as to escape them.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? In my last memory Falcier came to me, and he didn¡¯t do that before.¡±

    ¡°I can only give assumptions based on what I know, and until we investigate further I know very little of the inner workings of your mind. It may have been an attempt to permanently dissuade you from further exploration, or it may have been a forgotten memory that was skewed. Even some memories, within mortals, tend to become diluted and mix several memories into a singular, inaccurate, memory overtime. Especially if under duress as you probably were.¡±

    Mevi processed the statue¡¯s words. It made some sense, she thought, but also no sense at all. Her memories were mixing together? Or she had memories she forgot and were coming back to the surface? Either idea had equally terrifying insinuations. Facing her own dread, on the other hand, was something she might be incapable of doing. Her summoning some power within to dispel the echo of Falcier was almost certainly a fluke. Mevi couldn¡¯t even remember the word she had said, or how she had summoned it to her mind. It was as if someone else had given it to her, and she only borrowed the idea for a short time.

    As Mevi debated the situation, and dreaded the path forward, a sudden pull forced her forward. The same sense she held before, that told her to go forward into the dream, but much stronger this time. It directed her to continue, and gave the road she needed to follow. Flowing with the foot traffic, Mevi continued up the road towards the great golden walls that were the interior of the Barge. Odion followed close behind, staying within arm¡¯s reach at all times, seemingly unfazed by the bustling bodies that slowed Mevi¡¯s progress greatly. Mevi didn¡¯t know where she was being taken, but knew she had to reach the end of this test. Her daemon called to her, and more than that her consciousness was at stake. Mevi needed to see Kalesi again, and to do that she had to fight against these dreadful memories. To be with and protect Kalesi, nothing was going to stop her.

 Chapter 24: Memories and Freedom, Part 2

    Mevi allowed herself to be led by the unknown pull. It was as if she both knew where to go but didn¡¯t. Her legs, it seemed, were of the opinion of knowing where to go without her thought¡¯s consent. Dragging herself further into the crowd, approaching the glimmering hull of the Barge¡¯s edge, Mevi and Odion approached the far reaches of the dream-city. Where structure and architecture began to bend and intertwine with the ground and walls, leading to an unknown depth beneath.

    The entrance to the City of Light seemed to be accurate to her distant memory; a wide and unknowably tall archway, jeweled with icons and inscriptions written in glowing colors of all types. The height of said archway was likely taller than the great barrier that surrounded the refuge on Mevi¡¯s home moon. Even with hundreds of souls passing under the archway, the ease of navigation was remarkably lightened. More creatures desired to enter the main road than leave, and comparably, few creatures wandered the great corridor. Light shone from seemingly every surface despite no obvious illuminants.

    Mevi continued to push through the crowd, while Odion followed effortlessly behind her. The statue-man would occasionally mumble to himself as he seemed very interested in studying the subtle facets of Mevi¡¯s dream. The stone-faced, and stone-willed, man followed Mevi without questions or loud observations. It felt, even, that he hadn¡¯t spoken in a while as he studied the immaculate terrain they traversed past. As Mevi began to formulate some question for the man, the dream opened from the unending corridor to a great hall of admittance. The large foyer was strangely empty, compared to Mevi¡¯s memory of the place. A line of golden-clad sentinels watched the opposite wall, where ingress tubes were presumed to connect to various docked vessel¡¯s Slipaways. Their backs were turned, and Mevi looked at the empty expanse with some growing anxiety.

    The golden warriors stood tall, even when standing so far away, and the looming presence pressured Mevi¡¯s will to begin submitting. The stalwart guardians were almost more intimidating while facing away, Mevi could not see their face masks and could not hope to spy some spec of humanity within the dark slits of their helm. They were like autonomous constructs, who judged impartially and delt their skewed justice without hesitation. The memory, Mevi almost forgot, began to slowly play out. The ingress tubes, opened to allow their Slipaway¡¯s contents to flow outwards. Dark shrouds seemed to pour out of the opened gateway, and their source followed in an uneasy unison. Stepping out at nearly the same time, 12 god-like figures walked into the open space. Despite a dark shroud passing forward before their exit, each shone with a brilliance not unlike Lord Falcier¡¯s. The great show of light, color, and magnificence seemed to be a rivalry between the glowing figures. Despite their show, Mevi couldn¡¯t comprehend any figure except Magi Falcier. The others were blurred, and what details were obvious were only the gleaming spectrum of colors around them, yet even the colors were dimmed and dull to an almost monochrome. It seemed as if Mevi¡¯s memory was incomplete, and missing vital portions of some significance. Odion¡¯s voice startled Mevi, as she was intently terrified of the approaching figures, ¡°Interesting. Your Maige seems capable of fabricating scenarios you could not possibly imagine. But a Magi, whose brilliance was not directly seen, is out of its capabilities. I will archive this.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s heart raced after the sudden opinion, but gathering herself she asked, ¡°Odion, can you tell what here we need to accomplish to progress? I wasn¡¯t even here when these events happened.¡±

    ¡°I cannot know for certain without further study. It must include you, or else the dream would be impossible.¡±

    With the lack of a true answer, Mevi continued to watch the dream play out. As the twelve Magi walked, they one-by-one disappeared as if disintegrating into the air. The area was left with an almost eerie quiet, and the bright brilliance that continued to shine seemed less without the display from the competing Magi. With the Magi gone, there were a few short moments of quiet, but soon acolytes poured from their Slipaways and out onto the foyer floor. Dressed in their varied colors, combined into twisting patterns or unique settings, the curious children were held back with the vocal leash of their superiors. As the bulk of the acolytes were entered onto the Barge, Mevi felt a sudden pull again. From a far exit, Mevi felt something calling to her from within the hidden interior. Then she walked out onto the foyer floor, now suddenly in another version of herself standing beside a past Kalesi.

    Mevi was suddenly thrust into her past, forced back into a body that was once hers. Her senses were disarmed as the sudden change was processed, almost falling to the ground as she stumbled on her feet. Mevi almost tripped over the long coattails of her old robes, the elegant orange streaming out from under a divine white. A noble¡¯s dress in every sense of the word, but for the strange emphasis on being travel-ready. The warmth she forgot from the blue undercoat was pleasant, and somehow made her feel more resilient than she actually was when she previously wore it. But the blue cloth that was draped over her shoulders covered only parts of the dress, and seemed to ruin most of its elegance. Kalesi looked down, watching intently as Mevi stumbled and then investigated herself. As Mevi looked up to her mentor, she was almost startled. Kalesi¡¯s mask was greatly blurred, blending with the air in parts and dripping into the dreamlike liquid that hung around unknown objects. Yet both Kalesi and her mask appeared fuzzy, out of focus and melting into the dream. Kalesi said something, but the words were muffled and mixed into incoherent speech. Looking around herself, Mevi searched for Odion for an explanation. As Mevi searched, she couldn¡¯t find her only stable companion. As Mevi watched helplessly, Kalesi continued to talk as if the dream continued like normal, but the tall woman slowly melted into the scenery until nothing remained.

    Mevi was now alone, all that remained were the blurred faces of passing unknowns or masked onlookers. What few stable figures she held onto were gone, and Mevi felt trapped. As she began to fall into the dread, Mevi felt a stirring from her backpack. Something was moving, and she had almost completely forgotten the backpack was even there. Without any other clues on what to do, Mevi took off her backpack to investigate the clatter that shook the inside of it. As she placed the bag onto the ground, and reached to open it, a small creature leaped out of a crack in the fabric lid. The creature was fast, and it darted out of the opening and scrambled on the ground falling about itself. The thing seemed to be her stuffed animal, a small rodent-like creature that was crudely crafted in design of what Mevi had seen in old texts. Her once-inanimate companion was suddenly alive, and it spun about on its back to right itself on the polished marble floor.

    The agile creature looked nothing like how Mevi remembered her stuffed companion; it was black as shadow and held gleaming ruby eyes. Then Mevi noticed something out of place, in its mouth a dull orange glow illuminated past its clenched teeth. As the creature stabilized itself and looked up at Mevi, it froze as it was stunned in some kind of fear, then she saw what was in its mouth. Clenched tightly in the creature¡¯s wicked teeth was Mevi¡¯s dearest treasure, it had stolen Mevi¡¯s golden gemstone! Once Mevi noticed the gemstone she felt a voice yell within her ¡°Catch that spirit!¡± Before she could realize what was the right choice, the small shadow rodent began darting away from the Slipaway tunnels and towards the golden sentinels. Abandoning her backpack, Mevi threw herself towards the rodent and began to give chase as it escaped her reach.

    Mevi began her pursuit of the escaping shadow rodent. Some voice within her urged her to catch it, to snatch away the small gemstone from its clutches. Mevi¡¯s own instincts increased this desire, for some short moments she forgot she was within a dream and only saw that someone was stealing her glowing treasure. The gemstone seemed to yell out a voiceless call to be saved, glowing brighter when the rodent might escape farther, so as to allow Mevi to follow its desperate call. Mevi could keep a stable pace with the rodent, as the creature darted back and forth to avoid stomping feet. Yet as Mevi approached the golden Sentinels, the fear they struck into her returned in full force. Despite the towering dread, clad in golden regalia, Mevi struck past the gathering lines of people to rush past their blockade and pursue the small rodent. Darting past, and under, the gathered queue of blurred faces a Sentinel reached out to stop Mevi. In her desperate fear, both of losing the glowing treasure and of the Sentinel¡¯s emanating intimidation, Mevi found herself bringing forth another word from unknown places. From within her, just as the Sentinel would have grabbed her, Mevi shouted in an unknown language and this echoing power reverberated across the entire platform. Every entity within sight stopped moving completely, total silence gripped the area where loud murmuring once dominated. Taking no time to bask in her sudden power, Mevi darted past the reaching golden hand now frozen in the air. Searching desperately for the shadow rodent Mevi saw it. The creature was struggling, some of its legs were frozen and spasming in resistance to Mevi''s powerful command. Only two of its legs worked enough to attempt to pull its body away, but even its working limbs seemed crippled by shaking. Mevi quickly approached the rodent, and grasped it tightly.

    With the shadow rodent in hand, Mevi looked down at the thing¡¯s squirming face. Its ruby eyes were gleaming in the bright light, almost producing a glow of their own. It struggled in vain against Mevi¡¯s grasp but managed to keep its mouth tightly shut. Suddenly, from behind her, Mevi heard Odion¡¯s voice, ¡°Interesting, your Maige attempted to quarantine me when you were being processed into a new dream. I will archive its new abilities. Now, retrieve the star fragment, I must study it for archival.¡± Mevi turned to Odion, he was slowly materializing behind her, and was growing like a stone plant back to his normal stature.

    ¡°Wait, what happened? You disappeared and the dream seemed to¡­ fall apart.¡± asked Mevi.

    ¡°Indeed, the portion of my essence that follows you was stolen away and trapped for a time. Your Maige seemed to be attempting a siphon of my power, but you managed to capture this dream¡¯s guardian. With only minor prompting, I archived your quick reaction time as you chased the small creature.¡±

    Mevi watched as Odion¡¯s body grew back to his normal state, trying to understand what exactly happened, ¡°I am¡­ I think I am confused. Something is making things blur, and the memory became wrong.¡±

    Odion thought for a moment, only now studying the environment around them, ¡°Yes. This dream in particular seems unstable. Every part of it, except for that.¡± Odion pointed past the shadow rodent, which was now slowly dematerializing in Mevi¡¯s hands, and directed at the glowing gemstone.

    The gemstone was the only thing, beyond Mevi and Odion, that maintained a consistently stable form. Even compared to the two dreamers, the gemstone seemed to emanate such power that it forced a stability around itself. Mevi stared into the glowing rock, the rodent quickly melted away in the warm light. Mevi then pried the stone from the creature¡¯s mouth, now holding her small treasure properly once again. It felt like an eternity had passed since she even recalled her small treasure. So much had taken place, she never found any real moments to release it and shed its playful light. Now, being embraced once more by its dreaming master, the glowing stone shone a joyous light that seemed to almost strengthen Mevi¡¯s own mood. Odion studied the gemstone from a distance, having not moved closer but peering at it without pause or interruption. Neither had noticed when the dream began to fade and change once more, until the world around them lost all golden hue and instead changed to pitch dark. The only source of light came from the gemstone itself, and the two seemed to be within a dark cave of some kind.

    Odion first managed to tear his gaze away from the stone, Mevi followed after she noticed him turning to look at their new surroundings. The two had been transported to a new dream, one within an unfamiliar cavern. Darkness hung around every object, and shrouded every direction. Even the glowing light seemed dim in the oppressive mists of pitch. Mevi didn¡¯t recognize the place, and Odion didn¡¯t speak any recognition, but something felt wrong. The other dreams always felt real in some way. Mevi could fool herself into believing she might actually be awake, but some unnatural air hung in this new dream. It provoked Mevi¡¯s senses, causing her hair to stand on end and perception to heighten. She was acutely aware of every incorrect feature, drifting mass, melted dream, and inconsistency, but how did she know things were wrong? In some part of her, there was a knowledge of this place that she couldn¡¯t place, and she knew something was here. Some presence lurked in the shadows, threatening her silently and telling her instincts to run away. It was only until Mevi heard a loud metallic thumping in the distance did she realize where the feeling came from.

    To her left, within the dark void around her, a hard thumping jog echoed in the distance. It approached slowly, increasing in speed as it closed the distance between them. As the sound became almost deafening Mevi¡¯s senses told her to run, but for some reason she couldn¡¯t. Some part of her was so afraid that she was frozen in place. While Mevi looked on with horror at the approaching sound, Odion watched quietly with a calm disposition. As the sound grew, and approached so loud it was echoing only meters in front of her, Mevi¡¯s mind demanded to know where or what this sound came from. Directly in front of her, the loud vibrations sounded in a cacophony of anger and frustration. Whatever produced the sound was right in front of her, and it passed over her, crashing and attacking the area around them. It was invisible, or possibly not even there at all. Odion mumbled too quietly for Mevi to hear his words, the loud crashing echoed around them in an almost crazed manner.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Mevi held tight her glowing light, and searched for some hint or clue to what was going on. The walls, that she could see in the dim illumination, were made of something. But Mevi could not tell what, the cavern was blurred and undetailed as if the memory was entirely missing. Approaching the walls, a hallway led off in a new direction and its material changed into some other wrong representation. The walls, floor, and even occasional rocks were all wrong or entirely incomprehensible. The loud vibrating echos seemed, mostly, correct to what she thought was right. But she knew some great and powerful source should be behind such thunderous noises, yet there was nothing. As Mevi stared in confusion, attempting to process anything as whole, Odion spoke up calmly, ¡°This is as I expected from what knowledge is within the archives. Now, you must escape us from here, speak a word to dispel the entity around us.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? There is only loud noise, there is nothing here.¡± Mevi had to yell to make herself heard.

    ¡°The sound itself is the entity that should be defeated, you must dispel it in whatever way you know how.¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t understand, her other attempts thus far had been flukes. She had spoken some power in the heat of the moment, within some great panic. She didn¡¯t know how to forcefully summon power that wasn¡¯t channeled by her Maige. Regardless, Mevi attempted to summon some idea of power as Odion watched expectantly. Closing her eyes, and basking in the dream¡¯s darkness, Mevi held out a hand and attempted to give a command, ¡°Umm, stop! Go away!¡±

    Odion did¡¯t seem impressed, ¡°Wrong, the archives have recorded at least two successful attempts at using Magik. You must summon the power, not just speak words.¡±

    Mevi was frustrated, the loudness around her was beginning to become annoying and she wanted it gone, ¡°But i¡¯ve never done this on purpose!¡±

    ¡°Incorrect. You could not have summoned Magik by accident, only with deliberate choice could you have created an effect so potent.¡±

    Mevi was more frustrated now. Odion didn¡¯t seem to ever offer real advice, or even any type of help, only watching and judging her actions. She felt herself becoming angry, some element around her was infuriating. The cavern walls, the strange piles of nondescript rocks, and the loud noise assaulting her senses. She was furious, it threatened to overwhelm her common sense. Then she thought of something, what if her common sense held her back? In the moments where she produced her power, it was during panic and chaos. Her mind had little input on her actions, her instincts entirely took over her actions. She had felt herself moved by some unnatural force several times. It couldn¡¯t possibly be that easy, but Mevi decided to try whatever she could to rid herself of the infuriating dream around her.

    Focusing on nothing, becoming drowned in the cacophonous noise, Mevi let herself bathe in her own raw emotion. Whatever instinct within her seemed to hold answers beyond her limited ken. Her mind was clouded by the stimulus around her, but Mevi didn¡¯t attempt to focus on anything. Her understanding was drawing some conclusion without her knowledge, and soon a feeling began to bubble within her. As the noise reached a crescendo, so did Mevi¡¯s great fury of the lost memory. With her anger at its height, Mevi shouted a similarly alien word as before. Suddenly there was silence. The dream entirely stopped, and the terrain paused in its ethereal shifting.

    As soon as the word left her mouth, the contents of its pronunciation disappeared with it. Mevi was surprised at her fast use of the strange power. Odion watched, and almost seemed proud or glad of the outcome. The feeling, and implementation, of this new power was entirely foreign to her. The Maige she used was much more simple, she could make a conscious choice of her desire and it reacted in kind. Yet maybe that was why it bled so much vitality from her; it was a forced power instead of a natural one. As Mevi pondered her newest oddness, the dream began to melt away. She knew, somehow, this would be the final test.

    Mevi watched the terrain melt and disappear, and as it did her feet lost stability, and she fell. The earth was soft, and she was absorbed into it in an instant. She didn¡¯t even have a chance to panic or call out before she was submerged into the dark substance. Falling through the world, the dream became thick with moisture and its temperature was oppressive. The darkness around her continued to grow in power, what small light came from her gemstone was almost entirely snuffed out. Then, suddenly, Mevi felt herself thrust out of the darkness. Clattering onto a metallic floor, Mevi scrambled to right herself and gain some amount of awareness. The temperature became normal again, as far as she could tell, but now a small light illuminated the room around her. Mevi was inside a metallic chamber, bolted and bound with metal reinforcement fastened against the walls. A single door stood as the only descriptive feature.

    Mevi was confused, yet another dream she couldn¡¯t possibly have witnessed. She looked around for the source of the light in the small room, but couldn¡¯t identify its origin. As she investigated the room, she noticed something strange. Her body seemed small. Smaller than she recalled she should be, tiny almost, and she wore rags and tight bindings. Metal chains hung from her wrists, but clattered without being attached to anything as the stability of their image dissipated. A loud banging came from the door, and as she instinctively shrinked back against the farthest wall, the room was slowly opened.

    Stepping inside the room was a woman, wearing a black coat that might¡¯ve resembled one used in a lab. The woman held a cautious gaze, and her hair was pure silver and hung past her hips in wavy curls. She spoke, but the words were muffled and strange. She knew this person, but Mevi couldn''t identify who they were or what exactly she truly looked like. As Mevi didn¡¯t respond the woman became disappointed, and she called something behind herself and out the doorway. In the moment directly after she spoke Mevi felt a searing pain shoot up her legs and throughout her entire body. An excruciating buzz overwhelmed her senses, causing her body to spasm and crash into itself violently as it attempted to understand what was happening. Without knowing what was going on, Mevi screamed at the impossible pain. Like a reaction to her yell, the pain suddenly stopped but her body continued to spasm as it expelled the overwhelming stimulus. Mevi felt herself losing consciousness, confused and scared she closed her eyes to hide as much to give into sleep.

    As Mevi¡¯s eyes opened a moment later, she was in an entirely new situation. Strapped to a table, Mevi was restrained in a similar sterile room as before. Here, however, Mevi had been thrust onto a table, and felt a continuous numbness that coursed in her body. Cold vibrations echoed in her skin and body, a tingling feeling that occurred where one couldn¡¯t feel anything at all. Concerned, and confused, Mevi tried to strain her head to see more of the room. She could barely see the metal walls and parts of the bare floor. As she struggled, some new door opened and several blurry figures entered. Holding strange devices of unknown torture, and wearing the same black coats as the woman before, Mevi writhed against what bondings held her against the table in an attempt to escape. It didn¡¯t help as the figures loomed over her, discussing something in unknown words and hushed tones. Mevi saw as a new figure entered the room, wielding some wicked type of knife. Mevi panicked with the obvious danger, but the others held her tight to the table. She felt something course into her numb arm, had she been injected with something? Was that why she felt numb, were they putting chemicals into her body? As the new sensation coursed into her, her mind blanked again into unconsciousness.

    Awakening later, Mevi was in a comfortable chair. Confused, and terrified of the unknown figures, Mevi began to search her surroundings. It was a familiar space. Tall bookshelves, scarce decorations, a warm glow like a firelight, and comfortable seats styled after the old texts. As she looked around herself, concerned what was happening, a figure entered the room. To her complete surprise, it was her grandfather. He was frustrated, almost angry, but as he fully came into view he composed himself. Sitting down at a seat opposite her own, Mevi¡¯s grandfather spoke as if to himself, ¡°Oh what waste. Her brain is scrambled and nothing even came from it¡­ I doubt you even know what I am saying.¡± His voice seemed more full than she remembered, it was less old and held more command despite his calm demeanor.

    Mevi did understand him, but as she tried to find words to speak her voice only croaked and cracked.

    ¡°Oh indeed? Well I appreciate the company regardless of the quality of conversation. What waste indeed¡­¡±

    A noise sounded from further into the abode, past the furniture and in one of the doors that almost hid behind the large bookshelves. Mevi felt some sudden fear at the new approaching presence, but wasn¡¯t sure why.

    Mevi¡¯s grandfather was fast to react, ¡°Quick now! Back to your room, before your grandmother sees you. I will find texts with pictures for you at a later time.¡±

    Mevi felt her legs racing her away and out the still open door. As she exited the space she heard a door open from within. Mevi hid against the tall hallway wall, its length was thankfully empty of any of her relatives. As the new presence entered, a voice declared in a elderly feminine tone, ¡°Meanar, if I find another datapad left in the bedsheets, I will have your head.¡± The voice paused as if distracted by something, and began anew, ¡°Did you house that thing in here while I was asleep? You¡¯ve given that cretin enough charity as it is, it will not enter any space I am to live in. Do you understand me? It is useless already, if it made our house filthy it would be less than useless.¡±

    ¡°Yes of course, I was just checking up on her.¡± Mevi¡¯s grandfather seemed defeated, what little youth and command seemed to drain from him quickly.

    ¡°That thing is not one of ours. It is pointless to treat it as such. It exists to serve a single purpose.¡±

    Mevi was conflicted, but invested in the voices of her grandparents. Yet as their conversation might continue, Mevi heard another door open somewhere within the hallway. Her years-trained instinct had her sprint away from the spot and towards her small bedroom. Before any other noise was heard, she had crossed the distance and closed the door of her room behind herself. She was back in her own room, her original room before Kalesi. The dream seemed to be from some long time ago, there was no bed or furniture. She had no bucket or mop, even her small rodent stuffed animal wasn¡¯t where it might¡¯ve been. Only a rough blanket, with the beginnings of sewn flowers, laid on the ground.

    As Mevi looked at her old room, a new presence began to shape in the dark space. No light reached into the small closet-turned bedroom, it wasn¡¯t meant to be lived in. And within this darkness, shadowy hallucinations haunted her. Dark creatures loomed around her, and sprang at her with vicious attacks. Mevi¡¯s memories of the horrible times when she forgot to use her gemstone flooded back. She desperately searched for her small gemstone, frantically throwing her blanket and scraps of material across the room at her violent specters. Her golden treasure wasn¡¯t found, the fragment of hope that held her life together in such dark times didn¡¯t exist. Mevi searched for herself, she had it in the dreams before, and refused to acknowledge the reality around her. Mevi was being attacked, thrown, and jostled by the dark entities that haunted her nightmares. They were let loose in these days, haunting her while awake and also stalking her dreams. As one dark entity approached, Mevi gave up her search. The creature reached down, and the fear of it erupted out of her in a glorious display. Refusing to be reminded of her dreadful nightmares, who now seemed to resemble the dark-robed figures of her dreams, Mevi forced some power within herself to take root. She summoned her instinct, in this moment she needed to defend herself and this entity posed a learned threat more than any other she had witnessed. The power she drew out of herself began to bubble up, but instead of a word banishing the creatures, Mevi felt something catch in her throat. The reaction gave the shadows pause, and then Mevi felt the power inside of her exit violently through blood and bile. Within the expulsion, shone a bright brilliance. It was, somehow, her gemstone that violently exited her to expunge the daemons haunting her.

    As Mevi knelt to pick up the small fragment of golden gemstone, the dream fell away. Mevi was left, in a dark expanse, where a shining white seal held itself over a writhing dark pit. Three locks kept the dark pit at bay, it confined and controlled the misting shadow that attempted to seep out and into Mevi¡¯s dream world. The bright chains dug into the dark expanse below, and feverishly absorbed essence from the weakened daemon. It seemed almost to be dying, the daemon was weak and lethargic. The entity that once haunted Mevi¡¯s dreams was now held firmly in check, and being killed, by three bright locks. The locks, presumed to be her Maige, shuddered and quaked under the stress of the dark pit. As Mevi approached the edge, the locks began to shake violently, and Mevi could feel her physical body dying with the dark essence. As her daemon was slain, so was she it seemed. From everywhere and nowhere, Odion called out to Mevi, ¡°You must destroy your Maige. I would regret to archive your death after so much progress.¡±

    Mevi understood what she had to do. In some strange way she was filled with a new clarity. Reaching into her pocket, Mevi produced a small stone. The stone held only two watchful eyes that were dotted with green moss. Mevi knew this object was what little power Odion left her, and she allowed the power into herself. Crushing the stone, and being filled with an overwhelming sense of understanding, Mevi commanded her Maige to break. In a single moment, with words unknown and unheard, the maige shattered into sparks and dust. The dark daemon, which was once confined to a small space, erupted like a volcano out of the pit. The dark wave flowed out and washed over Mevi harmlessly. As the pit voided what terror was once held within, an empty chasm stretched infinitely down. It was completely empty, save for a single glowing power.

    At the bottom of a bottomless pit, there laid a golden power. Some sleeping entity that was source to the daemon¡¯s conception. The power shone with an orange, warm, light that was familiar and comforting. From her infinitely tall vantage, Mevi looked down at the source that was within her deepest darkness, and it was cracked. Some small part of it was chipped away and missing. Some small gemstone was lost away from its original body.

    Mevi looked down to the golden gemstone still in her hand. She knew what she should do, but wasn¡¯t sure if she had the strength to do it. To repair the core inside of herself, by sacrificing her earliest friend. Her precious treasure needed to fix what was broken, and she knew it was the right thing to do. Dropping the gemstone into the pit, the gleaming spec fell into the deep darkness until it collided with the golden orb deep within herself. The two orbited each other, and combined in an amazing display of color and radiance. Mevi felt stronger, full even, like she had taken in a great broth that warmed her against all cold. She knew, somehow, that her smallest treasure would no longer shine when she found it again. Yet with the added wholeness, Mevi felt confidence in her abandonment of the past and decision to go forward. She would do this, because Kalesi would fill what was lost.

    As the golden light was revealed and empowered, so was the construct within Mevi¡¯s mind destroyed. The mental walls, barriers, and traps were washed away by an angry tide of daemon¡¯s wrath. Every trace of the Maige was erased and expelled into the deep cosmos within the dream-scape. Her mind was open to her again, and her lucid power returned fully to her control once again. As her mind was renewed, she felt her body awakening from its deep slumber. She would awaken soon, and she would find Kalesi. Her desire to be with her mentor drove her, and it only grew with her determination to escape her comatose state. Mevi was coming, and would make things right once more.

 Chapter 25: A Promise Made

    Mevi awoke almost instantly. Shooting up from a lying position, her body groaned in response to the sudden movement. She ached and her limbs were stiff, but she was awake once again. The amount of time that had passed was unknown, and her surroundings were equally unknown. As seemed normal with her more lucid dreams, it took several moments of disorientation before past memories from her dream-scape began trickling back. As her mind caught up with the wakefulness, her instincts told her to begin investigating her unknown surroundings.

    Mevi was inside of a large room, strange devices and tools lined the walls and stretched overhead with peculiar connectors or large pipes. Some of the unknown equipment escaped the walls and divided the room into sections with their pure bulk. Few of the walls were noticeable, as the room was almost entirely covered in odd devices and alien apparatus. The few walls visible looked to be made of a strong white marble, or some other similar substance, and were reinforced with overlapping bolts of metal. The odd contraptions whirred and buzzed around her, tiny devices clattered in hidden places of this strange lab. As she looked around, and attempted to understand her new environment, she heard a mechanical skittering behind her. Jumping at the sound, Mevi turned to face the sound, and there on the floor looked to be a spider-like metal creature.

    Made from polished brass, a small spider the size of her fist skittered across the floor only to stop less than a meter away as it noticed Mevi¡¯s gaze. The creature remained paused, as if pretending to not be animated at all, until its willpower caved and some fear took over instead. The strange thing¡¯s confidence fled, and its legs followed, as the brass spider raced away into the jungle of metal and equipment. Mevi was in a realm that seemed truly alien, even to what she had experienced so far.

    As the creature fully escaped from sight Mevi could hear other types of skittering that had gone unnoticed among the cacophony of mechanical noises. Still confused after so long asleep, Mevi¡¯s attention was easily stolen by movement and noises. Darting creatures shined with finely polished metal as they sped in and out of view. Several creatures, of various sizes and shapes, ran from one device to another as if operating the strange tools. Other creatures carried items of unknown purpose around the large room to other, hidden, storage places. Like small workers, the constructs tried to rapidly escape Mevi¡¯s gaze while also attempting to complete their assigned tasks. It was almost amusing, to her dreary and confused mind. Mevi¡¯s awareness regenerated quickly, and her common sense began fully returning as it pierced the haze of a long sleep. Her amusement ended, as she realized the many unknowns around her could very well be dangerous.

    Mevi became more acutely aware of her surroundings, and began to properly observe her surroundings without her previous curious mirth. She finally noticed she was sitting atop a cushioned examination table, on the cushion under her was a scattering of glittering dust, accumulating alongside a loose metallic chain and simple blue gloves. A fragment of Mevi¡¯s dream made its impression on her, and she knew this was the remains of her once-Maige and that it was fully destroyed. The memory of her dream-adventure was still mostly foggy, even now, and the exact details melted away as her sleep fatigue slowly dispersed. Yet, even as her smallest memories of the encounter faded, the strong impression of the event seemed branded on her soul. As Mevi focused on the deep impression, and attempted to recall her dream-quest, felt as if there was now a second presence within her; her dread companion had always been present and watching but content to torment during her weakest moments only, but now her daemon seemed almost awake. It seemed grateful. Some strange connection was bonded between the two that Mevi couldn¡¯t completely comprehend. She found herself unconsciously reaching her hand to her heart as if she could somehow feel its cold presence.

    As Mevi bonded with her soul¡¯s daemon, a calm hum began echoing around her. Daring her eyes to the strange equipment, which blocked her vision of most of the lab, the noises sounded like mechanical breathing. Yet the hum came from all around her, and her panic began to overtake reason as she realized she was in a completely foreign, and potentially hostile, situation. As the realization of how endangered she might actually be flooded over her, and the truth of not knowing how she got there set in, a voice came from behind her, ¡°Good, you are awake. I will archive your quick recovery.¡±

    Mevi turned to face the source of the words, recognizing the familiar manner of speech. Behind her, standing as if he had always been there, was an unfamiliar figure. Cloaked in white robes, and bearing a mantle of blue and gold knowledge within arcane scripts, was a figure who bore a radiant nimbus etched with arcane blue scripture. Their mask bore the accumulation of all known knowledge, which animated itself as scrolling archives. The unfamiliar figure was paired with the familiar stern, and almost earthy, voice of her dream-companion, ¡°The archives suggested your potential confusion. To alleviate the haze you are experiencing, I am Odion. The Grand Archivist, Husband of Maphet. I have been commanded to tend to you.¡±

    It took several moments before Mevi mustered any words at all, the being before her could only be a Lord Magi, ¡°My lord! I, um, I apologize for my current state¡­¡± The memory of her companion, and the way she treated him so casually, came back suddenly in a wave of embarrassment.

    ¡°Strange, your reaction was not as the archives suggested. I will amend this. Regardless, dispense with honorifics and hesitation. Supplication is not required for my archival of your condition.¡± The Magi spoke plainly, and didn¡¯t hold the superior tone Mevi had assumed was typical among his kind.

    Mevi processed the new arrival, and the words he spoke. Then it hit her, he had said ¡®Maphet¡¯ was his wife? Kalesi told her, what felt like so long ago, that the Magi who saved her was named that. Looking up at the Magi, trying to hide her embarrassment, the two did look very similar. Both wore white with mixtures of arcane blue scripture, and both seemed to have eccentric personalities. Mevi was almost tempted to ask questions, but hesitated without the proper recourse Kalesi had always provided. Odion waited patiently, his emotions were masked under the vestments of the Magi. Mevi finally built her courage, remembering their almost cordial interactions within her dream, ¡°May I make a comment, Lord Magi?¡±

    ¡°As I mentioned, I do not require engraciation. My archives will benefit from knowing your personality.¡± Declared Odion, with some amount of authority to stress his meaning.

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°Then I will say what I am thinking¡­ You look entirely different than I imagined. I remember you very differently within my dream.¡±

    Odion didn¡¯t seem surprised by her comment, but seemed to tilt his head in curiosity, ¡°That is not what my archives suggested would be at the forefront of your curiosity. Yes, I look different. Within your ¡®dream¡¯, you and I saw each other as a fragment of what our spirits are fathomed as. In this, physical, realm I am dressed in tribute to my wife, Maphet. Just as you are dressed in similar fashion to your mentor, who I believed would be the spearhead of your questions.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s mind was still recovering from the strange fog of a long sleep, but her worry raced back to her as memories of Kalesi¡¯s wounded form, ¡°Kalesi! Odion, can you please take me to her? Where is she?¡±

    Odion straightened and gestured for Mevi to step down from the examination table, ¡°Of course. I was instructed to do this much. You may follow me.¡±

    Mevi quickly climbed down from the table, and Odion was already hovering away from her towards a closed door. The entire room was covered in so much brass, metal, gold, and strange devices that the door was almost camouflaged against the wall. Mevi quickly caught up to her guide, and dream companion, almost tripping over herself as her body was still numb and slowly awakening. As the door opened, light shone in brightly to a degree that almost blinded Mevi. It was only then did she realize how incredibly dark the lab actually was, her heightened vision in the dark had made the room feel naturally lit but in reality there was little to no real light.

    As the two exited the dark lab, and Mevi¡¯s sight returned after the blinding, they began down a hallway. As she recovered, Mevi noticed she was flanked by two silent golden Sentinels that held an arcane blue brand on their chest armor. The Sentinels made no sound, even as their metal boots met the stone floor, and followed Mevi and Odion without comment. The hallway was a simple gray stone floor with marble-white walls. There was light from above, but as she had grown assume she couldn¡¯t find the source of its radiance. Odion moved forward, waiting only a few seconds for Mevi to recover when she would stumble or trip on her sleepy limbs. The Magi¡¯s elegant attire hid most of his body, if any of his true body was even visible at all; the Magi were so alien to Mevi, she could not tell where elegant sewing ended and actual skin began. It was very likely that a Magi never showed their skin, or that their clothes were somehow their bodies, any curious thought seemed just as possible while the Magi seemed to fly over the ground silently.

    The journey was short, and was only a small distance from the lab where Mevi had awoken. As Odion stopped, suddenly, in front of a white-iron door he turned to Mevi with a serious disposition, ¡°Your mentor was wounded. I archived the nature of her injuries and instructed our staff how to tend to her. You are in a delicate state, so maintain your composure and emotions as best you can.¡± Mevi almost made a comment to ask what he meant, or why she needed to maintain composure, but before she could the door opened and Odion entered the doorway. The two Sentinels turned to flank the doorway so as to guard it, and Mevi walked inside carefully.

    The new room was dimly lit, and maintained several consoles near the door with various buttons and devices. Near the open door were three white and blue robed individuals. Their ornate masks were hanging behind their heads like hoods, but still gleamed with a mixture of sky and cloud. As Odion and Mevi entered, the three individuals placed themselves out of the way of the main path, and when they saw Mevi they averted their gaze in an almost shame-filled way. As Odion led Mevi inside, a single large capsule stood at the center of the room. Filled with an unknown green-blue liquid, and housing a single resident. Kalesi.

    Kalesi levitated in the strange liquid, hanging in its center as she bobbed up and down slowly. A line of tubes connected to Kalesi¡¯s mouth and wired to the top of the capsule before disappearing in the technology of the liquid vat. Kalesi¡¯s wound seemed to have stretched farther than even Mevi¡¯s enraged visions assumed. Kalesi was dressed in very little, and her bare skin displayed the char and burns that were produced by the concentrated plasma. In parts, Kalesi¡¯s skin was completely burnt away to show ravaged muscle and bone. As Kalesi slowly spun in the vat of liquid, Mevi beheld the full view of damage caused by such a small weapon. The waregear didn¡¯t seem capable of full protection, and Kalesi¡¯s back was almost entirely burnt with her right shoulder being mostly raw bone.

    The sight of Kalesi brought tears to Mevi¡¯s eyes the moment her injury was even hinted at. She could only have imagined the damage that could bring down Kalesi. She had been so stoic, and unconquerable, that only damage of this degree seemed capable of even pausing the strong woman. Despite Mevi¡¯s delusions of Kalesi¡¯s strength, the evidence levitated right in front of her in a vat of unknown liquid. Yet even as Mevi¡¯s eyes welled, Kalesi¡¯s closed eyelids twitched with activity and her intact limbs flinched occasionally. There was still life inside of the undefeatable woman. Mevi, at some point, had walked to the vat¡¯s edge. She was almost within reach of the large capsule that held Kalesi, only meters away from her touch. The attendants watched with caution and worry, looking to Odion for some kind of command or instruction. Mevi ignored her spectators, and reached out a hand towards the container sustaining Kalesi, and with her mind she could feel the dreaming thoughts of her mentor. Kalesi was still there, slumbering in a deep sleep, and her soul remained intact. Mevi, still with tears in her eyes, turned to face Odion, ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know what to say. Thank you for caring for her¡­ But I don¡¯t know what to do now.¡±

    Odion walked down the short steps of the lab, reaching the main floor that Mevi was about to collapse onto, ¡°My wife has commanded, a beneficial trade. I am to be her messenger as she is away, declaring her claim.¡±

    ¡°What does she want? What could I possibly give in exchange for Kalesi?¡± Mevi struggled to fight back her sobs.

    ¡°You will become her Magi¡¯s Apprentice. You will become entirely, and exclusively, hers. You will submit yourself to her will, and vow your loyalty while in her service. You will trade yourself, for your mentor. So declares the Archivist.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s heart seemed to stop. What kind of declaration was that? How could Mevi possibly be of such value, and wasn¡¯t a Magi¡¯s Apprentice some high rank? Mevi was stunned into silence, and even her tears began to dry from sheer surprise. It took several moments for her to compose herself enough to process the demand. But it took no time at all for Mevi to make her decision. She would do whatever it took to secure Kalesi¡¯s safety, but she held a question regardless. ¡°If I may ask, why? Why could anyone possibly want me?¡± asked Mevi with genuine confusion.

    ¡°You are more than you know. My archives have proven this. What lays dormant within you was witnessed today, and proves my wife¡¯s instinct to me. Her knowledge is boundless, and her power is unequal in the realm of foresight. If she says you are valuable, I and her followers know this as fact.¡±

    ¡°But what if I am not what she hopes? What would happen to Kalesi?¡±

    Authority seeps from every word as Odion declares his promise, ¡°Her contract is absolute. She asks for your everything. For your complete loyalty until your death, or her release of you. In no words does she declare failure, and so if you bind yourself to her; your contract is absolute, and will be fulfilled.¡±

    Mevi already knew her decision. There was no decision to make. For her mentor¡¯s safety, no promise was too much. Mevi bolstered herself, and wiped what tears had dried on her face, and with as much confidence as she could muster she said, ¡°I will submit myself completely to Maphet, The Lord of Knowledge.¡±

 Chapter 26: More Questions Than Answers

    After Mevi¡¯s declaration of Loyalty, Odion said his attention was required elsewhere. Mevi was assigned two aids, and told to await Maphet¡¯s imminent return. The first aid was a younger man, who ensured his mask remained on at all times, he called himself Zelkan. According to his own words, his mask ¡®-covered an unsightly and disturbing visage. It would be better to maintain an amount of formality,-¡¯ so he wouldn¡¯t disturb Mevi. Mevi¡¯s second aid, to her surprise, was a golden-clad Sentinel. The Sentinel did not talk, and is said to never speak unless in an absolute emergency. They bore no name, and Zelkan stated they are born and bred to follow their Magi¡¯s orders until their death.

    When Mevi was adequately introduced to the two individuals, Odion bade her farewell. In short words he dismissed himself to leave on other duties. Even before Odion left, Mevi spoke very little. When Odion was gone, Mevi didn¡¯t speak at all. She spent several lethargic hours staring up at Kalesi¡¯s suspended form. Mevi placed herself at the foot of the capsule, and the three individuals who maintained Kalesi¡¯s conditions busied themselves with the work around the recovery lab. At some point the previous three medical technicians left, and two others replaced them. For a time Mevi was ignored, and Mevi was content to be ignored while she watched over Kalesi. After a while, time had become lazy to Mevi and the seconds dragged themselves like minutes. As Mevi¡¯s concentration began to slip, Zelkan approached hesitantly, ¡°Ma¡¯am, I think it would do you good to eat something.¡± The young man approached with an amount of concern, and his voice was soft and calm.

    Mevi stared up at the man for a few solitary moments, but turned herself back to Kalesi with only a short mumble, ¡°I¡¯m not hungry.¡±

    ¡°I think it would do you well to walk then, your body needs to get blood pumping again after such a long sleep.¡± he still showed concern for her, and seemed eager to get her out of the room.

    With another lazy glance, Mevi simply mumbled quieter than before, ¡°I don¡¯t want to leave her alone.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry ma¡¯am! I¡¯ll be sure to keep her company.¡± energetically declared one of the technicians, who at some point walked up beside Zelkan.

    Mevi stared up at the medical technician, she was an attractive woman but with frizzy hair that hung in tangled curls. The dimness of the room made it hard to see exact features, and Mevi¡¯s mental exhaustion helped even less, but the woman seemed to have an almost caramel skin. She bore a broad smile, and knelt down to Mevi¡¯s level. As Mevi watched the woman with caution, the female technician outstretched her hand as if to help her up. Mevi lifted a hand cautiously, and that was all the invitation the eager woman needed to grab it and heft Mevi to her feat.

    Now forcefully on her feet again, Mevi wobbled as the static in her legs became suddenly obvious. She fell against Zelkan, who expertly cushioned her stumble. Mevi was able to take in his mask fully, as she stared up at the careful attendant. While he had said his mask hid undesirable features, an impression of his face and mouth was hidden behind the mask¡¯s surface. The mask completely covered his face, but the two-way face visor did not completely block his features. Under the mask¡¯s surface, Mevi could see the impression of his facial features and noticed his worried glance. She didn¡¯t notice any obvious impressions of imperfection behind the partially see-through mask.

    Mevi noticed she had leaned against Zelkan for several moments longer than what is considered proper, and had been staring up at his mask for a potentially uncomfortable amount of time. She quickly straightened herself, and wobbled to a stand. The technician began to lead Mevi out of the lab, and little could be said or done to persuade otherwise. As Mevi was pushed out the doorway, with her attendants flanking either side of her, the door closed behind after a small wave goodbye from the eager technician.

    After Mevi was summarily exiled from the medical lab, she allowed herself to be led by the hand by Zelkan as he carefully guided Mevi. Zelkan led Mevi, with the Sentinel following, slowly down the hallway. Eventually they entered into an open hall that housed several long tables. It looked partially similar to the communal eatery that Mevi had stolen glimpses of at her house¡¯s estate. Several other people were mingling in the eating hall, and all attention was snapped to the three figures entering suddenly. More specifically, attention was drawn squarely onto the Sentinel, and its presence seemed to urge most to vacate the hall entirely. Only a handful of brave, or curious, individuals took their trays of nutrients to the corners of the hall and attempted to eat quietly.

    As Zelkan led Mevi towards the communal synthesizers, some of the glances transferred from the Sentinel to the individual it obviously followed. Curious gazes studied Mevi, who still occasionally wobbled on her feet due to her still sleepy limbs. As they reached the synthesizer, Zelkan typed into the device to create some generic sustenance. As the tray and cup grew on the small disk platform, Mevi was reminded of the food she had almost become used to while living with Kalesi. Almost expecting the magical conjuration of a full, and solid, meal. Instead a grayish paste dispensed onto the tray. Then Zelkan asked, ¡°Do you have a preference for drink? The machine is programmed to make several.¡±

    Mevi had felt some hope drop after the ¡®meal¡¯ was produced, but with her mind still on Kalesi she was reminded of her first day within the Barge, ¡°Do you think it can produce Mappa juice?¡±

    ¡°I apologize, I don¡¯t know what that is¡­ Does it come from a fruit?¡± asked Zelkan.

    Mevi¡¯s willpower was becoming shaken, her nerves losing stability as the strange disappointment built over itself, ¡°Umm¡­ I think, I belive at least, that it comes from a Mappa fruit¡­¡± Mevi¡¯s voice was obviously shaken as she squeaked out the few words she could muster.

    Zelkan furrowed his brow in a frustrated thought. He stared at the open air, neglecting the beeping terminal waiting for an input. Obviously using his interface, his eyes searched feverishly as Mevi stood there slowly losing what composure she had left. After several long moments of his searching, Zelkan¡¯s face shone with achievement. Quickly he began typing away at the terminal, the device erred several times in resentment of the obviously odd request. Several mixtures of gooey paste formed in the drinking cup before Zelkan¡¯s frustrated determination paid off to his unknown standards. After several of the failed attempts, a cup with a reddish liquid was proudly presented to Mevi. Taking the cup into her hands, Mevi sniffed at the unknown substance. It smelt vaguely fruity, and seemed very potent. Without a further moment of hesitation, Mevi sipped at the cup. The familiar taste was undeniable, but it was chased by a strange sour tang after the brief moment of familiar smooth liquid. Mevi¡¯s face contorted for a moment after the initial surprise, and Zelkan¡¯s face flushed in disappointment at his obvious failure. But Mevi could taste the hint of Kalesi¡¯s home, and without hesitation took another gulp of the liquid despite its sour aftertaste. As Mevi drank the liquid, familiar warmth flowed into her body at the memory of Kalesi¡¯s meals and caring company. Tears started to silently roll down Mevi¡¯s face, as the sour taste was eagerly consumed.

    Zelkan watched Mevi with worry and caution, unsure if he was successful or not. The confusion was washed away after Mevi handed him the empty cup, and through coked back sobs, asked for more. Zelkan smiled with pride and quickly disposed of the old cup and ordered the synthesizer to create a full pitcher of the sour liquid. The trio walked with their drink and food paste to a nearby table. The soft crying had drawn everyone in the eating hall¡¯s attention to watch in confusion at Mevi¡¯s irregular reaction to eating food. Mevi almost entirely ignored the food paste, and clinged to the incorrectly made Mappa juice. She only ate some of the gray paste at the careful requests from Zelkan, and even then Mevi only ate a small portion of the food.

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    After their meal had been picked through, and Mevi had calmed down enough that she was only sniffling away sad feelings, Zelkan disposed of their trays and retrieved more Mappa juice. The man seemed kind, or at least eagerly attentive to his responsibility. Mevi wondered if Odion chose Zelkan as her aid for a specific reason, or if each of Maphet¡¯s followers attended to their wards in such a caring way. Mevi felt some kind of distance between herself and Zelkan, despite his empathetic attention. It was almost artificial, or even formal like reluctantly caring for a sick superior. The realization of his potentially fake concern caused Mevi to move herself slightly farther away from Zelkan when he returned with more juice. He didn¡¯t seem to notice, but instead poured more of the Mappa juice for Mevi. As he did, Mevi finally became courageous enough to ask a question, ¡°Zelkan¡­ What exactly happened?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, ma¡¯am?¡± he seemed confused.

    ¡°I don¡¯t even know how long I was asleep, or where I am, or what actually happened to Kalesi.¡±

    Zelkan thought for a few moments, as if debating what he should and shouldn¡¯t say, ¡°I believe I would be allowed to tell you, at least some things. You were brought here a while ago, I think. I first noticed the attendants going en force to the lab you rested in two weeks ago, maybe a little longer.¡±

    Mevi was at a loss for words, and mumbled out an interruption, ¡°I was asleep for two weeks?¡±

    Zelkan nodded, ¡°Yes. At least that is what it seemed like. I was tasked to attend to your injuries four days ago. Your physical body was deteriorating fast. It was the day after my assignment that Lord Magi, Odion, arrived to directly tend to your mind and body. Our Lord spent three days in a sort of meditation where he personally operated the equipment maintaining your life, while also projecting some kind of power into you. He would have conversations with the air, and barely noticed us attendants around him helping maintain the equipment. He seemed to be guiding you to awaken.¡±

    ¡°For three days he did this?¡± asked Mevi, not entirely believing the words.

    ¡°Yes. We helped, however we could, but Lord Magi, Odion, was the one who truly brought you back. I was told a few hours ago you were awoken, and then you were promised to Maphet and I was given to you as aid.¡±

    Mevi was aghast. How could she have been asleep for two weeks? Even asleep for three days seemed a far stretch of time. It felt as if Kalesi was awake and talking just yesterday, maybe two days ago at most. Her visions within her dream, they couldn¡¯t have taken so long as Zelkan said. As she fought through those tests the time only felt like minutes, maybe an hour or two. Zelkan seemed to notice her apprehension, and watched patiently as Mevi gathered herself. Mevi then noticed something he had said, and was curious, ¡°Zelkan, when you said you were ¡®given¡¯ to me¡­ What does that mean? You will only be watching me until Lord Maphet gives me her tasks, right?¡±

    Zelkan shook his head, ¡°My instruction, unless changed, was from Lord Magi, Odion. Our Lord gave me, entirely, to you my lady.¡± After his reassurance of servitude, he stood and bowed with his right hand over his heart.

    Mevi was again conflicted, and confused. Did that mean the Sentinel was also following her¡­ forever? Her gaze went to the stalwart golden-clad watcher, its piercing eyes echoed a deep red as they darted to every movement and sound silently under its full helm. Zelkan noticed her look, and only nodded in response to her unsaid question. As if confirming some hidden fear she didn¡¯t know she had, these two people were apparently attache to her? Her sudden realization hit, she had truly no idea what was actually going on. Nor did she understand how anything had developed to this point. Attendants and being called a ¡®lady¡¯? She had put away the comments of ¡®ma¡¯am¡¯ as formality and politeness. She was suddenly aware of what kind of strange situation she was thrust into. Mevi looked to Zelkan fully again, and put away the apprehension for a few moments, ¡°Then where are we? Or what happened to Kalesi and I? I still know so little that happened¡­ Over the last few weeks¡­¡±

    Zelkan thought for a moment, seemingly attempting to organize his own thoughts, ¡°I am unsure what happened to you, or your mentor. But we are currently in a facility owned by our Lady, Lord Councilor Maphet. Where that is, or its exact purpose, I think would be better explained by someone tasked with that direct duty. With your oath incomplete, I am unsure how much I may or may not tell you.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? My ¡®oath incomplete¡¯? I promised Odion, didn¡¯t I?¡± asked Mevi, worried for Kalesi¡¯s safety now.

    Zelkan backtracked as if he made a mistake, ¡°Oh! Yes you did, I gave the wrong impression. Your status, and authority, will not be affirmed until you complete a private ritual with Lord Councilor, Maphet. When you are promised to her, your position will be unquestioned.¡±

    Mevi was confused again, and worried what answer she would receive after her next query, ¡°What do you mean¡­ My ¡®position¡¯? I am still an acolyte, under my mentor Kalesi the Neophyte.¡±

    Zelkan almost chuckled, but erased his mirth when Mevi showed she was truly concerned and confused, ¡°Oh, well, my lady is to be declared Lord Councilor Maphet¡¯s Magi Apprentice. You would also be Lord Councilor Maphet¡¯s only Magi Apprentice, and I have no memory of her ever taking on a true apprentice. Few of the Lord Councilors take on apprentices, it seems.¡±

    It felt as if an overwhelming weight was attempting to crush Mevi where she sat. A sudden claustrophobia made the walls and ceiling close in, a powerful headache threatened to rip her head in half. Almost falling out of her seat, Mevi was barely caught by ¡®her¡¯ Sentinel. The strong creature held her firmly, and she clutched at its golden armor for stability. Mevi noticed she was hyperventilating, but barely any air caught in her lungs. Zelkan seemed to be panicking at the sudden reaction. Yet Mevi ignored the herald of her woes, and clung tightly to the golden Sentinel. The Sentinel held her slightly tighter, as if to give some silent comfort, and it surprised Mevi so much that her breath was caught for a brief moment. The moment was enough that Mevi gasped a full length of air, filling her lungs with vital sustenance.

    As Mevi¡¯s breathing regulated and calmed, she sat in the Sentinel¡¯s arms for several minutes. Zelkan¡¯s own panic subsided after Mevi caught her breath, and began feverishly apologizing for his misdemeanor. Promising to bring the error to a higher attention so he could be properly disciplined. Mevi only waved him off, and her realization of his potential punishment due to her own mental instability caused her to tell him to calm. At least she attempted to command him to calm down through short gasps of breathing. At last Mevi had fully breathed her lungs back to life, and her racing heart slowed to only a sprinter¡¯s pace. Able to speak once more, Mevi said, ¡°Zelkan¡­ Don¡¯t ask for punishment, please. You have been very kind, gentle, and attentive of my needs. My issues¡­ They are my own. You didn¡¯t do anything wrong. I just need some few moments to gather myself.¡±

    Zelkan nodded to every word, ¡°Of course my lady! Whatever you need, ask and I will do my best to make it happen.¡±

    Mevi only had one request, ¡°Could you take me back to Kalesi?¡±

    Zelkan nodded without another word, and gesturing to the Sentinel, the golden creature hefted Mevi into its arms without hesitation. Mevi was, once again, being carried by someone due to her frail disposition.

    Mevi collected her wits by the time they arrived back at the medical lab that Kalesi was kept within. Mevi asked the Sentinel to let her down on arrival, and approached the capsule with solemn yearning. What had she gotten Kalesi into? Just by existing, it seemed Mevi was fated for some kind of torment that spread to all that associated with her. What few revelations came from Zelkan, and the strange memories with Odion in her dream-scape, only produced more questions than answers. Whatever Mevi had, or was, caused this pain for Kalesi to endure. That much Mevi was sure of. With this assertion, Mevi knew whatever came of her service to Lord Maphet would be incomparable to the fear of losing Kalesi. The bonds she had made in her life are few, and only Kalesi¡¯s love seemed to be true. Mevi had reached into Kalesi¡¯s sleeping mind, and knew the underlying love that overturned Kalesi¡¯s original motivations. However brief Mevi had been with her mentor, she wanted to repay the kindness and care shared to her one hundred-fold.

    As Mevi was caught up in her own mind¡¯s ramblings, a sound beeped on a console behind her. Zelkan was called over, and one of the technicians whispered to him. Mevi could hear their quiet murmuring, and when they finished, Zelkan slowly approached Mevi from behind. He was hesitant, as if Mevi was a time bomb waiting to explode, but managed to speak his message, ¡°My lady¡­ Lord Councilor, Maphet, has arrived. She has requested your presence at your leisure. If you are ready¡­¡±

    Mevi lowered her head and thought silently, then attempted to muster a false courage enough to face Zelkan, ¡°I believe I am as ready as I might ever be. Please take me to Lord Maphet.¡±

 Chapter 27: A Challenge Accidentally Conquered

    Mevi walked with her two escorts, Zelkan and the stalwart Sentinel. She attempted to feign confidence, but the worried glances from Zelkan proved she held little to none. Mevi still had no idea how such developments came to be, or why she was chosen out of everyone given from her colony. A Lord Councilor, the highest position that could be held on the Barge, wanted to personally speak with her. With the strangeness surrounding her first few days, Mevi wondered how much was planned or convenient circumstance. Kalesi held her own opinions and theories, but now all her knowledge and advice was locked behind a grievous injury holding her hostage. As Mevi slowly walked down the plain hallways, the stress of who she was about to meet seemed a fraction of how important Mevi knew Lord Maphet actually was. Mevi was lost, and forced to travel unknown waters, without a trusted advisor to let her understand what was actually happening.

    What little Mevi did know was that this Magi was of extremely high rank. Whatever that high rank symbolized was beyond her comprehension, Kalesi seemed inclined to teach her the hows and whys of the Magi¡¯s society once things calmed down. Yet there was never a real moment of true rest, only short recoveries from a previous event of significance. It would probably be more simple, Mevi thought, that she listed the things she needed to know rather than what she did; and that didn¡¯t even cover the things she didn¡¯t know she needed to know.

    As Mevi walked, she must have been making strange faces during her personal monologue of thought, Zelkan was watching with an almost intense worry plaguing his barely-visible face. Mevi was still unsure about the man, he seemed outwardly trustworthy, but Odion ¡®gave¡¯ Zelkan to her. This idea of someone being given to another was strange to her, and Mevi could not understand how her heart felt about someone being forced to care for another. Yet, as Mevi thought about the attentive man, the more subtle similarities shone between he and Kalesi. Kalesi did not necessarily choose Mevi, and even from what Mevi understood it was almost seen as an attempted punishment inflicted by the Magi Falcier. Kalesi seemed to grow fond of Mevi quickly, at least Kalesi feigned a better care than the stiff and formal method Zelkan employed. Mevi wondered if Zelkan were to stay with her, would he also grow to truly care for Mevi?

    It seemed Mevi¡¯s thoughts were interrupted as Zelkan caught Mevi¡¯s attention to gesture towards the wall. The trio stopped in front of a remarkably grand archway. Reaching the height of the hallway¡¯s ceiling, was what looked like a solid slab of marble-white stone. Etched into the stone surface were hundreds of arcane runes that shone with a blue power. Intricate golden inlays streaked across the surface like shimmering veins, drawing circles in their course around the collections of runes and thus connecting them in a sort of golden web. The web converged at the base of the elegant wall, and was placed one meter above the ground. The conversion of golden webbing spiraled into a sort of flower that reached out like a strange artistic flourish on an otherwise flat sculpture. The flower, in its radiance, sparkled with an endless spectrum of colors.

    Mevi looked up at the wall they were stopped in front of, and wondered if they were meant to pass through the thing; the construct had no obvious handle or even a crease where two halves might meet like with traditional doorways. There was no obvious control panel, or other plain method of operation. As Mevi looked upward at the extravagant sculpture, in a curious awe, Zelkan snapped his head upward as if receiving an urgent message. Mevi¡¯s attention was drawn to his sudden head jerk. The man watched the air intently, as if he was looking upward at a message from his divine. A gleaming glow seemed to surround his mood as he read whatever message he received, but as he continued to stare into the air his glee lessened. Mevi wondered if some sort of bad news had been sent to him? As Mevi became curious about what he had seen, Zelkan turned down to Mevi with an almost confused stare and spoke with an amount of uncertainty, ¡°I have received a missive from Lord Councilor, Maphet. She declares you must pass through this¡­ doorway. That you cannot receive help, or advise, and must make this stone tapestry bend to your will.¡±

    Mevi looked again at the solid surface, and her conclusion arrived at the task being impossible, ¡°How could I possibly move solid stone?¡±

    Receiving no response, and an awkward silence from Zelkan, Mevi looked up at the strange sculpture. Its intricate golden inlays shone as if in confident defiance against her. Even when she used her Maige, such feats of power were beyond her without incredible injury. Even if she could somehow conjure power, like with her Maige, she had never attempted to move heavy objects consciously. Where could she even begin this task?

    Without a clear path to travel, Mevi looked again over to Zelkan. He watched with concern, but remained silent and otherwise stalwart. The golden Sentinel watched with a blank glare, only its piercing red eyes shining from under the heavy helm. Both her aids were content to allow this trial to be conquered alone. Turning back to the stone wall, Mevi investigated it for any obvious clue. The most glaring feature was its pearlescent flower, and Mevi followed what she thought was a hint. Reaching her hand towards the supposed door, Mevi touched the glittering flower. She focused her mind, and concentrated on the smooth surface with its intricate curves and waves. The small object was impossibly perfect, without any sharp or blunt edge and instead bending in smooth curves in a continuous flow. The flower seemed to be made by a single sheet of an aetheric metal that was bent and shaped into the improbable creation of a perfect flower. Yet, despite her investigation, the flower bore no fruit. Her attempt to access the door, with what she thought was a sort of handle, failed after her moments of investigation produced no effect at all.

    Mevi had few real clues how to open the door, and in a confused attempt, she simply pushed on the front. Leveraging what little weight she had behind her, Mevi pushed against the immovable object. Then, in confusion and frustration, she pulled on the pearlescent flower in a vain attempt to pry the door open with force. Neither pushing, nor pulling, budged the door to any degree. Even the flower, that stuck out from the wall with only small bonds to the stone, felt as if it was one solid mass that was completely immovable. Mevi looked up at the large wall, for it could only be a wall or barricade and not a door. Its luminance was mocking her again; the stone tapestry¡¯s carvings made the sculpture look so delicate and elegant, yet instead it was a completely solid surface of hard material and rock.

    Looking back, Mevi was once again met with the silent eyes of her watchful aids. Neither offered any kind of hint through their body language; they both attempted to stand and watch with as few emotions or movement as possible. Mevi needed some kind of help to open such a powerful structure, she didn¡¯t have her Maige to even attempt a more spiritual method. The frustration of the situation was beginning to leak annoyance into her mood. The amount of strange things happening, Kalesi¡¯s wounding, and this incredible agreement amounting to some impossible test that made no sense. Mevi should be devastated, she shouldn¡¯t have such a solid grip over herself as she did. The swirling emotions that boiled inside of her soul should be erupting out of her, but even as she stands in frustration, before this looming test, she has a strange amount of control and blanketed with a cold calm. As if something was dampening what was able to bubble to the surface, and before it reached an escape it was stolen away to be dulled to barely anything at all.

    Mevi knew her emotions clattered in chaos inside of her, but the calm over her mood began to disturb her more than the test¡¯s daunting challenge. Mevi wondered, was something given to her, or done to her? By rights she should be devastated, her small world crashed and burnt in quick succession. Whatever feeling of forced calm that was over her was becoming more obvious as she investigated her own mind. In her mental realm, she could understand the emotions were there but they were almost kept away from her. As if something was actively barring their escape. Then, as Mevi focused on her swirling emotions, she could feel something.

    Mevi entered an almost meditative state, as she looked inward for answers. As she could feel her conflicting emotions, and understand her own deep pain, but another presence sweeped its influence over the bubbling thoughts. As it did so, the rising chaos inside of her calmed, or was pushed back down. This presence, it didn¡¯t feel unnatural. Mevi recalled the distinct feeling of a Magi¡¯s control; when first encountering Magi Falcier, or within the Education Forum¡¯s auditorium. Both situations held a disturbing presence that overrode any and all correct thought. This feeling was almost familiar to her. As if this sweeping presence, keeping her many emotions forcefully held down, was some native part of herself. Suddenly, as Mevi focused on her inner self, the presence made itself known.

    A great and dark shroud passed over Mevi¡¯s thoughts. A looming shadow that possessed an alien mind, but at the same time one so similar to her own she had unconsciously ignored it up until now. This presence wasn¡¯t new, it had always stalked her wherever she might¡¯ve gone. It was her soul¡¯s daemon, a malevolent spirit made of pure emotion and dark memory. This conscious nightmare stalked her every step, regardless of where she tried to run or hide. Yet here, as Mevi faced it in a cosmic realm of pure thought, it simply watched her. This dark entity observed her, where before it would have attacked and swarmed her psyche. Instead of anger, resentment, hate, and fear, Mevi felt some kindred to it. She could feel its emotions, what few feelings could be called such at least, as if they were her own. The creature seemed grateful, indebted in some way to her. While this feeling of gratitude was within the creature, it was a small kernel compared to the overwhelming memory the entity held within it.

    As Mevi watched the shadow, only in the way spirits of thought could be watched, the entity disembarked from her mental sight. It returned to the swirling chaos that was steadily eating away at Mevi¡¯s ego. It was culling her emotions, for good or ill Mevi could not tell. Regardless of its motives, the actions it took were the sole reason why Mevi¡¯s state hadn¡¯t deteriorated to a deranged and depressed husk. Mevi had suspected a Magi¡¯s tampering, but instead it was some kind of hidden goodwill originating from her own inner mind.

    While Mevi investigated within her inner mind, she had almost been able to forget the stress of the task before her. As she opened her eyes, and basked in the immaculate glory sculpted onto the wall, Mevi could return to the task at hand with a new perspective. Mevi had no Maige, but if Odion meant anything he had said; she might store some secret fire burning within her spirit. With the wall immoveable by mortal means, Mevi had simply to use her immortal soul¡¯s secret power.

    Mevi sat on the floor, and stared up at the object of her quest. The sculpted wall could wait. A key for such an impossible doorway would certainly take time to forge. Mevi had no other choice than to ignore the current task, and focus fully inward. If there was some kind of power hidden away within her, and Odion had seen it, then she must find it. With nothing else to do, Mevi closed her eyes and attempted to fully grasp her inner cosmos. The world that resided inside of her own mind, and that resides within all people¡¯s minds. She would piercing the wakeless world, but with her fully conscious thought, and search for this unknown power there.

    Mevi knew she could sometimes drift into a similar world of thought, when she focused inward enough. But would communing with her daemon, or basking in intense thought, be enough for the task at hand? Whatever power laid dormant inside of her would certainly be deep, and the surface scrapings of basic observation would never lead to in depth study of her own soul. Mevi needed to go deeper, and she needed to fully immerse herself within her dreams that might connect her to her core.

    Mevi focused for several moments, with nothing beyond a basic grasp of her own internal chaos. Without going fully to sleep she wasn¡¯t entirely sure if her lucid dreams could be reached. Even then, within her dreams she was more a prisoner of her rambling thoughts than an actual power of influence. Despite her lucid awareness while asleep, little could be remembered after she woke up, and few things did as she commanded while her nightmares chased. Her only memory of real control, and with any fragments of recollection after awakening, was when Odion inserted himself into her mind. Mevi rationalized that either a Magi¡¯s influence was needed or a conscious spirit must pierce the veil of dreams with deliberate action. Either instance did not seem easily done, and if she could not be aided in her test only the later option was viable. She needed to enter her sleeping realm, but without falling asleep.

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    Mevi attempted, without knowing exactly how, to enter a sleepless dream. Her eyes shut and mind focused, Mevi tried to simply wait for something to happen. As she waited, feeling her own emotions boil then simmer, nothing of significance occurred. She continued to focus on the memories she had with Odion in her dream-scape, yet couldn¡¯t guess if that was the right course of action. The realm she traveled only a few hours ago seemed so impossibly distant. Her spiritual phantom continued its strange work, the cold presence chilling away her strongest emotions as they began to erupt. Mevi was almost distracted by the thing¡¯s work, the halt of her natural flow of emotion was a strange and eerie feeling. The unnatural calm dominated her mind, and the almost artificial feeling within her felt as if watching herself from a distance. As if she wasn¡¯t really within her own body, only capable of watching as a foreign spectator guessed what Mevi might do.

    As Mevi was distracted further by her estranged emotions, she slowly discovered more about the strange state she was in. The further she investigated, the more strange the feelings became. So distant, and almost not there at all. What feeling remained was the baser types, any spiritual sense was deprived from her comprehension. She almost felt as if being slowly detached from herself, the distance between herself and her thoughts was growing. In her inner thought¡¯s chasm, that separated her and her turmoil, was growing wide enough to separate herself from her physical body. Then, as she felt herself deprived of her physical senses, she realized something. She could sense her physical body, from a distance, and it was in a sleep-like state. In her concentration on the strangeness within her, she had passed into some type of enhanced meditation. The gap between her thoughts and her form seemed vast, but not entirely impossible to cross if needed. She had immersed herself in some kind of state of mind allowing a deeper understanding than she could possess before.

    Mevi was now, accidentally, within the realm of her own mind. The space was vast, and cosmic, as she remembered from her dream. Below her cosmic position, was a boiling planet of emotions that was threatening to explode. The diligence of her spirit daemon kept the formation from cracking, and its task was an enormous one. The spirit didn¡¯t seem to notice, or simply didn¡¯t care, that Mevi was now watching it closely within a mental space. The entity left a sort of trail, an icy track of dark shadow, leading further into the mental expanse. Without a proper understanding of her own mind, Mevi had no choice but to leave or follow the trail. But she refused to leave without some kind of progress, whatever that took the form of.

    Descending into the mental realm¡¯s depths, Mevi slowly approached her daemon while it performed its duty. The entity seemed to begrudgingly take on this task, what emotions that could be understood was of building annoyance marked with hints of responsibility. The entity still paid no mind to Mevi, and she realized she preferred that. The cluster of dark memories seemed docile for now, but it was obviously not her companion. There were leaking thoughts, memories even, that threatened to take hold of Mevi if she drew too close to the entity. Visions that she was instinctively terrified of, and found herself fleeing at the smallest leakage.

    While avoiding what dark thoughts escaped the daemon, Mevi followed the entity¡¯s trail. A faint scatter of essence seemed to link the entity¡¯s body to something far away. The trail led on into the most distant expanse, and disappeared past where Mevi could fathom from her point of view. What chance did she have of chasing some unknown origin? The trail was faint, and difficult to comprehend on its own; the source of this entity would likely be well hidden or so distant it might be unreachable. Yet Mevi reasoned she had no better solution, and must attempt to find this unknown source.

    With Mevi¡¯s path made clear, she began her attempt to follow the wisps of essence. What counted as traveling in this meditative state seemed difficult. As if waves pushed against her body as she attempted to crawl her way out to sea. Some natural force that seemed to urge and discourage exploration. Yet Mevi pressed on, the pushing she felt could be noticed in her physical form as well as the mental space was explored. In the waking world, Mevi felt her skin crawl with every attempt to press onward. The gentle touch of air seemed to corrode her focus, like her entire body fought against her cosmic journey. For whatever reason, every action in this realm seemed to almost repel Mevi. Every attempt, and strenuous thought, tried to pull her focus away and back into her corporeal form. While Mevi wanted nothing less than to abandon this exploration, she wasn¡¯t sure how easily she might enter a state as deep as this again. If her daemon¡¯s passiveness was temporary, she might also never have a chance to uncover some small amount of the power within herself without being harassed or attacked.

    As Mevi continued against the waves of chaotic thought and memory, images and visions rushed randomly into her. As if an attempt to bombard her with stimulus until she lost focus and was forcefully abandoned by the dream world. Thoughts, images, ideas, and concepts Mevi couldn¡¯t understand, and didn¡¯t recognize, cascaded against her senses. Impossible places and unknown faces invaded her thoughts as she continued to fight against her mind¡¯s defenses. At this point, Mevi was unsure if following the dark trail would even lead her to whatever power she sought. Nor did she understand why she sought this power with such determination. If whatever Odion thought she could do, or what she might possess inside her, could open a wall into a doorway was unknown. Mevi¡¯s sense of self was draining, and her common sense screamed to release her determination, but some part of her knew she had no other options. Wherever this path led, was the only one she knew that was open to her.

    While Mevi focused on her mind¡¯s expanse, her body began to shake and tremble. From her mind¡¯s eye, she could still sense her physical body. It called to her, and demanded her consciousness¡¯s return. In her mind¡¯s eye, she could see herself in the hallway, shaking enough that worry was easily perceived from Zelkan. The man was on the verge of doing something, his worries leaked from his psyche and were absorbed by Mevi¡¯s perception. She could feel the emotions that he felt, and his desire to serve was conflicting with his order to protect and aid. His own internal conflict quickly became Mevi¡¯s. His mind was obvious to her, and in her current state his unguarded thoughts easily infected Mevi¡¯s mind. As if her body and mind was trying any possible way to dissuade her, Zelkan¡¯s mind became plain. With him, the fringes of other minds were touched and understood from a distance. Vague impressions, short thoughts, and small images began to slowly attack her focus further. But as Mevi became slowly aware of the distant minds, she could sense one from a curious direction. From beyond the wall, a single entity was detected.

    Mevi¡¯s attention was almost entirely shifted from her current course after she detected the entity beyond the wall. There were plenty of minds that were sensed through walls in every direction, but the mind beyond the door was one of quiet purpose. Its presence was known to her, but no thoughts or emissions escaped from the entity¡¯s source. It felt as if a solid rock in an otherwise free-flowing river. Mevi was tempted to shift her focus entirely from her path onto the strange being. She was so distracted by the temptation of curiosity, that she felt her incorporeal body flowing back the way she had traveled. In the cosmic realm of infinite expanse, she was slowly flowing back the way she had spiritually traveled. Progress could not be made this way, and following the trail had given her nothing, so a new path was decided. The empty entity, the solid stone mind, was her new target. From her perch, within her mind¡¯s cosmos, she could approach the entity with some amount of secrecy. If she could understand this entity, whatever it might be, she might find some way to open the door through its insight.

    The blank entity made no response, and no attempt to resist Mevi¡¯s approach. She was being pushed farther away from the friges by the crashing waves of mental chaos, but those very waves could also push her in a new direction. While not fully understanding how she did what she was doing, she rode the mystical waves in the direction of the new item for focus. She could harness the chaotic energy around her, somehow, and this energy almost seemed to bolster her when she didn¡¯t fight against it. With her direction plotted, and the waves harnessed, Mevi began her exploration beyond the wall.

    As Mevi approached the entity closer, it still made no obvious response. The other minds were quieter now, lessening the farther away Mevi traveled from the chaotic waves that encircled her mind. The blank entity began to fade as well, but with her focus replaced onto the new target it could not fully escape her sight. After fully riding the chaos, it deposited her back to her own body. But as her mind begged to be reunited with her physical form, Mevi managed to pivot what momentum she carried to go past herself and into the wall.

    Mevi crashed through the wall, which until this point seemed to be exclusively part of an invisible terrain. When she pressed her mind through the wall, her psyche cluttered with noise and stimulation. The physical space of the stone tapestry infected her mental space, causing golden light to shine with blaring arcane runes who screamed their meaning all at once. The amalgamation of information yelled and screamed its names and purposes, and through the quantity of loud declarations Mevi could not hear or understand anything. Each came with a dagger¡¯s potency as it cut into her mind, forcing understanding into her only to bleed out in pain. Mevi quickly recoiled against the wall, which somehow managed to both physically and mentally block her passage.

    Mevi decided she had enough of the wall¡¯s obstacle. With what fury she could steal from the boiling emotions below her, Mevi threw herself at the wall¡¯s overload of information. Rather than absorbing the knowledge, Mevi instead cut the messages before they arrived as if she were blazing a trail through thick vegetation. Eating through her fury and rage from below, Mevi channeled all she could find into the door that blocked her curiosity and purpose. There was much fury leftover from her possession, unresolved anger that had no purpose, but as her weapon it became a flaming blade that could cut away the wall of thought and noise. With every swing her anger diminished, and was replenished from below. As she continued to absorb the emotions into herself, and repurpose them for a righteous cause, Mevi could briefly notice her soul¡¯s daemon acting as a funnel to sort out her fury and rage from the other emotions. When she felt halfway past the wall¡¯s defenses, her rage ran dry, as she cut further her frustration ran out, and finally her righteous fury was depleted. She hadn¡¯t entirely penetrated the wall of noise, and she felt exhausted in both of her forms. Mevi slowly conceded to her body¡¯s plea, and decided to fully return to the waking world.

    As Mevi opened her eyes, and cleared her head, a strange sight was presented before her. Where the wall once was, now a hole bore through solid stone and metal reinforcement. Digging itself almost half a meter into the wall, and tearing open golden veins within the once-beautiful stone. Mevi looked backwards, and saw that Zelkan was just as surprised as Mevi was confused. Even the golden sentinel¡¯s silent eyes seemed to linger on the excavation.

    The hole Mevi created seemed almost a meter tall, and half that thick. Mevi could easily squeeze into the small space, but it did not breach the wall¡¯s edge fully. Mevi assessed herself, and she was completely exhausted. Even as she sat on the ground her body almost begged for rest and sleep. If this was the goal of the test, she was not strong enough to complete it. She didn¡¯t have enough anger within her to tear a hole fully into the stone. But as she began to think there was no further hope of completion, a small voice eked out a strange sort of message. As if she received the words directly in her mind, an echoing voice from far away simply said, ¡°call¡­¡± The echoing voice resided deep, some place far below in the cosmic plane and it was plainly obvious of its mystical origin. The voice felt like a distant memory, as if she recognized it from some ancient source. Then it struck her, her daemon.

    Mevi almost dismissed the thought as it appeared, but as she turned over the idea something stirred within herself. The dark cold that would sometimes stalk her psyche had wrapped itself around Mevi like a mantle. No visible sign was obvious in the physical world, but she could feel a great weight suddenly placed on her shoulders. She could feel the intent of her daemon. It was still grateful, and felt it had done its duty. But it wanted one last task to complete before its self-declared debt was paid. It commanded Mevi to use it, and to use it without the chains of a Maige. So she did, allowing the daemon to guide her hand upwards to point at the wall. With a power that was both her own and not, Mevi¡¯s fingertips launched out a dark torrent of power that railed against the remains of the wall. The unknown power propelled itself as manifestations of pain, and this pain eroded the incorruptible surface as if thousands of years passed in the span of mere moments. By the end of her brief exchange of power, the daemon disappeared its presence back into the unknown depths of her mind. The surface of the wall was eroded and corrupted to rot and decay, and began to crumble. The gold and runes faded into dust, and only the stone surface remained of the tapestry. While the hole Mevi had excavated was coated in the ethereal pain, and began to also crumble. As the walls and stone turned to dust, a small light poked through the end of her tunnel. Then another hole shone light, and another, until the entire back wall of her tunnel collapsed enough that Mevi could crawl through.

    On the other side, a glowing blue light leaked out into the hallway. Zelkan was astonished, and Mevi was equally surprised by her own effect. The golden Sentinel watched with no sound or obvious emotion, but its eyes gleamed with a curiosity Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed before. From the other side, beyond the glowing light, Mevi could see a figure.

    Sitting in the middle of the room that Mevi was once barred from, a beautiful feminine form sat in cloaked white robes. The glowing light seemed to almost emanate from this being, as it sat patiently in a simple chair. As if awaiting Mevi, the woman waved a hand for Mevi to enter. The hand was of pure blue light, as if the creature was made of stars and power that coalesced into a beautiful avatar. Mevi felt compelled to enter, and without worrying about her exhaustion, or her aids, Mevi stood to enter the room.

 Chapter 28: An Exchange

    Mevi felt compelled to enter the small crack she had opened in the wall. A will that was unnatural began its control over her senses, and it commanded her to approach. As she entered the crack in the wall, she heard a strange sound from behind her. Similar to the splash of dripping mud, a wet substance fell on her as she passed through the hole. Mevi maintained enough of her senses to gaze backwards, and to her dismay the wall she had broken was growing back to its previous state. It quickly reformed, and her struggle to fight against the presence almost kept her within the dripping material¡¯s path. She barely passed the threshold of the room before the wall was completely sealed once more.

    Just as Mevi crossed fully into the room, the presence dominating her dropped its influence. She was free to govern herself once again, and free to embrace the almost overwhelming fear that now gripped her. Mevi had not felt such a strong presence dominate her since the Magi, Falcier, exerted his power during the selection on her colony. The feeling was grotesque, completely unnatural, and made her senses go haywire. The sudden domination caused her senses to somehow back up, and as the influence departed, her rampant emotions possessed her in rapid succession. It seemed, during her fits of confused convulsion, that her cold mantle had departed to some deep part of Mevi¡¯s unconsciousness. The many emotions that plagued Mevi began to flood her mind, and sought to overwhelm what little sanity Mevi might¡¯ve attempted to regain.

    Rather than hate, that had once bubbled and transformed into helplessness, only the quieter emotions remained. The fear and sadness that was repressed up until now cascaded into Mevi¡¯s mind in a sudden hurricane. Mevi attempted to stand, but her quaking limbs gave out and collapsed her into a heap on the floor. An overwhelming quantity of dark emotion now boiled her consciousness as it once had boiled quietly in her soul. A stream of incoherent babbling was all that could escape Mevi as the spiritual dam broke without its dutiful warden. Mevi couldn¡¯t even attempt to look at the room around her, nor could she behold the figure who had beckoned her entry. The tears and fear clouded any vision she might¡¯ve had, and the ball she curled into was a vain attempt to close out the bright light that almost stung her with its pure power.

    Mevi laid on the floor, collapsed into a sobbing heap, and let loose all the emotions that were bottled up for so long. Even her inane sobbing screamed some long lost message she wished to tell to her last true friend. Mevi yelled for Kalesi, the only figure in her life so far to provide an amount of safe stability. The frustration at losing such a figure so soon screamed into the fear of being alone, of being shut away in the dark once again. To lose herself in some deep-set darkness that provided no company other than her dark thoughts and memories. To be completely alone, the want for trusting company, was her greatest desire.

    While Mevi¡¯s emotional eruption tempered, and eventually slowed as her energy drained, she was finally able to brave the light. The violent explosion that echoed from her core began to subside into only a crippling anxiety as exhaustion reclaimed her body. Mevi lifted her head, and saw the blue light shining in a smaller hue. As if it was lowered from its previous intensity, the light was now almost warm as it tried to hold her gently. Mevi watched the floor, the simple stone gleaming with the glowing light, and as her loud wails drained into choking sobs, the floor¡¯s gleam seemed to tremble. A calm and curious voice asked, ¡°Are you¡­ Safe? Is the subject whole again?¡±

    Mevi lifted her head, beholding the elegant creature before her. Sitting in a simple chair, was an astoundingly divine picture of beauty. The feminine form was draped in a cloak of white that melted into an ethereal sky where cosmic constellations shone their light. A white dress fit close to form, accentuating their womanly features while allowing a type of skin to peek through. Where might be gloves and what could be a split in the front of the dress¡¯s chest, was a shining display of pure energetic power. A holy blue glow shone from where clothes seemed to separate in an upside down ¡®V¡¯ across the figure¡¯s breasts and then again at where sleeves cut off at the elbow. What could only be aetherial flesh shone with a glorious brilliance, shedding a blue glow by simply its being. Within the glowing cosmos, held within the supple grace of the figure, were cosmic signs made from endless constellations which formed unknowable arcana. If it was possible to easily understand the creature¡¯s form, differentiating from clothes and body, Mevi could assume the revealed divine cosmos was exactly and only the creature¡¯s skin. Yet as Mevi watched, the form and figure became ephemeral; the feminine form began to shift and change, where once was clothes and bare skin would mix with the air and shift into new sets of regalia. Where clothes once were, the divine substance leaked out to expose what might be underneath. Yet while divine flesh escaped, ethereal regalia also reclaimed territory to reform into godly golds and silvers embroidered on the soft white clothes. The only consistent form was a vague idea of dress and cloak, and then the creature¡¯s mask.

    The divine presence held a mask unlike any other observed or recalled. A thin veil, spun from spider-silk and threads of knowledge, hung across the lower face and neck. Small parts of the neck were visible, but were unfathomable in a natural sense; instead of flesh there seemed to be veins of gold streaking upwards like twisting wires that constantly changed their shape and material, while also there was a distant impression of flesh but an invisible sort that could only be assumed and not known. From under the veil, two long braids fell down the shoulders until fading into the space around. The hair was the color of marble, and as it faded it took on a starry expression until disappearing into nothing. As the magnum opus of whatever cosmic artisan created this figure, the mask held dominion over the rest of the body. Instead of the typical masks seen used, even by other Magi, there didn¡¯t seem to be any consistent material used in the fashioning of this mask. It existed as if it simply was, rather than something that was created or worn. A spherical orb existed to make up the quantity of the space where a head might be. Within the orb was a pearlescent display of ever-shifting colors and shapes. Pure color, brighter and more brilliant than any star could hope to shine, etched symbols of unknown power into an almost infinite space held within the mask itself. The coalescence of millions of colors made the purest of rays that shone from the mask, looking directly into the space almost blinded Mevi as her mind attempted to comprehend a spectrum impossible to understand. The shapes and symbols that echoed out of the mask¡¯s depth were almost completely invisible, due to their arcane might.

    As Mevi beheld the sight, she could almost forget the explosion of emotion she had suffered only moments before. Yet even in the light of such elegance and power, Mevi felt her sniffling sobs threaten a return. The brightness of the being forced Mevi to shield her eyes, and the following darkness only reminded her of her own dark thoughts. She fought to either become blind or suffer in her own dark pit. Yet as the conflicting decisions fought for some claim, the being spoke again in its soft and curious voice, ¡°The subject is named, ¡®Mevi¡¯, correct?¡±

    With her stressed voice, Mevi croaked out, ¡°Yes¡­ Yes my Lord.¡±

    ¡°Why does the subject¡­ or ¡®Mevi¡¯, act out in such ways?¡±

    Worried she had offended the Magi in some way, Mevi stumbled her words together, ¡°My Magi, I am sorry. I¡­ I was very frustrated and, or I mean many things have happened¡­ I apologize for my disrespect.¡±

    ¡°Did the Mevi mean disrespect?¡±

    ¡°Of course not! I was lost, and confused. I didn¡¯t mean to upset you or insult you!¡±

    ¡°If the Mevi did not intend disrespect, was there any?¡±

    ¡°My Magi¡­ I do not understand.¡± Mevi was genuinely confused at the strange question.

    ¡°If the Mevi did not intend disrespect; then none was received.¡± Declared the Magi with confidence.

    Mevi beheld the divine entity again. As she blocked the piercing light from blinding her, the figure seemed to make a sort of ¡®oh!¡¯ sound as if realizing something suddenly. The elegant form bent forward slightly, and as if retrieving the air itself, covered herself with a long draping hood. The light that illuminated with such potent power was suddenly covered, and the amount of elegance dimmed as the light slowly faded. When the mask¡¯s light faded, the shimmering skin that once was blue and arcane seemed to take on a more ¡®human¡¯ form. The shifting shape and function of the elegant regalia hardened to a consistent stability. Where bosom and sleeve once displayed radiant power, now a snow-pale skin gave way to a new type of luster. Yet the skin of the creature before Mevi was still as alien as the glowing arcane energy, their tone was of an unnatural white that seemed almost exactly as frost and ice. The chilly flesh made Mevi¡¯s own seem tanned in comparison, despite Mevi¡¯s complexion being of the palest she had witnessed on the Barge up until now.

    As the hood fully enveloped, and the entity¡¯s form became stable, it was almost a purposeful evolution. Even Mevi could tell, in some spiritual sense, that the figure was forcing its form to maintain a human shape and consistency. Yet the sight didn¡¯t entirely displease or unsettle Mevi, the way this Magi seemed to attempt to relate or comfort was almost kind. The gesture was appreciated, despite the strange approach. Mevi could feel herself almost calming in the Magi¡¯s presence, and it was in some part due to the divine alien presence dulling itself to a more comprehensible state. When the entity¡¯s figure was finished shaping itself, with the clothes and hair reforming into a less ambiguous construction, Mevi became curious. Daring to ask a question out of turn, Mevi wondered out loud, ¡°You are Lord Councilor Maphet, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    A response came immediately, ¡°Yes, I am she.¡±

    ¡°You asked me to come to you, and pass through the doorway?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I was told we needed to conduct a ritual, or that you wanted to talk to me¡­¡±

    ¡°Both accounts are accurate.¡±

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Mevi waited for a few moments, expecting some kind of explanation or further conversation. But the figure, that was surely Councilor Maphet, simply sat and watched. Their face hidden behind a more comprehensible mask, one with swirling sky and cosmos battling for supremacy in an impossible mixture of colors. The eyeless face peered deeply into Mevi, and she felt entirely exposed. As if prompted by Mevi¡¯s growing unease, Maphet said, ¡°Sit, if the Mevi would prefer a chair.¡± Before Mevi could point out the empty room around them, which was entirely devoid of detail or feature beyond the generic gold and marble theme, a chair appeared as if it had always been. Mevi had blinked her eyes, and suddenly the chair was there, like she had simply ignored the feature until now. Standing slowly, Mevi collapsed herself as elegantly as possible into the simple wooden chair. The material seemed completely organic, and unlike any production Mevi had truly beheld. Even the great doors of her house seemed to pale in comparison to the simple craftsmanship that created the standing chair. When Mevi sat, Maphet asked, ¡°How did you cross the barrier?¡±

    Mevi was concerned, like she had done something wrong, ¡°I¡­ I think I used something inside of me. I don¡¯t really understand it. I got very angry with the wall, and before I understood how, it was already being destroyed.¡±

    ¡°The barrier was made for the benefit of the Mevi. I implanted knowledge, and understanding, into a field within the stone.¡±

    Mevi realized she had made some great error in her rage, ¡°I am extremely sorry! Great Magi, I apologize for my ignorance!¡± Mevi attempted to prostrate herself on the floor, but before she could abandon the chair Maphet waved a hand as if demanding her be still.

    ¡°Why does the Mevi panic? I gave no instruction on how to pass the barrier, I simply asked that the Mevi pass.¡±

    ¡°I damaged a creation of yours, one meant for knowledge¡­¡±

    Pointing at the wall that once was carved open, Maphet asked, ¡°Is there damage? Did the Mevi leave a permanent scar?¡±

    Mevi looked at the wall, its plain surface was empty of blemish or marring, ¡°No, it doesn''t appear so on the surface¡­¡±

    ¡°Good. The Mevi did not err. She, in fact, allowed my education to further.¡± Declared Maphet.

    Mevi watched to figure, who sat calmly and with confidence as she spoke. The Magi was unlike anything she could have imagined. Even in her memory, as short as it was, Maphet seemed strange, but almost kind. Regardless of her way of speaking, Maphet had a strangely respectfully eccentric personality. Mevi could feel the intent of the Magi, more potently than she could even feel the desire for dominance and fear from Magi Falcier¡¯s dark intimidation. It was almost like Maphet was purposefully leaking their intentions and emotions. The open designs emanating from the Magi almost put Mevi at ease, she felt as if she were connected with Maphet and they spoke in ways without words. Maphet¡¯s curiosity seemed perplexed by Mevi¡¯s raw emotion, and to respond in the way Maphet began; Mevi allowed her emotions to be read, she could almost feel the way to think and be to allow this spiritual conversation. The spiritual sensations didn¡¯t crash into Mevi¡¯s consciousness, but instead it was like a slow drip into an almost broken bowl. Maphet was slow, careful, and deliberate in her expression to Mevi. Maphet seemed to know how fragile Mevi¡¯s ego was, but didn¡¯t understand why it was in the delicate state. With Mevi¡¯s open mind, Maphet slowly searched the emotions Mevi laid bare, and Maphet seemed intently curious about the emotions of regret and fear. The most intense emotions Mevi held were those of Kalesi¡¯s loss, and the fear that she might become entirely alone. Maphet offered no solution, nor did she offer any direct comfort, but she simply listened in a wordless way.

    The two were connected, and without premeditated motivations, they almost bonded. Mevi could feel Maphet¡¯s intense desire to learn and study all things, to experiment and grow with every new piece of knowledge. While Mevi needed to be understood, to be listened to, and given another soul who could truly comprehend her complex feelings. Time seemed to slip away from thought and perception as the two mingled their egos into the same open sky. The conversation was led by Maphet, and its stability entirely provided by her, but the topics were always on, or sourced from, Mevi. Her emotions were debated, and understood, and by the time the two unraveled themselves from each other it was obvious some great amount of time had passed.

    Mevi almost felt better from the experience, like she was able to release all her woes in a way that caused no harm or delay. Maphet¡¯s mind was clear, and filled with innocent yearning for knowledge. As Mevi calmed herself from the intense intermingling, Maphet¡¯s glow slightly returned. The Magi¡¯s glee was obvious, she was intensely interested in every topic she considered new. Mevi had learned her personality, and it was remarkably simple. Mind and memory were barred from both sides, but their bonding left an important mark on the mood.

    With Mevi calmed down, Maphet began to work. As the Magi stood up, a table appeared in the same way a chair did once before. As Maphet walked past the table, and approached close to the wall, the room seemed to extend. What once was an almost box-like room without any features, began to grow into a new length. The area around Mevi began to stretch in its comprehension, like she hadn¡¯t been really looking at anything at all. Out of curiosity, Mevi reached towards the table; she somehow knew something was there and that it was for her. With hand reaching after the air, Mevi grasped nothing. Yet as her hands clasped around the empty space, a cup was within her grip. Within was a familiar red liquid, one that held a distinct smell of balanced fruitiness. Mevi knew what the liquid was, and as she sipped, she was ecstatic to realize how accurate the taste was to her memory. The Mappa juice was perfect, a complete replica of the complex code Kalesi knew. As Mevi sipped at the juice, she noticed Maphet¡¯s gaze. Maphet had stopped what she was previously doing to watch Mevi, and began to speak with a renewed interest, ¡°Remarkable. The Mevi is able to see within this space?¡±

    Mevi felt somewhat comfortable talking to the Magi now, in a way she hadn¡¯t experienced even with Odion, ¡°I think so, in a way. Some part of me knew something was there, and that it might¡¯ve been meant for me.¡±

    ¡°The space was prepared specifically for the Mevi. Everything within this place is meant to be given, if we are to be bonded. The Mevi should not be capable of understanding this place¡¯s contents yet. Despite this, the Mevi shows remarkable¡­ development.¡±

    Mevi was curious, hearing that she would be bonded to Maphet once again, ¡°May I ask you something, Lord Maphet?¡±

    ¡°This space is meant for the Mevi, to ask is to learn. All things should learn.¡±

    A small chuckle escaped Mevi after the proclamation, at the expense of its innocence, ¡°I was told we are to be bonded, you mentioned it just now again. I don¡¯t know what that means, or what the ritual would entail¡­¡±

    ¡°We are to be bonded. To save your Kalesi, and to protect the Mevi. You will become my apprentice, but not fully in title.¡±

    ¡°How do you mean, if not ¡®in title¡¯ what would I become?¡±

    Maphet thought, and her emotions leaked out as she obviously debated how to explain things in simple terms, ¡°The Mevi is to become mine, we are to become one. To be made my ¡®Magi¡¯s Apprentice¡¯ is a title to give the Mevi peerage. If we are both to consent, you would¡­ In the simplest of terms, become my bride-to-be. The apprenticeship, a training, for the Mevi¡¯s inevitable ascent¡±

    Mevi was aghast, and all she could mumble was, ¡°I am to be, your bride?¡±

    ¡°Yes. In a way, we will be bonded. Yet not for a long time, the Mevi is delicate and in need of learning. If we are to be bonded, you must learn and become more. My Mevi must become one of the few.¡± Maphet stressed the word ¡®My¡¯ as she declared the statement with confidence and authority.

    Without further explanation, Maphet reached up to the wall as she finally found the end of the room. Pulling from an invisible shelf, Maphet grasped a book. Then she retrieved several others of varying comprehension. The collection of barely noticeable tomes was carried across the long room, which began to shrink back to its former size, and the pile was placed upon the table. With the books escaped from Maphet¡¯s grasp, all but one began to quickly disappear until nothing was left. Maphet then spoke, in an almost serious tone, ¡°These items are of grave importance to the Mevi. To understand this basic amount will prove if the Mevi can be accepted into their role. Your Kalesi will be taken care of, if the Mevi fails or succeeds, your Kalesi will be safe and treated. But to understand this task, is to accept it fully. If you are to investigate this knowledge, you must agree to my binding.¡±

    Mevi was beginning to become cautious, almost scared, of the words Maphet spoke, ¡°What do you mean? What if I don¡¯t agree, or if I can¡¯t understand what you¡¯ve given me?¡±

    ¡°The Mevi will understand, she cannot possibly fail. Yet if the Mevi refuses to learn, my gifts cannot be received. Your Kalesi will be given a basic treatment, and then given back to the Mevi in whatever state it might be in.¡±

    Mevi ignored the use of ¡®it¡¯ and began her thought out loud, ¡°So if I don¡¯t agree, Kalesi will die¡­¡±

    Maphet watched, while Mevi took in the words. The amount of things a ¡®marriage¡¯ with a Magi might insinuate are infinite. The amount of mounting strangeness increased tenfold with even the mention of such an idea. Yet Mevi could not waste time debating, if the alternative was Kalesi¡¯s death, there was no decision if it meant protecting her mentor¡¯s life. Mevi looked up at Maphet, who waited patiently in her divine regalia, Mevi proclaimed ¡°I will agree to this. Whatever it is I need to learn, I will do this.¡±

    ¡°Then it is decided. The Mevi will become my apprentice, and partake in the traditional ritual. The Mevi may stay here, until called upon. The Mevi will also have free access to all within this facility, but not beyond until after the ritual. The Mevi is still in danger, so work only with assigned aids.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? How am I in danger?¡±

    ¡°In time, the Mevi will be told. Until your appointment, know that others have intentions for their own designs.¡± As Maphet finished her words, her mostly unused authority commanded obedience within the statement.

    Mevi felt less sure of herself than before. This world of hers continues to become larger and more alien. As Mevi slowly became overwhelmed with the room she sat in, and its unknown features, Maphet produced something and offered it to Mevi. Hesitantly taking the thing, Mevi analyzed it. The object seemed to be a simple pearl or marble, only two or three centimeters wide. A strange orb that was the color of deep waters. Before Mevi could question the device, Maphet spoke an explanation, ¡°Until the Mevi is capable of opening the door, this device will allow access. It will work only an amount of times before its destruction. The Mevi would do well to learn to open the door on her own.¡±

    While Mevi still held many questions, Maphet made her way to the bare walled archway. As the Magi approached, the wall stretched to reveal a hidden doorway. The door shrinked within itself, and as Maphet passed through the gates she entirely disappeared. As the illusion of the door faded, Mevi could see an unfamiliar exit on the other side of the doorway. When the archway returned to a wall, Mevi approached quickly. Unsure what to do, Mevi held the deep blue orb up against the wall and, to her surprise, the door began to slowly shrink away, forming into a passage. Slower than when Maphet used it, the archway opened to reveal the familiar hallway. Mevi¡¯s two aids standing in attendance and patience.

    As Mevi was revealed on the other side of the door, Zelkan¡¯s face lit up. Mevi exited onto the hallway floor, and the doorway closed quickly behind her. Without a moment¡¯s hesitation, Zelkan began looking over Mevi as Kalesi tended to do. When he seemed satisfied, Zelkan asked, ¡°Mevi, are you alright?¡± The strange change in character almost caused Mevi to make an audible reaction. The previous formality was gone, and replaced by a seemingly genuine worry. Yet Mevi was smarter now, she had learned some small amount of things from her meditation and interaction with Maphet. With her mind, she slowly reached out from herself until she could feel the unguarded emotions of Zelkan. He held only responsibility and duty, only specks of care leaked out of his personality. Mevi was almost visibly put off by his interaction, but managed to maintain a polite amount of composure. With her emotions voided into Maphet, Mevi felt almost refreshed. Now, all that was left was to return to Kalesi and await Maphet¡¯s summons. It seemed as though Mevi would soon have much to worry about, but for now she wished only to see a familiar face once again.

 Chapter 29: An Energetic Personality

    Zelkan didn¡¯t ask further about the encounter Mevi had with Maphet. After her return, Mevi felt exhausted and only wanted to see Kalesi again. She returned to the medical lab, with whatever haste her exhaustion allowed. Mevi¡¯s soul was purified by the cosmic void Maphet allowed her emotions to pour into, yet there was still pain that couldn¡¯t leave. The bonding Mevi underwent with Maphet, it seemed to remove most of her uneasiness from before their encounter. Yet the encounter itself caused a new wave of uncertainty.

    Despite whatever assurances Maphet provided, Mevi still felt a great worry for Kalesi. Her heart was broken, in a way she could never have expected. Whatever had been repaired within her, had only been replaced by a new scar that Kalesi¡¯s state left behind. Despite Zelkan¡¯s attempts to interact with Mevi, the exhaustion that was consuming her left her annoyed and frustrated again. Emotions Mevi didn¡¯t have any real experience with began to well up, as Mevi went over her recent memories. If there was some kind of power inside of her, something that was great enough to be noticed by a Magi, why hadn¡¯t it appeared sooner? Why didn¡¯t she notice such a potent force, so she could use it to protect Kalesi? Similar thoughts of frustrated regret swam freely within Mevi¡¯s mind as she drifted into a listless state after laying against Kalesi¡¯s medical capsule.

    After a time, a new set of medical personnel arrived to relieve the old attendants. Mevi had been watching the work they did, and it seemed to mostly consist of monitoring dials and numbers on screens. No actual medical procedures were taking place that Mevi could recognize. Was Maphet and Odion¡¯s promise to simply keep Kalesi in stasis, or were they working in ways that Mevi simply didn¡¯t understand?

    The energetic woman, who had initially roused Mevi, still worked diligently at the devices nearby and Mevi watched with lazy interest from her post next to Kalesi¡¯s capsule. Some extra light had been raised while Mevi was gone, but she barely noticed. Yet Mevi was almost interested in the woman, her out-of-place personality and dark skin made a powerful impression. The woman, upon closer inspection, seemed to bear a beautiful caramel skin, and in her boundless energy, she noticed Mevi watching as she relayed some information to the new set of attendants. Her wide smile appeared almost instantly as Mevi was spotted watching them. With a few words of goodbye, the woman approached Mevi. Despite the ornery mood, and exhausted spirit, the woman still approached Mevi. Zelkan moved to try and stop her, but the medical attendant pushed past the man without any real effort. The woman placed herself sitting next to Mevi, and Mevi watched her cautiously. Looking up at Kalesi in the capsule, the woman asked, ¡°So who was she?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Mevi was confused by the sudden question, and almost intimidated by the woman¡¯s random approach.

    ¡°I wanted to know who she was! We are asked to do so many things, but tending to a person¡¯s health is not something we¡¯d consider normal. She must be a very important person!¡± The woman looked at Mevi, still with a wide grin on her face.

    ¡°She was¡­ She is my mentor. I was assigned to her¡­ It was only a few weeks ago, but she cared for me in ways I had never hoped to experience.¡±

    ¡°I can see why you care about her then. What kind of person was-¡± taking a moment to correct herself, the attendant emphasized her word, ¡°-is. What kind of person is she?¡±

    Mevi looked up at her suspended mentor, ¡°She was indomitable. Yet extremely kind. Even at my more selfish requests she gave great care and attention. When I might¡¯ve been more trouble than I was worth, she still stayed by my side¡­  Even at the expense of herself, she tried to protect me before even herself. Despite our short circumstances, I am very attached to her¡­ I am not exactly sure how to describe her in less words¡­ Or even if these are the right words to share my own care for her.¡±

    ¡°She sounds wonderful. To have a bond so strong that she¡¯d put herself in harm¡¯s way to save you, is an incredible feat. To have a love like that is a treasure.¡± The woman smiled warmly as if to comfort Mevi.

    They both sat and stared up at Kalesi¡¯s floating form for a few minutes. The odd woman eventually looked over at Mevi as if to study her. Then another wide grin widened before she declared,¡°Hi! I thought maybe I should introduce myself! I''m Saerin!¡±

    The sudden introduction almost startled Mevi, but she nodded at the energetic woman curtly, ¡°I am¡­ Mevi.¡±

    Standing up, Saerin asked, ¡°Do you want to go for a walk? We don¡¯t want you to get absorbed into the floor after all!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think,¡± Mevi couldn¡¯t finish her reply before Saerin began gathering Mevi to her feet.

    ¡°Then don¡¯t think! Its not good to think too hard about things you can¡¯t do anything about! Besides, if Kalesi is so wonderful; would she want you to sulk around sad all day waiting for her?¡±

    The words rang true with Mevi, Kalesi probably wouldn¡¯t want her to stand idly by and mope if there was nothing that could be done. Kalesi was proactive in that kind of way, always ready or quick to start something and not sit still if she could help it. Mevi, already on her feet, nodded quietly and was immediately dragged out of the room by Saerin. The woman was very energetic, and seemed to almost never be without a smile. The two escaped out of the dim and depressing lab, and Zelkan scuttled after the pair. The Sentinel was waiting near the doorway, and began following without issue. Saerin looked the golden-creature up and down for a moment before exiting, but shrugged, and continued to drag Mevi down the hallway.

    As they entered the light of the hallway Mevi could properly see Saerin for the first time. Her skin was the most striking appearance about her; a soft caramel with peppered freckles across most of her face and hints of more along her arms. Dark, and almost sparkling, onyx hair flowed like silk and was certainly the most luxuriously cared for hair Mevi had ever seen, even compared to her noble family. Saerin¡¯s eyes shone with an eager joy, almost like an innocent child on their way to play some extremely fun game. Their eye¡¯s sheen was offset from her dark hair, and almost seemed to glow within their deep purple that held a depth farther than any ocean. The glowing smile paired with her other features made a striking figure, especially framed against the white silks and melting blues borne on her robes. Mevi also noticed Saerin was without a mask, there was none hanging from her person or otherwise attached to her robes. Despite Mevi¡¯s intent to marvel in the woman¡¯s beauty, Saerin obviously had no time for dawdling.

    Searin, very excitedly, pulled Mevi with haste down the hallway. But after a few stumbling steps she slowed when she noticed Mevi¡¯s weakened state. They eventually slowed to a walk, and Mevi could catch her breath for a moment again. Saerin was all grins the entire walk, and in the brightened light she was framed in a previously hidden youth. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure, but they might¡¯ve been a similar age. Yet if Kalesi¡¯s assurances about age on the Barge were true, that many people live several hundred years, Saerin could be any age at all. Despite the unknownness, Saerin was possessed by a youth¡¯s attitude and a permanent positive mood. It wasn¡¯t a faked pleasantness like Naazir¡¯s plastered smile, but instead an almost glee at life on its own. After they walked a while, Mevi¡¯s curiosity sparked a question, ¡°Saerin¡­ Where are we going exactly?¡±

    An almost explosive smile erupted on the woman¡¯s face, like she hadn¡¯t anticipated Mevi¡¯s eagerness and was overwhelmingly surprised with glee, ¡°Ah! I said we were going for a walk but forgot to tell you where! I am an assistant in this lab division¡¯s but I''m so scatter-brained!¡± Saerin stopped mid sentence, as if reconsidering what to say, ¡°You know what! I¡¯ll keep it a surprise, since we¡¯ve gone this far already!¡±

    Mevi watched with slowly lessening caution, but was still wondering something else, ¡°Saerin, what are you?¡±

    ¡°Oh! Well I come from an old rock called Maen¡¯Ire, I believe we were called Maenites! I probably look a little strange compared to you don¡¯t I? Sorry if I startled you!¡±

    Embarrassed, Mevi corrected, ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t mean that¡­ I wanted to know, what exactly are you assigned as? Since I am a Socialite, or at least I think I am still one. I am not sure anymore how this works.¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry! Besides, I''m not anything special either! I was never assigned a real position. I was given as a tributary so my family could get some extra mana. Those that were given as tribute weren¡¯t really given real ranks, but I proved myself well enough that I was brought over to this lab division!¡±

    ¡°That is incredible, and almost similar to my own situation. I was given away by my family as well, but I suppose since I technically came from a noble house I received a higher rank¡­¡±

    A tinge of worry almost crossed Saerin¡¯s face for a brief moment, ¡°Ah, oh¡­ So should I call you, ¡®my lady¡¯? I was never good around nobles or formality stuff.¡±

    ¡°No! Don¡¯t worry, I was never really part of my family. Or at least I was made to feel like I wasn¡¯t¡­¡±

    Saerin¡¯s grin returned, ¡°Well that sounds like a lot! And what happened to me telling you not to think about things that you can¡¯t do anything about? If you dwell on bad memories, that is all you¡¯ll ever think about! If you can¡¯t change it, I say find a way to fix it or find a way to ignore it!¡±

    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    The strangely blunt reply took Mevi by surprise. The woman continued along like nothing had happened, and maintained a happy expression despite Mevi¡¯s glum mood. The woman¡¯s attitude was almost infectious. For a short time Mevi could almost ignore past issues, and focus on the idea that Kalesi would want her to focus on what she can do. The happy-go-lucky woman was almost similar to Kalesi, in a way like the other side of a strange coin. One side whose personality was tough, determined, and powerful. While the other was almost carefree and overwhelmingly determined, yet only to be positive. Despite the difference, both focus on the now and what can be done to ensure a better future. Mevi felt herself give way to a small smirk, just in time for Saerin to stop in front of an ornate doorway. Turning to Mevi, Searin whispered, ¡°Are you ready?¡± Before Mevi could respond, Saerin activated a small panel beside the door to open it.

    Suddenly, Mevi was thrust into the pages of the ancient documents she treasured in the dark. Beholding the very picture of nature, it was like a grand artisan was commissioned to paint a most glorious imagination of what ¡®nature¡¯ meant to them. After several moments of confusion, Mevi realized it was actually a door; which led into a grand arboretum. Striking upwards like the bones of giants, objects Mevi could only assume were trees towered higher than the farthest reaches she could fathom; their canopy eclipsing any sight beyond. Rows of thick trunks led a path covered in autumn leaves, their varied reaches bearing branches which produced exotic fruits. A singing whistle gusted through the leaves high above, and a smell not before experienced pushed past Mevi and into the hallway behind her. Walking into the strange world, Mevi was overwhelmed by the grandness of nature; the tall trees reached upwards like grasping hands from some long-sleeping giant whose fingers erupted from the ground.

    Mevi¡¯s attention was brought downward, following the guiding point of Saerin. The ground was initially seen to be covered in fallen leaves, but as Mevi watched closer it was observed that was only partially true. Many thousands of varying flowers, mushrooms, and strange grass stretched outward between the wide earthbones. A mesmerizing array of color swirled in subtle patterns as one species of flower gave way to a new hybrid with a new vibrance. A small path was made, where leaves had fallen and coated the once cobbled stone pathway. This powerful display of nature¡¯s beauty consumed any hint of civilization. Even as Mevi turned back to where they had come, the walls were thick with strange leaves and vines that crawled up the sides of the subdued marble.

    Mevi marveled at the nature around her, whatever woes and dread she had was being eaten away at by the presence of such natural beauty. Mevi found herself unconsciously walking the paths, unhindered by the delicate leaves that crunched underfoot. Her delicate step ignored most of the fallen vegetation, and almost like she was born in such a place, Mevi trailed past the sprawling horde of plantlife as if it could never burden her step.

    Lost in the spiraling branches, and almost other-worldly colors, Mevi began to follow her heart¡¯s lead and became pulled into the nature. The smell and presence around her began to lull Mevi into an unknown mood. She was almost serene, a concept only known to Mevi in definition. The spinning colors almost confused her, before she realized she was the one spinning. Mevi had begun a dryad¡¯s dance as she delved deeper into the tall forest. Skipping and turning from rock to moss, and moss to root, Mevi danced playfully through the trees without a single plant¡¯s injury. In her innocent exploration, she was vaguely aware of her following aids and Saerin. Saerin followed almost apace with Mevi, while Zelkan stumbled across the winding pathways in a desperate attempt to keep up and follow the two girl¡¯s prancing steps. The Sentinel walked through most vegetation, yet despite their heavy steps almost no plants seemed hurt by the golden creature¡¯s lumbering.

    Mevi found herself wandering into the deepest parts of the strange forest, leaf and branch so thick little light beamed to the ground. Here Mevi felt even more accustomed, the dim interior paired with the possessing power of nature almost put her into a full trance. Saerin followed with growing difficulty, missing a step or two as the shade covered her pathway. In some feat of extroversion, Mevi brought herself to Saerin¡¯s side to help lead her as guide. The two danced in a strange gathering of intertwining steps, helping one another over obstacle and catching each other¡¯s falls. An almost-whirlwind of dried leaves followed their steps as they flew across the rolling hills and bumps.

    As Mevi and Saerin flew in the forest¡¯s dim, they fell suddenly through a patch of vines. What they assumed had solid ground on the other side, instead gave way to a small slope, and as they skid across the dirty ground they came to a slow rolling stop at the bottom. Here, in a hidden grove, light shone brightly when before the canopy covered most illumination. As the two lay on the ground, a feeling began to bubble from Mevi¡¯s core. Unlike her previous day¡¯s stress, fear, dread, and sadness; it was instead a happy feeling. An infectious glee that stretched Mevi¡¯s face into a rare smile. Suddenly Saerin began laughing, a slow giggle that grew into hearty cries of joy. Mevi held back her instincts, but the powerful smile and extraordinary environment defeated her and turned her into a giggling mess. As the two laughed into the wind, the thick foliage echoed their glee upwards into strange echoing noises. The odd effect only increased the laughter, and led to a continued mirth.

    After a short time, Mevi and Searin eventually found their wits again. Yet even after the glee subsided, their smiles remained as they stared upwards. The thick canopy stopped just past the edge of the basin, and beyond was a strange golden sky. Thick clouds continued to blow past, and the unnatural weather billowed around far-off towers. Their sky was golden and powerful, the great ceiling of the Barge that seemed impossibly faraway. Mevi had never truly looked up before, not braving the towering features and darting vessels. Yet here, in this grove, the sky was almost clear and the golden expanse was plainly visible above them. Saerin interrupted Mevi¡¯s skygazing, ¡°Do you feel better now? Few people are powerful enough to resist Lord Odion¡¯s gardens!¡±

    Mevi sat up, and looked at Saerin almost in disbelief, ¡°Odion made this place? It seems so¡­ wild.¡±

    A short alarm crossed Saerin¡¯s face, and Mevi realized her casual address of Odion, but Saerin seemed to forget or ignore it shortly after, ¡°Yes! Lord Odion loves to archive and record all things. I believe he collects any and all samples he can get whenever the Barge stops at a new planet. He has a museum of rocks, but they are much less exciting!¡±

    ¡°Does Lord Odion let anyone into these places? It seems like it would be important to protect them, if they are specimens of his.¡±

    ¡°Our lords are very gracious, and Lord Odion especially. He keeps singular samples in a private archive, and grows the rest so he can record their natural process. I am sure one of his constructs will arrive soon to attempt to record our effects on the environment.¡±

    Mevi looked out at the small grove. Only a few meters wide, and very small dip that flattens at the bottom like a miniature crater. Thick moss grows along every surface, with budding flowers peeking out of the surface in such abundance as grass. In every small surface there were tens, if not hundreds, of diverse flowers. Their colors range brighter and more elegant than any book¡¯s attempted description. Such a beautiful place, created by such an orderly entity. That idea by itself was almost amusing to Mevi, and her own smile widened in a similar fashion to Saerin¡¯s. The two were grinning like fools as they sat in the soft moss, surrounded by nature¡¯s bountiful beauty. They relaxed for a while, before Mevi could hear Zelkan¡¯s distant calling of her name. Saerin seemed to notice it too, and giggled to herself. Mevi asked a question before Saerin could begin to pick herself up, ¡°Saerin¡­ Why did you ask me to come? It is strange, this place almost makes me feel rejuvenated. This kind of peace within nature; I had only ever seen sketches made by long-dead historians. I could never have dreamed of a place like this.¡±

    ¡°Well you seemed sad. I really hate people being sad, or feeling sorry for themselves. So it was as much for you as for me!¡±

    The simple answer caught Mevi off-guard, but wasn¡¯t an unpleasant reply, ¡°Thank you Saerin¡­ It is hard to describe what this place did for me. If you wouldn''t'' mind, would you come here with me again sometime?¡±

    ¡°Of course I will, I will take any excuse to drag someone into our small patch of nature! But if you want to go to the rock museum, please ask Zelkan or your Sentinel. I¡¯ll stick with flowers.¡±

    Mevi smiled, and felt a truly warm grace fall over her. The sudden, and unhesitated, kindness was still new to Mevi. Only Kalesi had given her kindness so freely. Zelkan, despite whatever his intentions were, seemed to try his best. As the thought crossed her mind, Mevi suddenly felt wrong. As she thought about it further, when she was put off by his sudden care in imitation of Kalesi, Mevi had probably been rude to him. Even if forced, for some unknown duty, it was wrong for Mevi to have spurned him and run away without a word.

    Mevi and Saerin helped each other up, and they climbed out of the small grove. Back in the dim shade of the canopy, Mevi gathered herself next to Saerin. In the distance, with his back turned to them, Zelkan shouted Mevi¡¯s name with worry. The Sentinel stood some ten meters away from where Mevi and Saerin had fallen, and seemed unfazed by their appearance. Watching from a distance, but not reacting or approaching, the Sentinel nodded at Mevi. The unexpected interaction caught Mevi off guard, in what felt like a continuous trend of surprises. After they walked away from the small pit, Mevi called Zelkan¡¯s name to get his attention. The man turned and raced to Mevi with incredible worry obvious as he stumbled over rock and root.

    After Mevi was inspected, and the dirt and mud scrutinized by Zelkan¡¯s nitpicking, the group was reunited. Zelkan swore to them that he would not leave more than a meter away from now on, even if he had to step on a flower to do so. The concern was appreciated with her new perspective, and Mevi¡¯s previous smile leaked back into her mood to create a small upward twist on her lips. Zelkan, during his small lecture about safety and staying together, noticed the expression and seemed to soften as well. The four, reunited, went back to the main path to walk its natural beauty along the defined walkways. Just as Saerin had assumed, Mevi swore she spotted a small brass creature crawling under the foliage and flowers. The tiny skittering barely noticeable as it intently investigated each footprint and impression that hadn¡¯t been there before.

    After the group walked the paths, and seemed to have returned to their original entrance, Zelkan received some message. The sudden serious tone replaced his previously good mood. Looking at Saerin, Zelkan said, ¡°Lab-Tech Saerin. I appreciate your help, and company, with my lady, Mevi. But I must ask you to leave us now, so I can discuss something privately with her.¡±

    Saerin¡¯s grin lowered for a few moments to allow formality to take hold, ¡°Of course Steward Zelkan.¡± Turning back to Mevi, and giving a little wave, Saerin exited the arboretum back into the hallway.

    ¡°My lady, Councilor Maphet has sent a missive. The ritual for your presentation is being prepared. Our new task is to ready you for the ritual, and outfit you appropriately. I must ask that you follow me.¡±

    Not seeing any other choice, Mevi agreed to Zelkan¡¯s request. The ritual, whatever it was, seemed to bring a grave attitude over his mood. But even as they left the arboretum, and began their trek down unfamiliar hallways, Mevi mentally noted Zelkan¡¯s rank as a ¡®Steward¡¯.

    The three walked down the hallway for some time. Entering new areas Mevi hadn¡¯t gone yet, and going deep within the still unknown facility. After their travel, Zelkan brought Mevi to a large room. One that was all too familiar. A dressing chamber, mirror and racks of cloth placed against the walls and all. The dreaded picking of clothes, and pinning of cloth, would soon commence as Mevi¡¯s newest torture.

 Chapter 30: To Become a Magis Apprentice

    Mevi was presented by Zelkan to a group of excited stylists and tailors. Mevi almost thought she knew what to expect from them, but her brief experience from her own House¡¯s staff paled in comparison to the experts gathered. The moment Mevi stepped through the door she was met with the fawning squeals of her new caretakers. Fully dressed in formal attire themselves, the figures sported some of the most extravagant interpretations on Maphet¡¯s regalia given to her followers. Their own robes flowed like water off their persons, a dazzling effect produced by the glimmering sheen embedded into the fine cloth intertwined around their bodies in complex layers. Attached to their shoulders were spiring epaulets designed to follow a plume¡¯s wisping into the air. The strangeness of their dress was held even more obvious when they stood next to Zelkan¡¯s comparably simple white and blue robes. The masks they wore were animated with a smokey effect, like clouds billowing within the sky¡¯s blue embrace.

    Mevi was pulled within the bowls of the dressing room by the swarming attendants, and was effectively abandoned by Zelkan as he stood quietly near the doorway. Trying her best to follow the strangers, Mevi was stripped of what few clothes she was dressed in. A sense of deja vu passed over her when she was essentially carried and then thrust suddenly into another bubbling bath. This time, however, the liquid and soap was warm and comfortable instead of the artificial-feeling substance Mevi recalled was used by her House. As Mevi was scrubbed clean, dirt and dust she didn¡¯t know she carried was annihilated in the face of the attendant¡¯s determination.

    While Mevi was being washed, she could occasionally hear low chittering and clicking that seemed to be coming from her attendants. No real words were spoken between them, but the odd clicks were exchanged in rapid succession. Where Mevi was, she could not see Zelkan, but his voice called out from a distance, ¡°My lady does not have a neural implant, only a very basic translator. You must speak in words she might understand.¡± Mevi surfaced from the sea of bubbles, being repeatedly submerged to allow a deeper soak. Her newest attendants paused her cleaning to talk with each other in their odd language. One of their number looked down at Mevi and cocked their head while they struggled to speak, ¡°Isk¡­ Pratty. You!... Yesh!¡± A collection of replies and, what seemed like agreement, thundered from the odd attendants. Their agreement seemed unanimous as they all nodded to each other while Mevi caught her breath from the violent bath.

    The odd creatures continued to clean Mevi until no stain or blemish remained. One of their group called out in some clicking sort of question while the rest began removing Mevi from the bath. Mevi was held by the arms by two of the attendants for a brief moment, half soaking in the water half dragged out. While they spoke she tried her best not to struggle against their intentions, but the drastic change in air temperature and warm water caused her to start shivering. The lone figure then pointed to Mevi, as if she had proven their point. The group of them stood there, and Mevi could now count five total, then started talking in deliberation about something. It took less than a minute for them to come to a conclusion, where Mevi was then put back into the bath gently. As the foaming bubbles were pushed aside from the waves made after her reentry, one of the figures leaned in again and attempted to speak once more, ¡°You¡­ cit? Shtay! Waet, yesh?¡±

    Mevi looked around in hopes to see Zelkan, but he was nowhere near, ¡°I am sorry, I don¡¯t really understand,¡± apologized Mevi.

    A different attendant attempted to speak to her, ¡°Waker¡­ Isk, goud. Yesh?¡±

    The figure pointed at the water in the bath, and Mevi thought she understood, ¡°Oh! Do you want me to wait in the bath?¡±

    A celebration of clicking and chittering erupted from the gathered attendants, the figure who had made the headway with Mevi spoke again, ¡°Yesh! Yesh! Waker goud!¡±

    The odd figures clicked at each other in a sort of joyous tone. They seemed extremely proud of their speaking abilities, and Mevi was amused at their pure joy at such simple words. Assuming they wanted her to stay in the bath for longer, Mevi probed the tub carefully with her feet. The tub looked like it could comfortably fit four or five people, but as Mevi traced the tub¡¯s depth it dived deep suddenly. The tub became deeper in steps, and near its center Mevi couldn¡¯t feel the bottom without submerging herself further than her head. Looking over to her odd caretakers, Mevi made her way back to the edge where a raised step allowed her to rest comfortably with her head just above the liquid. Her audience seemed indifferent to her as she explored the edge of the tub, but they seemed to watch her every movement without further words or more chittering noises. Mevi began to trace the circumference of the tub before finally settling to soak in the warm liquid.

    The strange substance didn¡¯t seem to be water, despite what Mevi¡¯s attendants said in their attempted translations. The liquid was almost like a gel, but Mevi could still move freely within it as if it were water. The substance stuck to her skin in gelatinous clumps when removed from the main mass and exposed to air, but showed almost no resistance to her movements while she stayed mostly submerged. The odd liquid seemed to soak into her skin, and it made whatever it soaked into soft and smooth to the touch. Mevi had been thoroughly washed in the gel-like-liquid by her still-watching attendants, and as she experimented with the substance, some of them cocked their heads in curiosity. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what they were doing, or why she was being left to her own devices within the tub, so Mevi swam to the edge nearest to the attendants. Curiosity growing, Mevi asked her audience, ¡°Are you able to understand me?¡±

    All five of the watchers nodded their heads in response, and seemed eager to listen further.

    ¡°I was wondering what I should be doing in here, if anything.¡±

    The group of strangers looked at each other and engaged in their clicking language for a moment before one looked back and spoke, ¡°Egoy?... Waker, isk goud?¡±

    ¡°Are you asking if I enjoy this?¡±

    Furious nodding followed while some of their group seemed gleeful at the successful communication.

    ¡°I suppose this is comfortable. If I am to stay here for my own enjoyment I think I would, however, prefer to finish our preparations instead.¡±

    The group of attendants chittered with each other for a few more moments before coming to some conclusion. Two of them went to pull Mevi out of the tub, but Mevi was already crawling out to preemptively follow their instructions. Mevi was almost grabbed to be dragged away again but she intercepted their intentions, ¡°I would prefer to follow you on my own, if that is possible. It was a little surprising to be dragged into¡­ water¡­ so suddenly.¡± The creatures stopped in their tracks and talked to each other as they seemed to realize something, and a gloom draped over them. The nearest attendant began clicking feverishly at Mevi, and she assumed it was some panicked apology to her. Mevi tried to calm them down, realizing how deeply they all seemed to have taken her request, ¡°I wasn¡¯t hurt! Just surprised! I wasn¡¯t insulted or anything like that, this might just be easier for me to walk on my own from now on.¡± The chittering calmed down as the creatures were reassured by Mevi¡¯s words. They seemed to recover quickly, and instead of dragging Mevi away one of them took her hand gently and led her at a quick pace out of the bathing room.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure where her meager coverings had gone, and her attendants didn¡¯t seem to care that she was still without modesty. Mevi did her best to cover herself as she was eagerly led out of the warm room. They exited from the comfortable warmth into a comparably freezing dressing room. It seemed to be a different section of the same area she had originally entered, separated by a wall with a door that idled open. The attendants divided into their own tasks and Mevi was placed upon a short platform. The attendants clicked at each other in communication, and were cobbling together clothes and items in various colors at a nearby table. They seemed to have already decided what fabrics and colors to use, and were compiling them in a sort of assembly line.

    After they had left Mevi alone for a few moments, one of the attendants took a piece that was apparently finished at the end of their line and darted to Mevi. The cloth was draped over her, a loose robe sewn expertly together that was the color of a light sky. Mevi was a little less embarrassed now, being covered by something, but the robe seemed to only stretch just above her knees. Mevi was uncomfortable with the lack of normal underclothes, and unconsciously began trying to stretch and pull the robe¡¯s ends past her knees as an anxious feeling began to creep in. The attendants didn¡¯t seem to notice, and continued their remarkably quick assembly line.

    Mevi was left to her anxiety on the short platform, rising high enough to make her unreasonably nervous of falling off the fairly small height. Another collection of pieces were produced and brought to Mevi, instead of dressing her themselves Mevi was simply handed a collection of fabrics before the attendant returned to work. Inspecting the collection, Mevi realized it was luxuriously soft and expertly fitted underclothes. A simple top and bottoms that fit so comfortably it made Mevi wonder when she had been measured so accurately. Taking no time to question the boon, Mevi dressed while hiding under the small robes. After she finished, the attendant quickly returned and seemed to wait for something. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what they were doing, or what they wanted, but the creature mustered the words to ask, ¡°Isk, closes? Close fit? Yesh?¡±

    Mevi suspected that the creature meant ¡®clothes¡¯ but nodded saying, ¡°Yes. They fit very well, thank you.¡±

    Without asking any permissions, the attendant nodded and started to remove the blue robe. Mevi was left cold again, but more modest than she was before the robe at least. As the strange attendants continued their work, Mevi watched them curiously. The five of them worked at a remarkable speed, and continued to look back at Mevi as if just staring was enough to measure her. Mevi stood on the small platform for a while, a subtle boredom replaced her anxieties and anxious feelings. After what felt like an hour or two, but was probably much shorter, the attendants slowly stopped their work while they chittered with each other eagerly. A collection of clothes, cloth, and fabrics were piled at the end of their assembly line and the last of their group finished the work by connecting the last few pieces together.

    The attendants finished their project, and they were almost surprised by their own work. The accumulation of their efforts were collected on the table and they stared at their own creation with such fascination. Mevi could not see what they had produced, and was curious to see what captivated them so entirely. As she looked on she secretly wished they would hurry, she stood almost nude in the middle of a strange room. Despite the comfortable underclothes, she was still cold on the small platform. As a small shiver passed over her, one of the attendants broke from the trance enchanted by whatever they had made and noticed Mevi waiting patiently. The quick clicking notified the rest to their true task, and their number began returning to the task at hand.

    Mevi was suddenly swarmed by the five individuals while they dressed, fitted, and tightened elegant silken cloth over her. The flurry of movements prevent Mevi from really seeing the fabric beyond the hints of white and blue obvious from underneath the fabrics. Effectively buried in soft fabric, Mevi was positioned in odd ways by her attendants while they bound the clothes together. When Mevi¡¯s head emerged from the whirlwind of cloth, her eyes were suddenly covered by a pair of gloved hands. A short, ¡°Supies¡± was her only answer about why she was suddenly blinded. Mevi tried to protest but the eagerness from her captors quelled most of her attempts. After a few more moments of frantic dressing, Mevi¡¯s attendants seemed to finish. A clatter of noise and movement sounded from around her as it seemed like furniture was being dragged across the stone floor. Then, as the sound died down, her vision was restored.

    Mevi was surrounded by her own aspect, mirrored images of herself from every direction. In those images she saw a beauty not revealed even by her family¡¯s expertise. Mevi was gowned in an elegant dress of a cosmic blue reminiscent of Maphet¡¯s own image, along with a base of silken white. Her chest was partially revealed exposing her subtle cleavage, which was almost propped up by the tightness she felt; a corset with gold inlaid in a style of stretching roots that eventually converge, and disappear, into two great branches that wrapped around the entire waist¡¯s edge. The corset glittered as if it were made of sapphire and topaz jewels. Exiting from the corset¡¯s bottom was flowing white silks that billowed, in an almost weightless way, to her ankles. The dress¡¯s skirt billowed subtly, even without wind, and when it would twist and overlap a vision of a soft blue sky escaped before the cloth collapsed atop itself and became silken white again. Placed delicately atop Mevi¡¯s shoulders was both a long hanging cloak tied together with a simple blue bow, buttoned with a rose crest, and a loosely fitted white sleeve that stretched down to her wrists hanging from delicate strings, attached to the dress¡¯ top. The sleeves bore a swirling blue stripe traced from her shoulder to her wrist in twisting and spiraling designs. The cloak was even more impressive, the overside of the cloak shimmered like a sky¡¯s swirling blues with flecks of white clouds, while the underside sparkled with glowing starlight placed upon a calm night sky. The dress and cloak seemed to defy what little Mevi understood about clothing, it was almost like thousands of jewels were intertwined into the fabric itself to produce the otherworldly shimmering. Yet even as Mevi was enchanted by watching the dress; the design, shimmer, and placement of colors shifted or disappeared in ways that cloth surely couldn¡¯t produce. Despite Mevi¡¯s own disbelief of the attire, the enchanting regalia shone in a powerful resemblance to Maphet¡¯s own designs.

    Mevi continued to look at the dress, spinning on the platform to produce a shimmering sparkle that almost seemed to escape and dazzle the air around her. Mevi thought it impossible for her to wear something so extravagantly beautiful, an item such as this seemed something exclusive to a Magi¡¯s station. As she became enchanted by the elegance, Mevi idly wondered how such an artifact could be made in the short time the attendants had. Echoing footsteps sounded behind Mevi, and a short gasp escaped a man behind her. Mevi saw, through an opening where a mirror wasn¡¯t placed, Zelkan had entered the room and stood in awe of Mevi¡¯s attire. Mevi reflected his disbelief and awe, and still couldn¡¯t believe she was wearing such an alien beauty. Zelkan spoke his approval with a short clap, ¡°I have seen many a wonder you five created from a distance, but this is truly magnificent.¡±

    The five attendants clicked and chittered, from somewhere beyond the mirrors, in response.

    Mevi spoke up after finishing her last spin, ¡°Forgive me for asking, but I must know your names. Something like this¡­ It is wasted on me in its great beauty.¡±

    The attendants stepped into view while clicking their strange language, Zelkan spoke on their behalf, ¡°They have no name. They call themselves the Seamstresses. They came from a remote planet, where all their kind are connected in a semi-shared mind. They are also the only number of their kind within the Barge, their colony having only donated one tribute per visit.¡±

    ¡°So they have no names? Could I see their faces then?¡± asked Mevi.

    Zelkan didn¡¯t respond, but the Seamstresses chittered with each other for a short time. After their deliberation, they removed their masks one by one. Under their coverings it almost appeared as if there was a second armored mask, with small slits where their eyes might gaze through. After a moment of confusion Mevi realized the chitinous mask was actually their face. Their armored platings were a deep maroon color, and overlapped into an almost triangular meeting at the middle of their face. The bottom half of their head was entirely dedicated to four sharp mandibles, which clicked and clattered in the way Mevi recognized as their speech. The five creatures looked at Mevi with varying gazes of, what Mevi assumed, was expectancy. Like they were expecting her to react in some way and were bracing themselves for some kind of angry interaction. They held themselves hesitantly, unsure about Mevi. Yet Mevi was not scared, instead she was boundlessly curious. The Seamstresses easily had the strangest appearances she had seen on the Barge, while also having a mostly humanoid form. Mevi stepped out from the circle of mirrors and spoke softly, as to not scare the nervous Seamstresses, ¡°Your appearance¡­ It is amazing. I¡¯ve never seen something like it. I almost wish less of Lord Councilor Maphet¡¯s followers would wear their masks, simply so I could see such impressive peoples. Your work is amazing, and entirely higher than my greatest expectation! I thank you for preparing and fitting this dress for me.¡±

    After Mevi¡¯s thankful words, the Seamstresses chittered excitedly at each other. Then before a moment had fully passed, the five of them clamored atop Mevi in a pile of hugs and soft clicking. Mevi was almost buried, while standing, by the five Seamstresses¡¯ affection. Zelkan called out to Mevi with a small laugh, ¡°I believe they like you. They say you are welcome to call on their skills anytime.¡± Mevi wanted to give additional thanks, but was busy being smothered by clicking affection. While the five of them hugged or otherwise showed Mevi affection, they occasionally bumped their forehead against her body in a soft way. Mevi assumed it was some strange greeting or nonverbal message, and soon Mevi escaped their attention when they released her back to Zelkan. Zelkan stared for a while, dazzled by the enchantment Mevi¡¯s new attire produced. When he regained his focus he spoke to Mevi, ¡°I know this might seem hasty, but we must now rush away. Our Lord Maphet bade us to rush the ritual. We must proceed immediately to where it will be held.¡±

    Mevi was worried, ¡°What would I be doing during this ritual? I don¡¯t think I am prepared for any type of formality.¡±

    ¡°I will attempt to explain while we walk, but you must otherwise attempt to follow the instruction of our Lord Maphet and Lord Odion.¡±

    Zelkan guided Mevi out of the Seamstresses¡¯ workshop. As they left, the five of the Seamstresses waved and clicked their goodbyes. Mevi was altogether rushed out of the place, quickly rejoined by the golden Sentinel who had no visible reaction to Mevi¡¯s new attire. As the three were fully rejoined together again, they rushed through the various hallways within the facility. As they made to turn the first corner, Zelkan finally began his explanation after seeming to organize his thoughts, ¡°Our Lords have prepared a public ritual, where they will declare you as Lord Maphet¡¯s Magi Apprentice. It will be broadcast throughout the Barge, but attended exclusively by Lord Maphet and Lord Odion.¡± Taking a moment to think again, Zelkan became quiet to further organize himself. Beginning again, after they quickened from a walk to a more brisk pace, ¡°I cannot guess what exactly you need to do. I will be honest, this sort of thing has not happened in my time within the Barge. I do know that you will be asked to walk down a long path, where you will be likely watched by many invisible eyes. When you reach the end, both of our lords will be waiting. You might be presented with questions, and demanded for oaths to be made. If you are questioned, you must answer honestly, and pledge yourself as they ask. If they are unsatisfied, you will not become a Magi Apprentice.¡±

    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Zelkan finished his statement with a graveness in his voice. Mevi was surprised by his lack of knowledge, or maybe at the rushed nature of the entire ritual. Mevi had assumed she would have time to gather herself, or to attempt to read some of the books Maphet had provided. Yet instead Mevi was being thrust into an unknown ritual unexpectedly fast. Despite the oddness of the situation, and the lack of information, Mevi was still determined to see this event through.

    As Mevi and her two attendants rounded a final corner, they were met with a wide hallway approaching a grand door. The device was intricately carved with thousands of unknown words and symbols. Icons of glowing avatars acted out nameless scenes, always towering over smaller figures within the image. The doors bore one, chest-high, depression that glowed a partial blue. It looked like an interface of some kind. With the door being, easily, ten meters high; it struck an imposing presence. Mevi was stopped at the corner, while Zelkan and the Sentinel watched her patiently. A small stress was trying to overtake Mevi¡¯s confidence and willpower, but she fought it back down into whatever pit it came from. Mevi¡¯s dawdling, and basking at the grand doorway, seemed to give Zelkan an amount of impatient anxiety. A small whisper from Zelkan begged, ¡°My lady¡­ We really must hurry to the ritual¡­¡±

    Mevi mustered her confidence, ¡°Then we should proceed shouldn¡¯t we?¡±

    Mevi brought her determination forth, and her little confidence dismayed the anxiety of the situation. As Mevi continued forward, she reminded herself that she must pass this next trial for the sake of Kalesi. She must dedicate herself to Maphet in order to have her mentor returned to her in one piece. Mevi approached the strange console at the base of the intimidating golden doors. Zelkan and the Sentinel stood at the end of the hallway, and as Mevi noticed an amount of her little confidence fled to stay behind with them. Zelkan¡¯s face was fully hidden from this distance, his empty mask swirled with whites and blues in the digital display.

    Turning back, Mevi examined the console. The device had an outline of a hand emblazoned into the digital surface. Mevi tentatively reached out a hand to the display, and placed it onto the surface. The console lit up, and seemed to scan a line of light up and down her hand resting on its surface. When it finished the strange task, the lights within the console dimmed and disappeared.

    As the device deactivated, a seam appeared in the golden doorways. Like interlocking gears, the seam separated one door from the other and the console was slowly captured by the door retracting leftwards. The two doors separated, and retracted into the walls fully. From the other side a blinding light shone suddenly into the hallway, blocking Mevi¡¯s view, and with the light a choir of aetherial music melted slowly into Mevi¡¯s ears. A slow and soft buildup rose as the doors continued to open fully. When the doors fully opened themselves, the choir reached their crescendo and held the note for several moments before returning to their soft and magical tune.

    The blindness receded, and Mevi did her best to maintain composure in the strange place. As her vision adjusted to the bright light, she could see the chapel¡¯s nave stretched far longer than any length reasonably should. The towering altar at the end of the nave climbed upwards many meters as long stairs carved upwards. While all along the floor were marble tiles, with inlays of gold and blue gemstone forming swirling cracks in the white stone. The walls seemed to grow out of the ground itself, towering taller than even the Education Forum¡¯s massive walls. The high walls, whose ceiling disappeared in misting clouds, were carved with the images of thousands of staring figures all wearing masks plated with blue stone.

    The span of area to walk was long, and almost seemed treacherous. The stretching expanse seemed much farther than it was a moment ago, and Mevi suddenly felt herself become slightly dizzy as the intimidating aura of the chapel attacked her. Mevi felt as if there was some second door, invisible to the eye, preventing her entry as she looked inward. Yet Mevi was resolute, and refused to give into simple anxieties. Pushing herself forward, she forced her way past some invisible barrier. As Mevi passed the threshold of the door, she felt as if suddenly released from a tight grip. The dizziness passed almost as soon as it took hold, and Mevi was within the chapel.

    When Mevi stumbled into the grand hall, a sort of buzzing came to life around her. Almost as if many small bugs flew around her ears and head, and as she gathered herself she somehow knew that the strange buzzing were watching entities. Several invisible entities followed Mevi closely, as if to annoy or stall her. Yet Mevi brushed away the feeling, and with her conscious denial of the buzzing entities, she thus lessened their presence. With the buzzing lessened, Mevi began walking forward. As she took her first step an unknown voice echoed loudly around her, ¡°Who are you to enter here?¡±

    Mevi was startled, but recalled Zelkan said she would be asked questions and only briefly hesitated, ¡°I am Mevare Bensari, of House Bensari from the Moon Baes of Baes.¡±

    The echoing question diminished into nothing, and with its presence gone Mevi began walking forward again. As she began forward, a deep gong sounded somewhere in the distance and its force seemed to shake Mevi¡¯s surroundings. Mevi did her best to stay balanced, and continued forward while attempting to maintain composure. As the gong¡¯s sound echoed into nothing, the room seemed to almost shorten. Or perhaps, Mevi thought, she was brought forward in some way. Mevi could not risk looking behind, any movement beyond progression could be seen as denial or fear. As the room finished its movement, another voice called out in the echoing hall, ¡°You who enter here, what brought you here?¡±

    Mevi was expecting another question now, and was able to respond immediately, ¡°I was brought as a supplement to a Lord Magi, given to the Barge as tribute.¡±

    The voice diminished again, and the sounding gong echoed once more but seemed slightly closer now. Mevi continued to walk forward, trying not to be dismayed by the strange voices and the intimidating structure. The chapel seemed to shorten in its expanse, but even while the length shrunk the walls seemed to stretch. The looming figures carved into the walls seemed stretched, elongated, and much more alien than they were before. The gangly carvings stared down at Mevi, and somehow she felt their eyes on her despite the stone mask carved over their unknown faces. Mevi could only guess at what this hall was originally meant for, or if it was somehow prepared for this ritual how long ago was it made? The Magi and their whims held no clear direction or honest reason, at least none that Mevi could decipher. As Mevi continued to walk forward, another new voice called out to her again, ¡°Do you hesitate? What are you to question a Magi¡¯s will?¡±

    Mevi was almost stumped by the second part, but recalled Zelkan¡¯s advice about honesty, ¡°I do hesitate, but only due to my mortal confusion. I will never question my Lord Magi¡¯s will.¡±

    The voice echoed into nothing once again, and while it took a few moments longer than it had before, the gong soon sounded after the voice¡¯s disappearance. The length shortened again, and Mevi could almost reach the base of the stair¡¯s climb. The walls were impossibly tall now, in a way that only an illusion could produce; the looming figures stretched and bent like a curving ceiling hanging over Mevi¡¯s head, yet while still climbing forever upwards. The piercing gazes attempted to distract and dissuade Mevi after her previous show of hesitation, regardless of how momentary it was, Mevi willed herself to ignore the looming carvings. She assured herself they were not real, and could not be real. It was an illusionist''s trick to deceive and distract, a test of her willpower and courage against such intimidations. Another voice called out, almost as if monitoring her internal thoughts and emotions to wait for an opening in her concentration, ¡°You who might climb to reach us, what worth do you offer that we might want you?¡±

    Mevi knew the answer in her heart, as it was the same she would give to Kalesi, ¡°I offer no worth. I only offer all that I am, and all that I might become.¡±

    As Mevi answered this seemingly final question posed by the disembodied voices, the choir rose in their power and the gong began to echo loudly before even the last vestiges of the voice¡¯s question diminished from its echo. The loud music, once soft and serene, was almost like a crashing river of building emotions. The feelings they created within Mevi seemed to almost fan whatever might have already been there. Her anxiety grew with the rising tide of the choir, and her heartbeat mimicked the pace of the echoing gong¡¯s ringing. Before Mevi could gain her strength once again, the world began to shrink. Mevi was pulled forward, but also upward, like she was gliding over the steps without actually moving her legs over them. When Mevi¡¯s world came to a halt, and her feet were her own again, she could see them at the top of the tall stairs. Maphet and Odion, in all their glory, sat at the top of the altar.

    Maphet sat in a tall throne, which was made to be simple and wooden with a shining white-blue orb as the centerpiece at the chair''s upper length; she sat at the center of the altar and on its highest peak, and loomed down at Mevi in her ornate regalia that Mevi recalled from before. Odion was one step below her in a similar throne, save for his orb was instead earthen stone with swirls of green; he sat in his own robes, however his mantel of blue nimbus and mask were changed to match the color of the orb that hung above him. The striking figures now both displayed their true colors, and what little skin was visible from Odion shone with nature¡¯s splendor rather than in mimicry of his wife¡¯s motifs. They both radiated power and knowledge, in ways Mevi couldn¡¯t possibly describe. Their mere presence and stature made to convince all who saw them of their significant confidence, and it was surely not arrogance but rather pure and earned confidence.

    Mevi was in control over her own feet again, but was so intimidated that she could not tell if she should approach or wait for command. Hesitating, Mevi spent a moment too long standing still, and basking in the two Magi¡¯s aura. Odion turned his head to look at Maphet, and a wordless interaction was exchanged between them. Then Odion turned back, and spoke, ¡°Mevare of House Bensari, approach us and answer your oaths.¡± Mevi quickly followed the command and began to slowly walk up the steps. As Mevi began her ascent Odion called out again, ¡°Who do you serve?¡±

    Mevi tried to keep her answers simple, to not err during their questioning, ¡°I serve Lord Councilor, Maphet, The Magi of Knowledge.¡±

    ¡°Do you serve any other Magi, beyond my wife?¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if that was a trick question, all she knew was that Odion was subservient to Maphet and was therefore not necessarily her master, ¡°I serve only the will and desire of my Lord, Maphet.¡±

    The steps were still tall, and many before Mevi still laid, but after her last answer they seemed to shorten in height. The amount she needed to walk lessened, and the two Magi came closer to her. Mevi decided to continue to climb upwards, as to meet the Magi. As she continued to climb Odion asked another question, ¡°Where do your loyalties lie? You may serve my wife, but do you serve wholly?¡±

    Mevi was conflicted with this answer, and she almost fought against herself between an answer that they might want and what was the truth, ¡°My lords, I serve you body and soul. But my heart is split in two, one goes to my Lord Maphet and the other to my sister. I cannot deny the truth.¡±

    Odion stared down at Mevi for a moment before his following question, ¡°Then if your sister¡¯s will was to defy my wife, who would you follow?¡±

    Mevi struggled to find an answer, these questions being more than what she had hoped to expect, ¡°I will pledge myself fully to my Lord Maphet. If my sister was to go against my lord, I would not follow unless my lord bid me so.¡±

    ¡°Good. Then, would your sister pledge herself to my wife?¡±

    Mevi was unsure, but optimistic, ¡°I cannot speak for her, but I would hope she could find a loyalty for my lord.¡±

    The steps before Mevi shrunk once again. Mevi was nearly at the top, only a few more steps and her feet would fall upon the altar above. As Mevi stepped, one by one, up the stairs the choir dimmed and lowered to a whisper. Neither Odion nor Maphet made to ask her a question, so Mevi continued to climb the stairs until she stepped out onto the altar. Standing atop the tall altar, Mevi was further astounded by the shining splendor of the two Magi. Her position below the marble altar seemed to almost hide what light shone so brightly out from them, but here she witnessed them like two shining stars. What color and light escaped them, and into Mevi¡¯s vision, was enough to blind her but Mevi stood stalwart regardless. Mevi was unsure if she should come closer to the altar, but as the question arose in her mind Odion spoke as if to lead her, ¡°Approach the lowest step, and kneel before us aspirant.¡±

    Mevi followed the order instantly. The wide altar was of glimmering marble, where jewels and gold were intertwined inseparably from the stonework, like veins of ore in a mountain. The twisting currents of sparkling wealth intertwined and twisted in odd designs and elegant runes. As Mevi walked, she tried not to stare directly into the Magi¡¯s masks, but glimpses of their visage sneaked into her eyes here and there. When she reached the base of the altar¡¯s steps, Mevi knelt as Odion had commanded. Mevi was almost expecting another barrage of questions from Odion, but instead Maphet spoke in her soft and calm tone, ¡°Mevare of House Bensari¡­ Will you pledge to become mine and mine alone? To give yourself entirely to me, until I bid you leave to once again journey alone?¡±

    Mevi knew her answer before Maphet had even asked the question, ¡°I, Mevare of House Bensari, pledge myself and all that I am to you. Until you bid me leave.¡±

    A sort of warmth emanated from Maphet¡¯s aura, a content and happy feeling spread over Mevi for a brief moment, ¡°Then I am content. I pronounce you my Magi¡¯s Apprentice. You are entirely mine, until I bid you leave.¡± declared Maphet.

    After her command, Maphet rose with a powerful grace. Waving a hand before herself, the small buzzing that Mevi had almost forgotten completely disappeared and the walls and structure returned to their normal state. The grand chapel was now whole, and unmolested by illusions. It became obvious that Mevi must have still walked a great distance, but the distorted space was less massive than it was originally believed. Yet still the chapel was extraordinarily kept and inscribed with incredible features. When the illusion fully disappeared, Maphet stepped down from the altar and Odion followed close behind her. Maphet looked down at the still kneeling Mevi, ¡°Is the Mevi alright? The Mevi did well in her ritual.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t help nearly smiling after noticing the sudden reversion back to Maphet¡¯s normal speech pattern, ¡°Yes my Lord, I am fine. I was momentarily put off by how quickly this was arranged¡­¡±

    Odion then spoke, seeming to also forget formality and poise, ¡°The other Magi were watching, and the archives suggest they were interested enough that they might have attempted to interfere. While made in haste, the archives recommended haste over procedure.¡±

    Mevi was still unsure how to speak to the two Magi. They obviously held god-like influence and power over their followers and beyond. Mevi had spoken so casually to them before, but this ritual served as a reminder of what they truly were. They were lords, and Mevi was simply a peon to their might. As if sensing Mevi¡¯s thoughts, Maphet spoke kindly to Mevi, ¡°The Mevi should not belittle herself. She is mine, and none wound what is mine.¡±

    Odion spoke his support, in a way, as well, ¡°The archives suggest against self-destructive thoughts. Regardless, you must return to your room. The archived knowledge provided there will be of use to you. The archives suggest haste in your consumption of knowledge, what you must acquire will be of use to you and of use to my wife.¡±

    All Mevi could manage under the powerful pressure the two beings provided was, ¡°Yes, of course my lords.¡±

    Mevi wasn¡¯t exactly sure what to do, but slowly got up to her feet. Looking at the two Magi, they watched her intently with a strange curiosity. The two Magi seemed to watch her with some expectation, and Mevi slowly turned to leave without knowing formal procedure. Beginning her trek back down the tall stairs, Mevi heard Maphet¡¯s voice again, ¡°What does the Mevi do? Will the Mevi not return to her study?¡±

    Mevi turned to face Maphet, and cautiously said, ¡°Well yes¡­ I was planning to walk there immediately.¡±

    Maphet looked at Odion and a sense of confusion escaped, but Odion spoke up to Mevi, ¡°The archives suggest that my wife forgot to explain your key. It opens a door to your study.¡±

    Mevi was confused, ¡°Yes, my lord¡­¡± was all she could muster.

    ¡°Within the archived knowledge given was likely the understanding you required. Use the key against the wall.¡± commanded Odion, pointing at the nearby wall that bordered the edge of the altar.

    Mevi was confused, but curious. If what they were insinuating was what she believed, it would be incredible. Mevi approached the nearby wall, and began to feel her dress for pockets. Suddenly Mevi recalled the Seamstresses, and how what few items and clothes she had were stripped from her. Mevi was entirely embarrassed now, and began to turn to the two Magi in shame at losing the valuable item. Odion was already approaching, having seemed to sense her realization. Odion stood next to Mevi, and once again seemed to show how unlike the two of them were to the Magi Falcier and his dark rage. Odion grasped Mevi¡¯s hand gently, yet firmly, and had her hold it in front of herself, ¡°What archived knowledge given to you would have explained this.¡± he said, matter-of-factly. ¡°For now, I will speak on the archive¡¯s behalf. Focus your mind on the key, remember its form and function. The device is attuned to you, and it will respond only to you. When you have its image, summon it.¡± Odion¡¯s confidence promised only success, and he released Mevi¡¯s hand to allow her to follow his instructions.

    Mevi did as she was told, and began to focus. She conjured an image of the round pearl in her mind. She knew, on a basic level, what it was meant to do and be. She focused on what she knew of it, and could almost feel it in her hand. She sensed the object, and could feel the phantom touch of its smooth surface in her palm. The device was within a soft pouch, she suddenly sensed, guarded tightly by someone she knew. Mevi thought that Zelkan had it, and he was standing outside the chapel diligently waiting. Mevi was distracted by the presence around the key, and focused on the key alone. When she could feel its phantom presence again, she instinctively grasped it and could feel the smooth orb in her hand. Opening her eyes, the orb was then within her palm in some incredible feat of seemingly magical transportation. Mevi let out an excited squeak, which seemed to surprise Odion. Mevi¡¯s face reddened in embarrassment after her excitement, and held the key gently in her hands. As Mevi had the key again, Odion gestured for Mevi to begin the assigned task again.

    Mevi held the key gently in her hand, and approached the bare wall. Holding the orb to the wall, Mevi lightly tapped the wall with the device. As she did so a door, just taller than her own height, manifested an entryway. The door led to what looked to be the empty room Maphet had tasked her with breaching once before. A simple chair still sat, and half of a table was materialized into existence while it floated as if propped up by all four legs. Atop the table was a partially transparent collection of books, many of what she recalled were supposed to be there were now gone. Yet the room was still much as she remembered from before. As Mevi marveled at the strange doorway, Maphet spoke, ¡°The Mevi is given this room. It is to be hers, and as the Mevi explores it her knowledge and potency will grow.¡±

    Odion echoed the sentiment, ¡°The archives suggest a quick learning process, if you are dedicated. No others, but my wife and I, may enter your room; if any try they their senses will become overwhelmed. As the archives suggest, my wife and I often become busy with our duties. Yet I will make time, as bidden by my wife, to aid you if you call upon me. Your studies and mastery of power is of the utmost importance.¡±

    Mevi turned to the two Magi, and was genuinely glad for their company and support, as strange of a package as it came in, ¡°I thank you both again¡­ Um, my lords. I will do my best to serve as you command, and will attempt to decipher the tasks you have given me¡­ But what about the Sentinel and Zelkan. I could sense them waiting outside of the chapel.¡±

    ¡°I will assign them both rest. The archives suggest you might not leave your room for some time, but if you do they will be notified of your exit by your key. Until you can learn to tap into the neural network without assistance, you should focus on studies.¡± replied Odion.

    ¡°Of course my lord Odion! Also, thank you. Not only for the opportunity to learn, but for taking care of Kalesi. I will dedicate myself to you however you need it.¡± declared Mevi.

    As Mevi finished her thanks she could hear a sort of sparking sizzle from behind her. The archway door was slowly shrinking to a close while Mevi idled in conversation with Odion. As the door began to slowly close, and before Mevi could say another ¡®thank you¡¯, both Maphet and Odion turned and walked away. As they stepped away from her, they disintegrated into sparking clouds of energy. Disappearing entirely, the two Magi were gone. But without time to marvel at their eccentricities and strange powers, Mevi turned and rushed through the slowly closing doorway.

    Mevi was left alone, within a simple and small room. The archway closed behind her, and the familiar wall with strange etchings took its place. Mevi had one task from here on, to study and learn whatever knowledge could be gained from these texts. To study and expand the room into its fullest extent. She would prove some sort of worth to the Magi, and by doing so protect and care for Kalesi. However long it took Mevi would prove to herself, as much as to others, that Odion and Maphet¡¯s hopes were true and some power lay in wait within her. Whatever that power was, she would tame it and use it for Kalesi and her new lord. She will earn the title of Magi¡¯s Apprentice.

 Volume 1: Epilogue

    ---Excerpt excavated, and commented on, from the archived ¡°Modern Histories¡± section of the Grand Hall of Librus that was uncovered after its ruin. Audio commentary, converted into text form, given by Chief Archeologist Balrand Houngran.---

    ---Initial record listed to be quantified by a ¡°Thecarius Sig¡¯Be¡± approximately four weeks after recorded events entered private domain at the time.---

    <hr>

    -Within this system [Councilor Maphet¡¯s domain] many rapid changes began to occur. Several of which seemed, from an outside perspective, to be premeditated plans for political power grabs. While these ideas about long-standing plans are mostly baseless rumors, a short power struggle is recorded centered around a new entity.

    This new entity was a recently acquired acolyte, who was acquired under the supervision of Magi Falcier. The person in question was one ¡°Mevare Bensari¡± from the remote colony of Baes, retrieved approximately 2.3 average solar cycles ago. While many documents of the time, and records of then events, were lost; some retrieved information give hints towards their [Mevare¡¯s] rapid introduction within the political sphere of the Magi.

    What information can be acquired suggests only a few short weeks, between initial acquiescence and their [Mevare¡¯s] person, before the rapid ¡°promotion¡± to a Magi¡¯s Apprentice. From scattered documents, which are now made public domain after their initial finding, Mevare would spend most of their time within a secluded site recorded as ¡°Terram ad Navem¡±. It would be found that three other sites of this kind were present during this time, but their purpose and research to be unknown.

    The amount of detail regarding Mevare during this period of time, within the records we¡¯ve acquired, is oddly specific. The records state this entity¡¯s daily routine on several occasions, almost as if the record keeper was frequently present during the passing days within this ¡°Terram ad Navem¡±. These records frequently list this person [Mevare] visiting a classified location, only to often leave and ¡°study¡± within a well maintained microforest kept on-site.

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    The record keeper frequently lists redacted names and places this person [Mevare] would go to. Almost as if the information was removed after the initial recording of events. Some few names we possess are a ¡°Saerin¡± who would often be a sort of companion for Mevare, along with a Modrak whose name is listed but their duties and location was redacted. Additionally there is a single mention of a ¡°Kal¡± but the record became corrupted within this segment, and only part of the name was revealed before the rest of the information was either redacted or lost to corruption.

    Regardless of what company this person [Mevare] kept, they would quickly begin to find themselves within the center of developing events. Their mere presence was an upset in the power balance, or at least as far as our records suggest they were. Whatever they were, or were said to be, capable of isn¡¯t known. Within the document they are often listed as a vital asset, one desired by the other Magi at the time, yet why they were so important is removed or unmentioned.

    Ignoring the lack of information, this new upset [either Mevare or Magi Maphet¡¯s power grab] within the Magi power struggle would go on to cause innumerable change, and rapidly progress events, within the sphere of the Barge. While many events remain unknown, due to lack of coherent records, the catalyst for these developing events seemed to stem from this single entity [Mevare] and the Magi associated to them. It would be a relatively short time after these record¡¯s suggested date of occurrence, that ¡°The Dismantling¡± would occur. While I do not personally agree with the given title ¡°The Dismantling¡±, and am personally more partial to a less common reference of ¡°Renaissance¡±, to the following events; the commonly accepted title gives an adequate inference towards the soon to occur events.

    This ¡°Dismantling¡± would begin after an unknown event following this progression of developing power struggles. The ¡°Dismantling¡± was inherently a period of time where-

    <hr>

    ---The audio commentary, given by Balrand Houngran, would be cut off due to transmission issues, and remain offline for the next few hours. When the commentary reestablished transmission strength, the Chief Archeologist would be quickly distracted by off-hand conversation regarding the transmitter¡¯s spotty behavior; then after several minutes of idle conversation he would dismiss himself as other duties required attention.---

    ---The recovered record, as recorded by ¡°Thecarius Sig¡¯be¡±, is made available along with other recovered texts within the Museum of The Dismantling. Balrand Houngran occasionally makes visits to the museum to regale his historical thesis in person, while his research continues to develop as more artifacts are uncovered.---

 Volume 2: Prologue

    ---Scholarly analysis of the Baes historical archives, in regards to "Galactic History". The following abstract, written by Chronicler Anen Norhi, details the summary opinion found within the  "Comprehensive History of "Humanity" " volumes 1, ¡°On Humanity¡¯s Origin¡±.---

    <hr>

    The origin of Humanity, being accepted as our genealogical ancestors, is likely the most well hidden mystery within circles of historians. Despite best efforts to decrypt ancient texts contained within our noble archives, almost no hints towards our long lost home exists in a coherent article. Most, if not all, information we know about the time before the Age of Expansion is rumor or speculation. Even within the shared knowledge gracefully given to us by the Lords Magi, almost no hint towards a concrete idea of our origin is found.

    Within what few texts give an impression towards any type of origin, or home planet as some choose to search for, only a few words can be found that attempt to even describe the before times. Within our own archives describes a paradise, one that was too beautiful to attempt to remember or record. The simple word written within our archives, exactly once, is ¡°Luu¡¯zhaiku¡± this word¡¯s meaning is barely understood due to our baseless translations. To what we have managed to translate, of this ancient language, the phrase might describe a paradise home that we came from, or possibly its name. It seems at some point our ancestors spoke a vastly different language than what we currently use, and the direct translation of these old texts becomes more difficult the more dated they become.

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    What is further intriguing is the refusal for our Lords Magi to assist in these translations. Either due to a desire to not assist in this research, or the simple lack of knowledge on their part. While I do not question their wisdom, the clear refusal to trade information regarding this specific topic causes speculation on the subject and why we are not meant to understand these ancient words.

    Our accumulated knowledge of the past is already strained by faulty records and clearly missing sections of infrastructure. Studying such ancient articles causes me to simultaneously speculate on the validity of ancient tales; the old stories that we fled from the surface of the planet to our moon gains more credence as I begin to understand just how much of our database is missing. In fact, our database is so fragmented and corrupted it could be easily assumed that what we maintain could very well be the missing piece of a larger whole. Yet the assumption that we originated from the planet, which maintains our home''s orbit, is dissuaded by most of my colleagues. Regardless of where our database may or may not be; our accumulated knowledge hints towards some ancient paradise. One that some guess at being the aforementioned legends of flight from the planet we now orbit. I think contrary to this opinion, that it speaks of a place even before our arrival in this system entirely.

    ----This abstract is a placeholder for the first volume within the collection of volumes titled " Comprehensive History of "Humanity" ". It will remain a placeholder until further access is permitted by order of the Noble Council of Baes.---

    ---" Volume 1: ¡°On Humanity¡¯s Origin¡± " is no longer made available by order of the Noble Council of Baes following the excommunication, and execution, of its author by request of our Lords Above. Respect and reverence be to our Lords.---

 Chapter 1: Back to Reality

    Dark shadows curled across the invisible room. Tendrils of creeping darkness caressed and enveloped furniture that didn¡¯t exist. A looming presence demanded dominion over the small confines that hid a larger expanse. A single figure sat in the middle of the unassuming room, where a dreadful mist slowly seeped out from their heart, and they were completely enshrouded by the mysterious mist. Groping tethers of shadow probed the room and investigated the almost eternal expanse that was hidden from sight in an invisible illusion. As the dominating presence leaked out of the stationary figure, the tendrils began to tremble. Then, suddenly, the shadows shrinked back into the sitting figure to disappear completely in almost an instant.

    There, where a dark power had once enshrouded the will that commanded it, was a woman. A young woman whose hair glinted silver, even in the darkness that remained in the isolation of the dark illusions. Slumping over from the exhaustion of concentration and immense focus, was a young woman wearing a simple white and blue dress. Sleep tugged at the corners of her mind as her spirit exhausted itself in experiment after experiment, while her physical body remained unchanged. The young woman sat, eyes closed to shut out what small amount of ambient light somehow glowed in the almost completely darkened space.

    Mevi sat there, in the middle of the still elusive dark room. She had meditated for what felt like weeks to produce that small effect. Her test failed before she could even manage to navigate to where she recalled standing bookcases; her power over her shadowy daemon evaporated in a moment of lost concentration. An entity that hid within her soul and had once gained such joy from escaping her to torment her in the dark of night, yet now hidden in a stubborn isolation. Whatever power was meant to flow inside of her was now stubbornly locked away, not even appearing to harass her as it once would night after night.

    Mevi brought herself back to a semblance of consciousness, having been in a deep trance for several days, maybe more. Yet even as she forced her stiff limbs to function once again she felt almost no fatigue or hunger. She had spent many days, and even weeks, isolated before returning to a more solid world for sustenance. If this was due to the room¡¯s effects, or something else entirely, Mevi wasn¡¯t sure.

    As Mevi brought herself once again to her feet, she walked to a half materialized table that stood on almost invisible legs. A small pile of transparent, or some entirely invisible, tomes and texts rested as if to taunt her lack of understanding. The text she had recently finished, a meant to be simple collection depicting a type of meditation practiced in long forgotten ancient days, had been little more than a compilation of complex phrases and meaningless tangents. Yet the subject had given her ample opportunity to practice her reading skills, and within the strange illusionary space she had a desperate need to understand the concept sealed within the written word.

    Mevi had isolated herself for so long, a true grasp of time was impossible to understand. Yet the gnawing desire to learn ate at her mind always. She needed to become useful, in whatever way these texts allowed, or learn of some capability she had that could help her wounded mentor. Mevi¡¯s dedication resurfacing after so long of focused thought summoned forth terrible memories. Her mentor, Kalesi, was still trapped inside of a technological coffin that offered no hint of any soon recovery. The first few days and weeks of Mevi¡¯s inauguration to her new life had been spent in silent vigil for Kalesi. Yet the once strong woman showed no sign of awakening. In these recent days an exhaustion of the spirit hung over Mevi, one that no amount of galavanting with the odd associates within the facility could lessen.

    In fact, Mevi had slowly begun to push herself away from the outside world. Delving further and further into meditation and difficult study. Those outside were distractions, their meaning was pure but Mevi¡¯s focus could not be taken away from her real goal. Her brief companion, Saerin, seemed dedicated to make friends with her. The young woman was intelligent, but eccentric and with boundless energy. Yet the more Mevi interacted with any from within the facility she learned quickly that this eccentric trait was almost commonplace. Odd personalities, strange fixations, diverse peoples, and so much talking. It was as if the world outside of her studies was designed to distract her, their personalities so attractive that Mevi often found herself thinking to stay outside more often than permissible to her self-declared duty.

    Mevi waved away the recollections, even recalling the outside was a distraction she would not afford. Mevi was sworn to her new master; she was sworn to the Lord Magi of Knowledge, Maphet. Her aetherial master, one of the elusive and god-like Magi, had asked the simple request that Mevi grow her power. Mevi was given a space to test her comprehension and power, the room she now resides within during her studies. The room was designed to lock itself away and hide its features, the place only expanding as Mevi¡¯s own understanding of provided knowledge expands.The room acted as a physical show of her progress, and that progress was small. The dreadful realization that her power might even be less than it once was, crossed her mind often. Mevi¡¯s powers, if she could call them such, had sealed themselves away in some kind of stubborn isolation. What Mevi was able to see of the room before, at the start of her welcome to Lord Maphet¡¯s service, was halved now. The room was short, and furniture was nonexistent beyond the half-formed idea of a table with a handful of barely perceivable books and data pads.

    Mevi only now noticed, having begun staring at the illusionary terrain once again, just how dark the room was. No real light invaded the space, she was left in and almost complete dark. Yet where once she might panic at the stretching shadows, Mevi now begged them to come back to life. Her once daemon, the thing that seemed to give her power and rested inside her, slept in a deep coma. It had once found such joy in stalking Mevi in the dark, some sick game where its power could finally be let loose against her, but now it only hibernated for an unknown season.

    As Mevi scowled at the dark shadows, a light pulsed against the wall to her left. An archway, once bricked over with the hard stone surface of the white marble walls, began to glow slightly. An alien purple and blue shimmered to life against the should-be blocked portal. Yet as Mevi watched, the archway began to transform from a flat wall into a swirling pool of glowing blue energy. A whirlpool of strange power formed briefly and then transformed into a bright image of the outside corridor. The light from outside flooded quickly into the space Mevi called her own, and a figure stood illuminated by the extremely bright lights.

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    A golden-clad and powerful creature stood as a tall figure, bearing heavy golden armor styled like ancient plate mail, standing just beyond the portal. The creature seemed to reach out a hand, as if to offer Mevi help to her feet, but did not dare to properly cross the threshold of the hallway into the room. Mevi was confused, the door had never opened without her instructing it to do so before. The one and only time she knew it had done this was in the presence of Maphet, the powerful Magi who controlled the facility and was Mevi¡¯s master.

    Mevi slowly stood and then crossed the portal into the hallway. Taking the offered hand to steady herself as the strange feeling of travel to and from the illusionary space always disoriented her. As Mevi stumbled out of her room, and into the arms of the golden creature, she recognized the being. It was her Sentinel. The tall, powerful, and mysterious guardians in the direct employ of the Magi. They never spoke, never acted without instruction, and this one always seemed to know where Mevi was and how to reach her.

    As Mevi felt the portal behind her twist shut and reform into a bare marble wall, Mevi gathered herself enough to look up at the stalwart Sentinel. The creature looked down at her, expressionless through the full helmet. Only the Sentinel¡¯s red eyes peered through the visor and beheld Mevi as if it knew more about Mevi than Mevi might know about herself. Breaking the eye contact, Mevi righted herself to stand as nobly as she could muster. There was no sign of either of her other companions. Her given attendant, Zelkan, almost always went where Mevi was, or would quickly arrive wherever she exited her room, and Saerin had developed the ability to know when Zelkan was leaving to meet Mevi to tag along with him. Yet neither were anywhere to be seen in the long and undecorated hallway.

    Suddenly, just as soon as Mevi began looking up and down the hallway, the Sentinel grabbed Mevi by her shoulders. The creature¡¯s powerful grip and strong frame was more than enough to fully overpower any resistance Mevi could put up, and despite being initially startled she calmed down to stare confused at the Sentinel. Mevi was manhandled by the golden guardian who, gently yet firmly, brought Mevi down to a sitting position on the hallway floor. Confused and concerned about what was happening, Mevi tried her best to follow the wordless instruction. Then just as the Sentinel positioned itself above her, as if a protective tent with its arms against the wall for support, a loud ripping sound echoed from every direction.

    A terrible tearing, like fabric being torn asunder by a fell hand, echoed louder than Mevi could have possibly imagined. Her ears rang and felt like they would explode as the cacophonous choir of noise railed against all surface and sense. Mere moments after the dreadful tearing began, the very floor began to shake and quake under Mevi. The powerful movements threatened to throw Mevi about and against the walls if not for her dutiful Sentinel acting as a cage to keep her confined to one spot. The Sentinel fell to its knees to close the space tighter, and Mevi was firmly held between the golden creature and the smooth marble wall.

    The violence against sound and foundation continued for longer than Mevi wanted to tolerate, but it suddenly ended and was replaced by a comparably calm electrical buzz. Mevi¡¯s vision was blocked by the large frame of her Sentinel¡¯s body, the creature still holding tight to both Mevi and the wall to keep her safe. Yet even from Mevi¡¯s awkward position she could see electrical discharges shooting off from the walls and floor. The charged air tingled against her skin and made her hair stand on end. After several minutes of quiet waiting, the electrical charge in the air began to slowly dissipate and with it the Sentinel backed away from the wall to stand to its full height again. Offering a hand down to Mevi, who was still reeling from the sudden attack against her senses, the two stood up in the hallway; Mevi still wobbling from the experience and a tingling sensation in her extremities.

    As the sensations fled, echoing feet came running down the hallway towards the pair. Mevi saw her attendant, Zelkan, racing down the hallway carrying what looked like a large data pad. Zelkan wore white robes with swirling blue designs creating an image like a clouded sky, the same style made for followers of Maphet, but donned a full mask that digitally displayed swirling clouds against a pure blue sky. Yet even with the mask blocking his face, and with clouds passing by the blue digital screen, Mevi could see some part of his features and face; not enough to gleam what he looked like, but enough to understand some part of his emotions. And as Zelkan raced to Mevi, he seemed rushed, or even worried. Upon noticing Mevi in the care of the Sentinel, Zelkan calmed down, but approached with a due haste holding the datapad tightly. Before Mevi could ask what was going on Zelkan spoke, ¡°My lady! I am glad the Sentinel reached you in time, experiencing the sudden escape into real space can be difficult on your own¡­ But there is little time to explain, there is a broadcast being given by the Grand Magi. I realized you do not have a neural implant yet, so I raced as soon as I could to retrieve a device to let you watch. The transmission began moments ago!¡±

    Before Mevi could question what a ¡®Grand Magi¡¯ was, or what he meant by ¡®escape into real space¡¯ Zelkan activated the device. The dark screen lit up with life and light, and processed the task eventually forming a coherent picture of a grand stage. Standing atop the stage was a remarkably brilliant figure. A Magi unlike any Mevi had seen before. Donning a flowing robe of deep and dark blue, that began to dissolve into purple energy at the mid and end sections; with golden threads flowing down from the center of his waist to mix into the purple energies of the rest of the lower robe. The Grand Magi bore a mask unlike what Mevi had seen before, a comparably simple design that was fully black with symmetrical golden formations making up the idea of a face but without any detail or precision. Strangest of all was what seemed to be the Grand Magi¡¯s hair, a flowing platinum that shone like glittering diamonds split perfectly even and flowed long down past Grand Magi¡¯s chest; the platinum hair, in places, seemed to twist and bend into the design of the robes to transform into metal curved spikes attempting to reach upwards. The Grand Magi¡¯s arms were incomprehensible, made up of tangles of what looked like many gold tendrils twisting and tightening into a pair of, almost writhing, arms.

    The Grand Magi stood silently on the massive stage, one which had no physical audience. The striking figure stood in continued silence, staring down towards the floor as if in a dower mood. Mevi silently wondered if there was some speech happening that she couldn¡¯t understand and if her lack of a neural implant caused her to not hear or understand the Grand Magi. Yet just before Mevi would ask Zelkan what was supposed to happen, the Grand Magi rose his head as if to face whatever camera pointed at him. The being spoke with a remarkably quiet and soft tone, incredibly dissimilar to the booming and brilliant displays all other Magi seemed to prefer. ¡°Children of the Barge. Our path diverges, the Barge wishes to apologize for the sudden departure from our initial course. A new system has called for our aid and patronage, the life there teems with anticipation of the Barge¡¯s mana. I call for our Magi Lords to confer and judge how best to approach this new civilization. The Barge has sent forth its cosmic message decades ahead of our arrival, and they are prepared to receive us.¡± The Grand Magi takes a moment to pause and wait, as if catching his breath from a strenuous activity. Then the being finishes, ¡°For the glory of the Magi, and by the power of the Barge. So it is done.¡± As soon as the word ¡®done¡¯ was spoken, the feed of the Grand Magi cuts short and darkens to nothing.

    Mevi looks to Zelkan and then to the Sentinel, who are respectively confused and silently stalwart. Zelkan¡¯s head then darts up, the tell-tale sign he received an invisible message of some kind. Then, looking down at Mevi, says, ¡°Our Lord Maphet and Lord Odion wish to speak with you. We depart immediately for Lord Odion¡¯s Tower of Archives.¡±

 Chapter 2: A Meeting of Importance

    Mevi followed as quickly as she could manage, Zelkan leading her with a great haste through the winding hallways within the unexplored facility. New places and rooms Mevi had never discovered before, all with strange residents, passed by quickly as Zelkan navigated them out of the facility proper. Mevi was led out onto an open platform that overlooked the City of Light from a great height.

    The infinite grandness of The City of Light stretched out before them. The gleaming light shone with the brilliance of countless stars of all colors. Tall spires and vast sectors filled with alien structures stretched farther than Mevi¡¯s eyes could perceive. The Barge¡¯s size was entirely inconceivable and the City of Light stretched across its entire length, or at least that is what people say. The mixture of thousands, if not millions, of cultures and people created a landscape of truly alien design. Yet all the structures fought to breach higher and higher into the artificial clouds, all the while attempting to outshine the rest of the structures in their sector. The brilliant display was enough to shock Mevi into unconsciousness the first time she beheld such strange and bright creations, even after living within the Barge for a time, the city¡¯s brilliance still nearly blinded her.

    Zelkan guided Mevi to the center of the platform overlooking the City of Light, while the Sentinel followed Mevi like a second shadow. The three stood in the center of the unassuming viewing platform, until Zelkan motioned his hand in the air as if interacting with an invisible panel. After pressing an invisible button the platform began to shift and move. A muffled electrical whirring sound buzzed around them as the platform began to rise upwards, yet the platform was not obviously attached to any structure or mechanism. Mevi looked around, startled, and noticed a barely visible column of light surrounding the platform. As if guiding the platform¡¯s path, the column of light led upwards along the trajectory the moving structure followed.

    It was now, as the platform began to rise upwards to unknown heights, that Mevi noticed the facility¡¯s exterior for the first time. The strange place Mevi had wandered and lived within for the last few months was a collection of towering spires which all met at a collective base that itself was a towering monolith. Mevi could count at least ten spires twisting high upwards, past the slow moving clouds, yet there could easily be others hidden by the infrastructure that stretched to connect the spires and buildings.

    The platform Mevi stood upon continued to climb upwards, guided by the soft light along its path. Mevi dared to inch close to the edge and look downward, only to be met by her racing heart and a panic after realizing how high they actually were. The monolith itself was already a rival to the tallest skyscrapers and towers within the City of Light, but the structure¡¯s spire-crown reached even higher than the tallest tower Mevi could currently perceive. As Mevi was met with the sudden realization of how high she was, and how there was no visible safety mechanism, she was sent reeling backwards into the arms of the Sentinel. The golden-clad guardian held her firmly by the shoulders once again, but this time to stabilize her and hold her still. Guided back to the center of the platform, Mevi sat down while she awaited the device to reach its destination.

    The travel into the skies didn¡¯t take long, but was still much too long for comfort to Mevi¡¯s perspective. As the platform neared its target, a tower that was made of a gray stone in contrast to the gold and marble of most of the others, the device¡¯s whirring slowed to a halt. A mechanical clank echoed as if a great shifting of gears, and the platform was almost yanked into a stationary place against the side of the gray spire.

    Mevi was helped to her feet by the Sentinel, while Zelkan looked towards the entryway with worry. The three of them continued forward, Mevi glad to be on more solid ground again. As they disembarked the platform, the mechanical clank echoed as the platform detached from the spire to return to some unknown destination. The three were left in a sort of open garden filled with strange plants and rocks, as if they were brought to view an assorted display. The only doorway was on the far side of this garden, and as Mevi regained her bearings, the door opened.

    The creature that exited into the garden was not what Mevi learned to expect, even from the many forms of creature she had encountered. Rather than a white and blue robed servant of Maphet, there was instead a brass person. A person, or at least sculpted to look like a person, was standing without any clothes or adornments. They were a hollow construct of metal, with exposed gears and alien technology twisting and moving within them. The only thing about this creature that made it seem like a person was its humanoid shape, other than its frame the creature had holes in its body one could peek through as well as poking wires that sparked with electricity. Arcing currents could be seen within the strange tubing of the entity and as its feet lifted it left short trails of arcing electricity as it walked. As Mevi marveled at the creature, it bowed respectfully and spoke in a perfectly enunciated manner that was almost too well crafted, ¡°Greetings, Magi Apprentice, Mevi. We have been expecting you. Please leave your attendants here, and follow me.¡±

    Looking back towards Zelkan and the Sentinel, Mevi wasn¡¯t sure, but Zelkan spoke, ¡°It is alright, my Lady. We will await your return.¡±

    Mevi worried to herself, and asked, ¡°But what if I don¡¯t know what to do or say?¡±

    ¡°Just do your best, my Lady. If you do not know what to say or do, simply say nothing.¡±

    It was sound advice, Mevi thought. Despite the words of encouragement Mevi was still worried, but had learned not to keep the Magi waiting when they called upon you. So Mevi followed the brass construct. The construct led her through the door and into a rounded hallway that seemed to follow the curve of the spire. The gray stone was bare, the walls and floor made of the same solid material the spire seemed to be sculpted from. Solid, unimpressive, and simple stone was all that lined the spire¡¯s corridor. The brass construct led Mevi to the right and down the hallway, but they walked only for a very short time before reaching a large set of already open doors.

    As the brass construct stopped and bowed, as if beckoning Mevi to enter, Mevi could see a large room open up. At the far end were two tall thrones, one shorter than the other but both towering above the room. Below the thrones was a long table, where ten robed and masked figures sat. At the base of the thrones were two chairs, larger than the others and acting as the head of the table, the one below the shorter throne already held an occupant but the other was empty. Of the nine other individuals who populated the rest of the table, one chair was empty as if there should be another member gathered. Mevi suddenly felt incredibly underdressed, and realized she had no idea where her hooded mask was last left. The brass construct offered no hint what to do or where to go, two chairs were left empty and one sat with an imposing importance at the base of the taller throne. Mevi felt her heart sink as anxiety of the situation began to swirl. Not knowing what to do or say was beginning to creep in and Mevi realized how often she had relied on Zelkan knowing what to say and do.

    As Mevi idled by the door, occasionally peeking her head in to look at the impressive figures gathered and waiting, she was noticed. The figure sitting at the shorter throne¡¯s base raised their head in her direction as if Mevi was seen. Mevi quickly darted her head back and hid against the wall, hoping they were just adjusting in their seat and didn¡¯t actually see her. As Mevi hid a man¡¯s voice began to speak with an amount of authority, ¡°Once our great Lord Magi Maphet¡¯s Apprentice arrives and takes her seat at the head of the table, we may begin. Until the newest Magi¡¯s Apprentice arrives, we wait.¡± A murmuring from the other individuals could be faintly heard, some seemed confused at the sudden proclamation, but Mevi understood it was her signal from one of those gathered.

    Mevi gathered herself in as noble a fashion as could be mustered, and stepped out into the doorway. Entering the full view of the others, Mevi remembered just how untidy her robes were from her long days in meditation alone. Mevi could only imagine the many creases, dust, and imperfections that certainly displayed themselves for all to see. Mevi dreaded the fact that she was advised to sit at the head of the table for all to see. Yet Mevi always did as she was directed and so she walked the path around the table to the seat she was unfortunately assigned. The scrutinizing gazes from the others already gathered pierced Mevi¡¯s social defenses and her confidence was already beginning to crumble.

    As Mevi finally sat at the head of the table, in the much too large throne-like chair, she was able to look out at the other masked faces gathered. Mevi could not see their expressions from behind their elegant masks, which all shifted and swirled with white clouds on a blue sky, but Mevi knew their looks were that of disappointment and judgment. Mevi might¡¯ve saved some face if she had been able to retrieve her own hooded mask, but instead had to bear their invisible gazes without reaction for fear of breaking down. Mevi fought the desire to look away or stare at the floor, even her basic knowledge of noble etiquette warned to never show fear or weakness.

    As Mevi became fully seated the person to her right, who sat at the base of the smaller throne, removed their mask. Revealing a fair man¡¯s face with short, almost military-cut, blonde hair, but bearing a wicked scar across their forehead and down their left eye. As the man fully removed the mask, and placed it onto the table, the others gathered followed suit. The stern-faced man looked briefly at Mevi before turning to the rest of those gathered before speaking, ¡°We are now all gathered, and may officially begin our meeting. I have been given a directive to, once again, lead our number despite the arrival of our Lord Magi Maphet¡¯s Apprentice. So I will conduct our focus as I usually do.¡±

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    A voice from Mevi¡¯s left called out, a dark-skinned man with four horns spiraling out of their head in an elegant manner, ¡°Should not even a word be said by our newest, and most glorious, Magi¡¯s Apprentice? We, who serve directly under our Lord Magi Maphet, would be honored to hear the wisdom of one so skilled they became our leader in such a short time.¡±

    Mevi became like a deer in headlights, the man stared daggers into Mevi from his position so close to her. It seemed, by the way they were dressed slightly differently, in gold versus silver, that Maphet¡¯s direct followers wore gold and sat on Mevi¡¯s left. There were four gathered opposed to the five under Odion, excluding the man that sat beside Mevi at the base of the shorter throne. Mevi tried not to dart her eyes, or to give into panic, but she risked a short glance towards the authoritative figure to her right. The man, who proclaimed himself in charge of the meeting, began to speak as if to respond to Mevi¡¯s silent plea, ¡°This is not the time nor place for such introductions or petty politics Tamar. Our matter concerns the directive given by Lord Odion and Lord Maphet; we must gather ourselves and our teams to form a full scale operation to gain favor with this new planet the Barge has gifted to us. Our lords are, as we speak, coordinating with the other Magi to designate roles and territory. As such we must be ready to leave at a moment¡¯s notice to secure said regions to secure populations with our lord¡¯s mana.¡± As the man finished his reprimand of this, Tamar, the authoritative man sighed. Beginning anew the man in charge of the meeting continued to explain what little was known about this new planet.

    The planet in question was quickly identified as ¡®Demnos IV¡¯, and seemed to be the only inhabited planet in the same-named system of ¡®Demnos¡¯. The information given to the man in charge, who Mevi learned from a single comment of "But lord, Alestair, how can we organize a subjugation without knowing the class and habitability of the planet?¡± The man speaking, who seemed to be called Alestair, explained that the few and distant readings they¡¯ve received from the planet describe it as a jungle world. Thick vegetation, tall trees, and impossibly rich with life. According to him, it is a prime candidate for subjugation as there is likely to be incredibly dense communities built up over so long isolated. He additionally dissuaded fear by reminding the outspoken questioner that even their formal attire provided a breathing apparatus and all teams would be additionally equipped with special outfits to combat any unknown weather.

    As Alestair continued to speak on the information known on the planet, and began organizing those present into teams, Mevi¡¯s mind spiraled with the strange and new information. She was still, at times, struggling to realize the moon she was born on wasn¡¯t the only inhabited world. That there were countless planets and systems populated by many diverse creatures and people. It was entirely inconceivable to Mevi that she was, even now, on a massive vessel rather than on some other part of her moon that was simply closed in with solid walls of gold rather than the thick glass of her colony¡¯s protective dome.

    The debate on what type of people could be inhabiting Demnos, what their technology had developed to, and what type of resources could be demanded was entirely confusing to Mevi. Yet, thankfully, none of those gathered paid her any mind as she silently observed their meeting. Once Alestair began the open debate, then later assigning jobs and teams, any hint that those gathered were worried or interested in Mevi had evaporated. Mevi could feel her focus slipping, as she had long since lost any semblance of understanding on the topics at hand, but as she struggled to digest the information received she saw Alestair finally turn to her as the last member of the gathered to receive their mission. Alestair stared for a moment at Mevi, and the rest of those gathered quieted their own conversations to see what kind of mission the new Magi Apprentice would receive. Alestair finally addressed Mevi directly, ¡°Mevare Bensari, Magi Apprentice to Lord Magi Maphet. You have been assigned a special task directly from our lords Magi. You must assemble your attendants and travel to, what is believed to be, this planet¡¯s ancient capital. It is long since abandoned, as far as our sensors can perceive, and you are to collect and archive any and all information present. One of my own staff will attend you and assist you in the archival process; they have already been sent a missive to meet with your chief attendant.¡± Alestair sighs to himself, as if exhausted or disappointed, ¡°Normally archival of ruins would be a job given to one from my own order, but in light of your special instructions for the Lords Magi and your newness within our ranks, this task is given to you. Do you have the staff to perform this, or will you require us to assign you some from our own beyond my own attendant?¡±

    Mevi¡¯s mind raced to catch up to the current conversation and she searched for all those that might be considered her ¡®attendants¡¯, ¡°As you correctly point out, I am new to these sort of missions. What type of people would I need to accomplish this mission?¡± asked Mevi.

    ¡°You will need one that can easily operate the technology required to retrieve the data we desire, a linguist or other specialist in languages, I will provide my attendant who will know what is and isn¡¯t of significance, and likely one or two that would act as bodyguards or those assigned to help move the heavy equipment required.¡±

    Mevi thought for a moment, and if she was right in her thinking she knew exactly each person that could fit those descriptions. Mevi was, for the first time in this meeting, confident of her answer, ¡°Yes! My attendants can fit those descriptions, I believe. If they do not, I trust my chief attendant to help me find those that we need.¡±

    A small smile, as if pleasantly surprised by her eagerness, crossed Alestair¡¯s face, ¡°Good. If you require additional advice simply ask the attendant I send you. They will also be able to assist you, but it sounds as if you already have a team in mind for this task.¡± Alestair looks back to the rest of those gathered at the table, and stands to his feet, ¡°Then we have all been fully briefed on the situation, and have our assignments given. I wish us all luck and glory to the Magi.¡±

    Those gathered rise from their chairs, almost in unison, and declare, ¡°Glory to the Magi.¡±

    Mevi attempted to follow their example but almost stumbled when she noticed she needed to stand. Her words were delayed behind the rest, not anticipating the sudden oath. As the meeting was adjourned those gathered began filtering out of the room. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what to do, as Alestair continued to stand at the head of the table and watch the others leave. Mevi, without further hint of what to do, simply followed his example. Two from the followers of Maphet idled for a moment. Tamar, the dark-skinned man with elegant horns, and a man with coal-black skin that almost looked as if he was covered in dark lizard scales. Yet as the rest of those in attendance left, they too turned to leave to their own duties. When the last of them left the room, and the meeting was fully over, Alestair slumped into his chair and put a hand to his face then sighed. Mevi knew it was because of her, and instinctively moved a step closer to Alestair before apologizing, ¡°I apologize, Lord Alestair. I was slow in my arrival, and I do not think I presented myself well in the meeting. I thank you for your timely assistance when I didn¡¯t know what to do, I greatly appreciate it.¡±

    Alestair removed his hand and leaned forward as he looked up and down at Mevi, ¡°I was hoping for one to match the Lord Magi¡¯s description of you. Regardless I only did as I was commanded to. We must leave now, the Lords Magi wish to speak with us the moment their meeting with the other Magi concludes. We should go to meet them before their own discussion ends.¡±

    Alestair stands quickly and begins to walk around the table, Mevi moves to follow as fast as she could. Alestair¡¯s eyes begin darting across the blank air, and Mevi knew he was interacting with the invisible display everyone seemed to have access to except for her. The two walked out of the room and continued down the corridor. They walked past the door Mevi recalled Zelkan and the Sentinel waited behind, and instead walked further into the spire. The circular corridor eventually split to lead deeper into the spire¡¯s center, and Alestair took the path further within. The floor was slightly slanted upwards as they began to climb up the curving corridor. As the corridor¡¯s turns became sharper and sharper, it was obvious they were climbing high up the spire¡¯s length. Eventually one of the many doors they passed seemed to interest Alestair, and the two of them entered.

    Entering into a dark room, dimly lit by an aetherial blue glow, Mevi and Alestair walked into the strangely empty room. Lights began to slowly glow to life around them, and there were strange circular pads positioned along the ground at the base of the walls of the room. Pristine metal circles embedded in the ground, large enough that each could fit two or three average-sized humanoids atop. The strange metal circles were about a meter apart from each other, while the in between was covered in strange glowing runes and exposed wiring. Alestair looked to Mevi and simply said, "step onto the platform there,¡± pointing at one closest to the entrance wall, ¡°I have already given orders to your attendant, and the Sentinel that accompanies you, as to where we are going. They will return to your facility and await your return.¡± Mevi was confused but did as she was told. Alestair stepped onto the metal platform beside her own, and they were both suddenly thrust upwards at an incredible speed.

    Similar to the various types of elevators and moving platforms from before, but this time much smaller and incredibly fast. Mevi did her best to maintain her balance on the platform, being able to see out from the platform she caught glimpses of Alestair when images of him appeared like stop-motion as they passed uncountable floors. While they flew upwards Alestair stood apparently unfazed by the immense speed. The metal platform seemed contained within a glass-like tube that passed upwards through the many floors they passed by. They moved at an alarming and dizzying speed past so many floors they must¡¯ve been above the cloud layer by now.

    Suddenly, Mevi and Alestair stopped seemingly arriving at their destination and then Mevi stumbled out from the platform and onto the floor. The great speed had spun her head around and made her dizzy, Alestair appeared next to her and offered a hand to help her up, Mevi gladly took it to balance herself once again. The moment she regained stability Alestair began to lead her out of the strange room filled with incredibly fast elevators.They continued into another hallway that quickly led them into their final destination; a small room with ornate marble walls mixing with the gray stone of the tower. Blue arcane runes etched into one half of the room while grassy green runes seemed to almost grow from the wall on the other half. The room almost seemed to represent the spiritual essence of both Odion and Maphet, clashing together in a physical sense, before them. Mevi could barely remember anything of what Maphet or Odion looked like in her long-ago dream. Only the earthy stone and infinite sky, which seemed plainly present in the motifs scattered across the walls.

    At the center of the room was an opaque cylinder that stretched to the ceiling and covered what looked like a small meeting table not dissimilar to the one Mevi and Alestair had just sat at. Yet this one seemed perfectly circular, with no obvious head of the table. The figures inside were shrouded and darkened, and there looked to be many more figures within than possible in the small space. Like the perspective within was one of an outsider who was faraway, and so the view was drawn back where you could see more, albeit blurry, of the scene than normally possible.

    Mevi was so intently interested in the strange scene, that she didn¡¯t even notice Alestair began kneeling with his head down. Mevi took the hint and knelt herself, bowing her head to look at the floor. She was not sure why Alestair was doing this, but Mevi thought he was as good as anyone to take the example of. The two of them sat there like that for a long while, the time spent in a stationary position like that without anything to do warped time into a dreadful length. Yet eventually a high pitched hissing sound began to leak from the cylindrical shield around the meeting table. Steam or smoke began to spill out from under the opaque shield, and it clouded the room¡¯s visibility. As the smoke began to fill the room, the shield slowly began to raise itself up towards the ceiling. Mevi noticed Alestair stiffening and readjusted himself to an even more straight posture. As the smoke cleared, two radiant figures remained. The god-like Magi who were Mevi¡¯s patrons and masters; Odion the Lord of Archives, and Maphet the Lord of Knowledge.

 Chapter 3: A Magis Worry

    As the strange smoke began to clear, Mevi could not help herself from looking upwards to gaze upon the two magnificent figures before her. Maphet, the Lord of Knowledge, approached Mevi in all her splendor and glory. Where her mask might once have sat instead held a glowing orb of infinite blue arcana. Braided snow-white hair fell softly down her cloak, which looked to be made of pieces of a starry sky. Her elegant white robes laid delicately under the aetherial cloak and accentuated her form perfectly, her exposed skin glowed with swirling runes of blue energy. Yet even as Maphet¡¯s divine form was beheld by Mevi, it seemed to slowly begin to drain away and shift.

    Mevi watched in disappointment as Maphet¡¯s form transformed from her glorious divine regalia, to the hooded and hidden form Maphet disguised herself as when she and Mevi first met. Her glowing mind shrank from the brilliant orb of power and formed into a swirling blue mask set with soft clouds. Her divine regalia softened in its divine brightness, instead becoming layed hanging cloaks and a long hood both of which were embroidered with golden sigils, and finally donning a glowing blue stole that framed a swirling blue arcane sigil on her front. The baggy robes disguised her fully from what divine glory might fight to escape, yet even so the dampened glow of what still visible amount of her blue skin radiated a calm and knowing light.

    In contrast to Maphet¡¯s impressive display, Odion¡¯s own robes retained a simple design. His form was kept by simple, functional, white robes with rigid green runes. His own face was beheld as an old earthen spirit which swirled with greenery and stone trapped within an orb upon Odion¡¯s shoulders. Yet just as Maphet did herself, Odion¡¯s own divine form faded as he drew up a hood to cloak his face. As he did his mask reappeared, swirling blue with white clouds, the same as Maphet¡¯s own mask, while at the same time his earthen colors reverted to the motif of his wife.

    Throughout the entire process Mevi was enthralled by their divine display and the radiant glow they produced. She almost longed for them to remain in their more elegant attire, but as Mevi regained her focus from the glorious display of shapeshifting she noticed Alestair; the man shook slightly as he forced his eyes away and to the ground, a small stream of sweat poured from his forehead and a bead of blood began to slowly drip from his nose. Mevi jumped to action, confused and concerned. Before Mevi could fully reach Alestair, and before she could ask what was wrong, the man held up his shaky hand to pause her. Mevi was concerned what was happening to the man, and looked to the two Magi as their forms fully degraded to their more hidden power. As the radiant glow dimmed and then altogether disappeared, Alestair¡¯s shaking lessened and soon stopped. As Alestair regained his composure Odion spoke, ¡°Interesting. I will record your continued resilience into the archives, Alestair.¡±

    ¡°Thank you my lord.¡± responded Alestair.

    Mevi was still confused, looking between the two figures as Alestair continued to avert his gaze. Mevi didn¡¯t understand what had transpired between the two, or if it was some self-imposed test, but she quickly remembered who she was in the presence of. Reminded of her place and station, Mevi returned to a kneeling position next to Alestair. As Mevi did so the two Magi looked down at her, Maphet asked, ¡°Is the Mevi stable? The Mevi cannot stand?¡±

    Unsure how to respond, Mevi hesitantly said, ¡°I believe I am stable, my lord.¡±

    ¡°Will the Mevi stand?¡± asked Maphet curiously.

    Mevi had never understood exactly how to act around the Magi, their personalities so diverse. But Mevi did as she was asked and looked again at the shrouded Magi. Maphet¡¯s curiosity seemed piqued, her head cocked as she looked at Mevi intently. Despite the mask, Mevi could somehow sense the Magi¡¯s emotions, or at least she thought she could. Maphet walked closer to investigate Mevi, ¡°Accelerated heart? Exhaustion? Confusion? Is the Mevi afflicted?¡± asked Maphet with concern.

    ¡°No, I am fine, my lord. We just walked a great distance, I might be tired¡­ My lord.¡± Mevi responded cautiously.

    ¡°Hesitation? Apprehension? Is the Mevi tired? Is the Mevi ill?¡±

    Maphet¡¯s doting curiosity was like a barrage against Mevi, who had been almost entirely secluded alone for the last several weeks. She had forgotten how to act around the Magi, having learned more about Maphet¡¯s station and power made it difficult for Mevi to know how to even speak. As Maphet investigated Mevi intently, Alestair dared to steal a single look in astonishment towards the encounter. Odion intercepted his own apprentice¡¯s curiosity, ¡°Alestair, the archives would suggest you have a report.¡±

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    ¡°Yes, my Lord Magi Odion! The Neophytes and Chief Stewards assembled, and we distributed the tasks you advised be prepared. As you ordered, the safest mission was tasked to Mevare Bensari.¡±

    ¡°I will record your efficiency in the archives. Nothing of note is left for you here, the archives would guess your presence is no longer required.¡±

    ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± responded Alestair, with an almost grave tone.

    Mevi watched the short interaction as Maphet lifted Mevi¡¯s arm to check her pulse, and Mevi couldn¡¯t help but wonder if it was normal to be treated so bluntly. Alestair stood and gave a regal bow before leaving the room, no longer needed. As he left he chanced a last look towards Mevi, who in turn looked back at him with the same strange curiosity he returned to her. To his perspective, what was happening to her must be the most strange scene he had ever seen, Mevi thought. The doors were closed tight, and Mevi was left with the two Magi. Maphet finished her investigation of Mevi¡¯s arm before looking at Mevi again, ¡°The Mevi needs sleep? Did the Mevi sleep?¡±

    Mevi thought for a long moment before realizing, ¡°I apologize, my lord¡­ I don¡¯t think I have slept for several weeks. I have been focusing on studying.¡±

    ¡°The archives suggest living flesh needs sleep. The archives also suggest constant study produces adverse effects to one¡¯s goals.¡± declared Odion, as if giving a child a lecture.

    Mevi could only look embarrassed. The two Magi seemed to treat her differently than even their own servants. Alestair was Odion¡¯s own Magi Apprentice, and he was dismissed without a further word. Some part of her felt bad for the disparities between herself and Alestair. Yet even as Mevi¡¯s checkup finished, Maphet stared deeply into Mevi¡¯s eyes. As if looking into her, Maphet¡¯s piercing gaze sent chills down Mevi¡¯s spine. Then, after the long gaze concluded, Maphet declared, ¡°The Mevi¡¯s power sleeps. Did the Mevi put it to sleep?¡±

    The question Mevi had dreaded since her studies originally began had finally arrived. Unsure how to answer she simply stood there in her own frustration and embarrassment. She was still trying to decipher how and why her soul¡¯s daemon fell quiet for so long. She could still manifest some small effects, but nothing so consistent and potent as she had once done. It took her weeks to even be able to make a visible effect and even then it could only act as a sort of inferior vision to her own eyes.

    Odion watched Mevi with a sort of stern investigation, while Maphet seemed to assume something was wrong that must be studied. Both waited for Mevi to respond, or give some explanation. But none came. As the three figures stood in silence, Odion spoke, ¡°The archives suggest a change in focus can redouble efficiency. As the archives need tending, focus your efforts on the task at hand. I shall search the archives for answers while you descend to the planet after we arrive.¡±

    ¡°The Mevi will sleep. Need sleep, yes? The Mevi rests now.¡± Maphet said, matter of factly.

    ¡°Of course, my lords¡­ I truly do not know what happened, but I will not disappoint you.¡± Mevi said with feigned confidence.

    Despite her words, Mevi was terrified she might never rediscover her power. The power that laid within her was the only asset she had, and its disappearance endangered more than just herself. Kalesi, Mevi¡¯s mentor and first real friend, was in the care of Maphet¡¯s servants. Despite Maphet¡¯s promise to care for Kalesi, Mevi could only be terrified what would happen if Mevi proved insufficient to Maphet¡¯s needs and was subsequently disposed of. The fear that rested within her seemed to leak out, both Magi seemed to study her with a knowing look. Maphet looked at Odion, who so often seemed to speak for the both of them, ¡°The archives suggest your departure to the planet will be soon. They advise you return to your dwelling and attendants. The archives state Alestair¡¯s thoroughness, but in addition to your current attendants the archives suggest you retrieve another. The being, Modrak, is one that might help you. They reside within the facility you and your attendants house within. The archives state his vital necessity to your task upon the planet. If you have any duty before departure, make it to seek out this being.¡± explained Odion to break the silence.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what to do, so she simply bowed in mimicry of Alestair and said, ¡°Of course, my Lord. Where should I find this person?¡±

    ¡°Modrak resides outside of the archive¡¯s recollection. They are an entity that cannot be recorded, yet they will prove an assistant to you.¡±

    Odion stated his last advise in such a way that Mevi knew there was little else she could get out of him about the subject. Mevi had to hope Zelkan or Saerin had heard of this ¡®Modrak¡¯ before. Mevi was unsure what to do at this point, and Odion seemed to understand her hesitation. While Maphet continued to look over Mevi, ignoring the air of the room and the looming tasks still ahead, Odion commanded that Mevi leave to prepare and rest. As Mevi turned to leave she caught a glimpse of Maphet waving her goodbye, an innocent and almost encouraging emotion leaked out of the Magi. Maphet was truly a mystery to Mevi, but she returned the gesture regardless while Odion stood tall and proud watching Mevi leave with his emotionless air of logic.

    Mevi was left in the hallway as the doors once again closed, leaving the two Magi to their own devices. Now she only needed to find her way back to her facility. The daunting task became less intimidating as the mechanical clanking of metal feet against stone echoed from beyond the turning corridor. One of the mechanical people turned into the hallway, stopped when Mevi was spotted, and then bowed deeply. The construct spoke no words, but as Mevi approached it turned as if to lead her away. Mevi could only hope that this construct was sent to escort her back the way she had come.

 Chapter 4: A Grief Forgotten

    Mevi left quickly with the metal construct. It returned her through strange and hidden passages down to the lower level of the spire where she had watched the Magi¡¯s servants discuss their plan. Ushered back into Zelkan and her Sentinel¡¯s care, the three of them began the return to the facility; cautiously riding the hovering platform across empty air once again.

    Zelkan had not attempted to pry into what had happened, yet was glad Mevi returned without any obvious issues. As they fully landed at the connecting path to the facility, which Mevi had begun to consider almost a new home, Mevi began her explanation of what had occurred. It had taken Mevi the entire time traveling back to the facility just to organize her thoughts of what had even been discussed in the tall spire, along with the immense terror of responsibility that was placed upon her with this new task. Mevi decided, as she began her explanation, to leave out the part pertaining to Modrak until their entire party could be gathered. While Mevi explained Zelkan listened eagerly, seeming almost excited about the task, but quickly became sullen when Mevi mentioned that they would need Saerin¡¯s help. Almost on cue, as their party of three had been walking through the facility halls, Saerin appeared around the corner with their mischievous grin and air of positivity following her every movement. Yet another figure followed closely after the peppy technician.

    An extremely tall, blue-skinned, and lanky figure followed Saerin closely as they listened to whatever Saerin was saying intently. They allowed their hood to sway gently around their shoulders and bore silvered insignia etched into their robes to create the arcane sigils that marked some acolytes of high importance. The tall figure was almost unsettlingly thin, as if the creature had never lived in anything beyond zero gravity environments, and two large violet eyes stared unblinking at Saerin with a curious intensity. As the pair rounded the corner Saerin¡¯s grin widened, ¡°Mevi! I was just looking for you and Zelkan. This kind woman said she was sent to speak with your ¡®chief attendant¡¯-¡± Saerin chuckled to herself at the pompous title ¡°-I thought; ¡®That could only be Zelkan, he would call himself something like that!¡¯ So here we are!¡±

    Zelkan¡¯s sullen attitude was replaced by an embarrassed annoyance as he sputtered a response, ¡°What? I would never claim¡­-¡± Zelkan sighed and attempted to ignore Saerin¡¯s barely-hidden laughter, ¡°Greetings. I presume you are Ouapi, who Lord Alestair sent word of?¡±

    The blue figure politely bowed, ¡°O-e-pi¡± she clarified, ¡°Yes It is a pleasure to meet you. I was sent to assist you as an advisor and a knowledge base for when you leave for the planet. If you have questions about our departure or procedures, simply ask.¡±

    Mevi returned Ouapi¡¯s bow, to the thin woman¡¯s surprise, and managed to give thanks. Ouapi¡¯s eyes were large with a depth difficult to describe. Mevi almost felt they had a hypnotic gaze to them, but forced herself to not stare too long at the woman. With their new advisor, Mevi¡¯s band of followers was almost complete.

    Mevi had not asked about Modrak before now, thinking it would have taken longer to assemble their full party than it actually did. Yet with things progressing so smoothly she looked to Zelkan for his insight after introductions were finished. ¡°Zelkan, do you know where to find someone named ¡®Modrak¡¯? The Lords Magi said I needed to find them.¡± A pause gripped the conversation suddenly. Both Saerin and Zelkan stared at Mevi with a look of some new emotion, could it have been sadness? Pity maybe? Some recalled knowledge came over the two of them, which told Mevi without words that they knew exactly who she was asking about. Ouapi and Mevi watched with a shared ignorance while the Sentinel stood behind Mevi silently. After a moment Saerin spoke when it seemed obvious that Zelkan would not.

    ¡°Mevi, I believe I can lead us to him¡­ them. But are you certain the Lords wanted you to find them? I cannot think of what they could be useful for.¡±

    Mevi, cautiously, affirmed Saerin with a nod.

    Zelkan then spoke, ¡°Modrak rests deep under the facility, far away from any prying eyes that might assume it has any relation to our Lord. We will need to gather some tools before we set out to find them.¡±

    Then, without any more words, Zelkan began to walk away. Further intrigued by who this ¡®Modrak¡¯ was, Mevi followed Zelkan down the hallway the direction Saerin and Ouapi had just come. The group walked in silence, Zelkan leading them with their emotions hidden behind his perfect posture. Mevi was terrified she had somehow been the cause of his discomfort and looked to Saerin who watched Zelkan¡¯s back with an air of sullen understanding. Mevi dared to want an explanation, but was conflicted that it might cause more pain to whatever wound festered within the name ¡®Modrak¡¯. Saerin seemed to notice Mevi¡¯s looks back and forth between the two and slowly began to fall back behind the group gesturing for Mevi to follow. When Saerin, Mevi, and the Sentinel who always stood behind Mevi, dropped behind Ouapi and out of easy earshot of Zelkan, Searin began to talk quietly.

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    ¡°Mevi¡­ You are aware of how rankings work within the Magi¡¯s employ, correct?¡±

    ¡°I believe so. The Magi are at the top, with the Council above even them, with their mortal followers organizing themselves under them.¡±

    ¡°A simple enough explanation I suppose. The Magi¡¯s Apprentices lead as a sort of representative of their respective lords. Following are Neophytes, the agents of the Magi who handle all types of tasks from reconnaissance, warriors, educators, as well as being the heads of various districts of the four callings; the callings being Legionaries, Custodians, Socialites, and Aedifex.¡±

    ¡°What about the Magicae? Are they not a ¡®calling¡¯?¡± Mevi asked, thinking herself clever to notice the error.

    ¡°The Magicae are in a league of their own; anyone who feels the calling of a Magicae is given directly to the Magi Vol, he and his Magicae perform arts incomprehensible to mortals but are in an indirect service to most of the Magi. But yes, I suppose that is one of the callings.¡± Saerin sighed as they looked back to Zelkan, who continued to walk solemnly ahead. ¡°Then below Neophytes are Stewards, who mostly are in charge of organizing the orders of the Neophytes or given small plots of territory to manage. Finally Acolytes, which make up the bulk of the Magi¡¯s followers. We Acolytes, like myself and Zelkan, perform any and all tasks within our respective callings. Within all levels of this system, besides the Magi and Magi Apprentices themselves, there are Senior or normal followers. Seniors might remain in their respective level their entire lives, never ascending the ladder, but even so to become a Senior Acolyte would hold a similar weight to a Neophyte. It is all quite needlessly complex, the interplay between levels and callings can become terribly muddy.¡±

    Mevi listened intently, but most of this was already explained to her when she was initially taken by the Magi, ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± A nagging question got the better of her.

    ¡°Because Modrak used to be a Senior Acolyte. They were, in a way, like the leader of many Acolytes within this very facility. While to others they were like a parent and guardian. Modrak served for some several hundred years, so long that many were taken into service for the Magi then died in their service while Modrak was always there. Taking care of us.¡± Saerin stopped looking towards Zelkan, averting her gaze in a sad way. ¡°To Zelkan, who was one of the last to be mentored by Modrak, they were like a parent.¡±

    ¡°What happened to them, if we can go to them aren¡¯t they still alive?¡±

    Zelkan¡¯s voice echoed from ahead of them as barely a whisper, ¡°That thing is Modrak in name alone.¡±

    This statement seemed to end the conversation there and then. Without further explanation the group traveled in silence through the facility. As they did Zelkan stopped by various stations, rooms, and odd attachments to the facility Mevi had not explored before. Many appeared like labs, workshops, or even strange types of stores. Yet of course they used no obvious kind of currency. Zelkan gathered bundles of heavy clothes, strange devices that could emit long beams of light, and weapons. Zelkan ensured that each of their group held at least a defensive heat blaster. The Sentinel, at some point, had acquired their own golden halberd along with a large rifle that pulsed with a blue energy as if it were unstable.

    Mevi was issued a small type of blaster, which she had initially refused to take after its similarity to the weapon that wounded Kalesi not so long ago. Yet Zelkan¡¯s grim insistence, and the looming presence of her Sentinel¡¯s gaze convinced her to at least hold it. The device appeared similar to any type of projectile gun, but had a large bulge in the barrel that emitted a dull orange glow like it was boiling with churning magma.

    With their equipment acquired, Zelkan continued to lead them into the facility. Yet at some point Mevi realized they had begun slowly descending. The architecture slanted, the floor was a small decline rather than stairs or hovering platforms to ferry one up and down. Instead the facility began to slowly descend where every turn became jagged and straight, abandoning the smooth architecture that had become so familiar. As they followed the path laid out by Zelkan, Mevi began to feel uncertain of this task. Some feeling of familiar dread was creeping over her subconscious, as if she had a need to run as quickly to the surface as possible. Yet the presence of her companions calmed her, while the looming golden form of the Sentinel reassured her of safety.

    After a long time, unknown exactly how long they had been walking, the lights had taken upon an almost monochrome hue. The smooth marble was replaced with creeping metal that almost seemed to eat away and convert the white stone to its own technological mess of pipes. The path they followed suddenly stopped, blocked by a single door barely taller than the Sentinel. Zelkan turned to Mevi to address her directly for the first time since she had first mentioned the name ¡®Modrak¡¯. ¡°My lady, I must warn you. Modrak is kept deep within the facility, below even Lord Magi Maphet¡¯s influence. Their cage is kept within what many call the ¡®Undercity¡¯. The infrastructure below the surface of the City of Light. There are many fiends and vagrants that inhabit this place, long since abandoning the light of the Magi. We must, all of us, stay close to each other and remain on the singular path.¡±

    Mevi simply nodded in response, feeling the weight of the oncoming threat they were about to experience in her memories of the Pipes.

    As her affirmation was confirmed, Mevi could see the hint of a terrible grief pass over Zelkan¡¯s face. Yet it was soon replaced with a solemn dedication to their duty. As their task lay before them, given directly by the Magi themselves, Mevi and her companions pushed open the sealed door to enter the Undercity.

 Chapter 5: Protectors From The Undercity

    Mevi, Saerin, Zelkan, Ouapi, and the Sentinel walked through the open frame of the metal door. It entered into a small cube-shaped room lined with thick plated metal that bore, what seemed to be, scratches or angry scuffs. As the Sentinel helped Mevi into the small room, the door shut automatically behind the golden protector. A red light slowly clicked to life then, as if signaled by the light, clicking gears and metallic scraping echoed through the thick metal walls. The process felt as if Mevi was being analyzed, judged if permission to enter past this metal trap would be allowed or not. The light suddenly flickered to the normal monochrome, dull, light that had prevailed over the hallways to this point in the facility. The invisible emitter sputtered weakly to life as if low on power.

    As the light changed from red, a series of clicking ticks came from the opposite side of the small metal room from the entrance. The outline of a door appeared and it began to swing open, slowly. A single bronze and white cloth clad warrior, not unlike the Sentinel, pushed the heavy metal door open. His face was showing from under a full helm with a digital visor switched into standby as small lights flit across the screen only he could understand. Rough shaven, tired, and remarkably young the man ushered for the group to pass through the doorway with haste.

    When Mevi exited the metal box she entered into what could only be described as the bronze warrior¡¯s barracks, one that was housed within what seemed like a large empty metal cave. An open platform had spattered small housing complexes penned in with a thick wall, with warriors wearing dented bronze armor with white padded clothes under the scuffed metal armor. A group of five bronze warriors stood idly by the exit Mevi¡¯s group passed through. Their attitude casual, tired, and maybe even bored. The moment the Sentinel passed the threshold into full view, every warrior within sight straightened in alarm and to a rigid attention. The guards, who were obviously guarding this entrance to the above facility, looked over the group followed by the Sentinel with panicked eyes. They desperately searched for who they should ingratiate themselves to and give the most honors. Mevi, possibly to her disadvantage, was still wearing simple white and blue robes without any obvious flair or markings. The warrior¡¯s gazes immediately fell upon Ouapi, who bore silvered sigils that marked her as a high ranking individual. One of the guardsmen bowed his head quickly, then raced off ducking into a nearby building. Zelkan seemed content to wait by the door, so Mevi did nothing.

    The complex itself was simple, with only a few buildings that attached themselves to the thick wall that marked the edge of this part of the Undercity. A short wall, with a barely walkable platform, encircled the entire complex. Two or three warriors seemed to patrol the wall at any one time, while a dozen or so other warriors idled in the main yard of the complex doing odd jobs. When the heavy door shut, loudly, behind the Sentinel all eyes drew towards the newcomers. The bored faces of the bronze warriors were scared into enthralment as they all began to gawk at the Sentinel.

    Mevi had, up until this point, forgotten just how tall the Sentinel really was. To her small frame everyone seemed quite tall to Mevi. The Sentinel stood several heads taller than herself, but as he stood looming over her protectively, Mevi noticed he even dwarfed the bronze warriors. Each of the warriors seemed two or three heads taller than Mevi, and the Sentinel stood two or three taller than them. As Mevi was finally able to compare the Sentinel to other people that could be compared to him, the Sentinel¡¯s power and bulk became fully obvious to her after all this time.

    As Mevi finished surveilling the complex, and realized how intimidating her guardian really was, a man in powerful bronze armor shot out of the nearby building the warrior had run into. If the other bronze warriors were wearing heavy metal armor, this man was wearing twice or thrice any normal warrior¡¯s worth. Massive bulk was etched into metal plates that covered every piece of body or skin. No part was left uncovered by the heavy-looking armor in a remarkable show of strength and endurance. Gold runes etched into the bronze warrior¡¯s chest, with a blue gemstone where his heart would be. Mevi struggled to read many of the strange runes and various languages that were frequent on the Barge, but she thought one of the runes might¡¯ve said ¡°Maphet¡± and another ¡°Given soul and body.¡± She was learning the runes slowly, but her studies had paid off at least to an elementary degree.

    The heavily armored man, who was probably this barrack¡¯s leader, rushed to Mevi¡¯s group. The man removed his full helm to reveal the left half of his face was brutally scarred by some kind of burn. His one good eye scanned over the gathered curiosities until it landed on Mevi, the one member of the group the rest of the warriors seemed to pay no mind. The man approached, then dropped to one knee before Mevi. His warriors seemed surprised, obviously not expecting the small girl to be of any importance. ¡°My lady. I am captain Hez. I am honored to be in your service.¡±

    Mevi was less surprised at his supplication at this point after the last several weeks of similar declarations in greeting, ¡°Rise, please. I am Mevare Bensari. Magi Apprentice to Lord Maphet.¡± Mevi had memorized the greeting Zelkan gave her for those that seemed ¡®lower¡¯ in rank.

    Hez looked at Mevi and he seemed genuinely glad. He squinted his eyes as he smiled at Mevi, as if staring directly into a bright light. ¡°We are honored to host such a prestigious guest. We are at your service and command, my lady.¡±

    Mevi smiled awkwardly, she might¡¯ve expected supplications but she was still not truely used to it beyond an initial greeting. Zelkan picked up on her hesitation, as he was always good at doing, ¡°Thank you for receiving us Captain Hez. I am my lady¡¯s chief attendant.¡± Saerin stifled a chuckle with a hand, and an audible tone of annoyance briefly colored Zelkan¡¯s words. ¡°If you would receive us within your cabin, we would be most appreciative.¡±

    ¡°Of course, chief attendant.¡± Hez replied.

    Hez lifted himself, bowed deeply towards Mevi, and then guided them to the nearest building within the complex. Holding the door open for each member of Mevi¡¯s party, Hez came in last. The interior of the building was very minimalistic, it only held exactly what it needed to suit what might¡¯ve been an office and bunk: a short desk with a device similar to a large datapad embedded in the desk¡¯s surface; a single cabinet, closed tightly shut with what looked like a large manual lock; three chairs, one behind the desk and two in front; finally a bed, which seemed so small Mevi wondered how the large captain slept in it or if he slept here at all. Each piece of furniture was made out of a simple, crude, metal. Indeed the entire barracks, from what little Mevi could have seen, seemed welded from crude scrap metal. The complex seemed very primitive compared to what Mevi began to expect as normal on and within the Barge.

    Hez eagerly rushed to retrieve his own chair from behind the desk, and he all but forced Mevi to sit in the extremely too-large chair. The Sentinel stood behind her, as her dutiful golden shadow. Zelkan seemed to glare at Saerin, who shamelessly sat on one of the only empty chairs, but Ouapi quickly claimed the only other. Leaving Zelkan and Hez standing in the middle of the cabin as if they were to be judged by those present. Zelkan couldn¡¯t help sighing to himself as to how quickly Saerin became comfortable, her fidgeting in the chair as she inspected the cabin curiously seemed to further annoy Zelkan. Turning to Hez, who stationed himself by the door, Zelkan finally began addressing the captain. ¡°Thank you again for receiving us, Captain. We are on a mission some might wish to be secret. We know our way, but we must borrow some of your Legionnaires as escorts. We wouldn¡¯t be more than a day, possibly two.¡± Mevi was briefly alarmed, ¡®How could they be down here for an entire day or maybe two? What could possibly make this mission take so long, how deep below was Modrak?¡¯ Mevi thought to herself. As Mevi had her own realization of how long this mission might take, and the dangers she may face, Hez¡¯s own face contorted in shameful regret.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°I am deeply sorrowful that I cannot aid you with Legionnaires as of right now, my lady.¡± Hez seemed to turn his attention towards Mevi now. ¡°The villains of the Undercity have been raiding our base for several months now without stop. Dwindling our manpower and injuring many who would normally go on patrols in the nearby sectors. As of now, by decree of The Divine Lord Magi Odion, we must maintain a minimum number of active duty Legionnaires to man the defenses¡­ Or whatever is left of our defenses at least. If not for the sudden exit into realspace, I suspect we would be fighting off an attack as of this moment if the Holy Barge had continued on its previous course.¡±

    Zelkan seemed taken aback by the lack of immediate declared support, ¡°How can you offer no support? My lady is the Magi Apprentice of our Divine Lady, Lord Magi Maphet!¡±

    Mevi held up a hand to interrupt Zelkan, ¡°Zelkan, we can¡¯t force them to come with us. I had originally assumed we were traveling alone already.¡± Mevi tried to adopt a feigned air of pride and authority, ¡°Would I be allowed to see the injured Captain Hez? Before we leave, at least.¡±

    Hez, obviously not expecting the sudden burst of magnanimity and power of presence, fell to a single knee in a formal bow, ¡°Of course my Lady. If we can offer anything else, weapons, supplies, directions, or what else that would not defy our orders from Lord Magi Odion; we will happily oblige.¡±

    Hez then lifted himself up and eagerly opened the door. Zelkan seemed almost surprised, like he might¡¯ve even been just as proud as confused at Mevi¡¯s sudden decision to ignore their own needs over the Legion¡¯s orders. Mevi puffed her chest out a bit, her gambit to act like a dignitary had succeeded! She had been letting Zelkan do most of the talking since she had originally arrived at the facility, too scared to speak her voice with any amount of authority. But she had taken this chance as practice and pretend she knew how to use her rank and station. She had seen the Neophytes talk in such a firm way at the meeting only hours before, and had seen Alestair use a single hand to halt conversation many times during said meeting. She had been waiting to try out the way the other leaders within Odion and Maphet¡¯s ranks spoke to see if she could pull it off.

    Mevi walked past her companions; Zelkan and Saerin, looking at her with prideful surprise. Zelkan¡¯s confusion waning in place of a subtle gladness that could even shine through his electronic mask. The group exited, following Captain Hez. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but notice the amount of additional bronze Legionnaires that had emerged to stare at her and her group. A stern look from their captain set them back to their duties as they scattered to their posts.

    The largest building of the relatively small complex was their destination. From its design and size it looked like a commons hall or a storage house. As Hez pushed the doors open, with a metallic creak, Mevi was met with the sight of at least three dozen sleeping or groaning soldiers in their casual fatigues. Several were missing limbs, but all tried to maintain a steely silence despite the pained expressions across each face. Heads turned when the door creaked open, and were considerably confused when Mevi stepped through first. Mevi could almost taste the fear, pain, and dread in the air as it hung around this building like a palpable mist. Captain Hez walked in, dour as he was furious at some disappeared foe who caused these injuries. Hez stood tall just past the doorway behind Mevi and pronounced, ¡°Attention men! You are graced by her ladyship, Mevare Bensari, Magi¡¯s Apprentice to our Divine Lady, Lord Magi Maphet!¡±

    The warriors snapped to attention at their captain¡¯s call and even many of the sleeping soldiers woke suddenly as they attempted to straighten at attention, but their instinct to soldier was overridden by awe as they looked at Mevi¡¯s small form as if she were a benevolent angel. Mevi was almost overcome by the sudden wave of hope that gleamed in the warrior¡¯s eyes brightly. Mevi tried her best to hide what embarrassment was now flooding her mind. She patted herself down briefly, self conscious of her inadequate wear. She looked up and reorganized herself, standing proud again as she recalled her pretend authority. Captain Hez seemed none the wiser to Mevi¡¯s fidgeting or the hot red that she felt pass over her face.

    The sensation passed as Mevi tried to remind herself to pretend to act like Alestair. She needed to be steely, confident, and the authority in the room. Mevi looked out at the wounded warriors. The brave Legionnaires who apparently fought an unknown war to protect the facility she had begun to call home. Mevi felt a longing to help them, a kinship towards their sacrifice, and had to fight back the instinct to make empty promises. Mevi had no idea how to react to these poor souls who had fought for her safety while she was oblivious to any danger she might¡¯ve been in without them. Instead of words, Mevi simply began to walk the paths through the makeshift war hospital. Mevi gave the soldiers warm smiles and looked each in the face, regardless if they returned her gaze or whatever wound they bore. She was determined to not forget them and to not take her position of apparent abject luxury for granted when she returned.

    Mevi quietly gave her smile to the bronze Legionnaires. As she passed by each soldier she could feel the warrior¡¯s hope swell from just her presence. Mevi refused to appear against their hope or expectations, and remained a quiet ornament for them to gawk at as a representative of their divine Magi. As she finished her rounds of the war hospital, Mevi returned to the entrance where Hez and her companions still stood in a somber silence. Mevi turned to the wounded, and without any idea of what to do next simply said, ¡°Thank you for your service. I will return.¡± Then, with her promise said, she bowed politely. The wounded were aghast at their Magi¡¯s Apprentice¡¯s action, Mevi could hear a combination of quiet sobbing and loud proclamations of love or loyalty to Maphet. Mevi simply hurried out of the building, the door sliding shut behind her by the hand of Captain Hez.

    Mevi only now noticed the rest of the Legion barracks had gathered by the entrance of the building and had been peering at Mevi¡¯s actions. Captain Hez hadn¡¯t stopped them from snooping on her and as she left several of the warriors fought back tears. Yet even as their emotions rose they stood at attention when Mevi exited the building. Placing their right hand over their heart in a tight fist, with their left holding their weapon of choice tightly at their side. They stared upwards, as if unwilling to meet Mevi¡¯s gaze.

    Mevi silently looked at Zelkan for what to do, her confidence was running dangerously low. Zelkan, who had been brimming with his own confidence and pride moments before, noticed the pleading look for help. Zelkan ushered Mevi to follow him towards what looked to be the main gate of the complex. A sad thing, compared to the scale of so many structures seen before, but tall enough the Sentinel might have an issue climbing over it. Zelkan led Mevi and her party to the gate, with Hez following them there. ¡°We thank you for your hospitality, but we must continue our mission with or without additional help. My lady wishes your company of Legionnaires luck. We will return this way in one day from now if our luck prevails.¡± Captain Hez nodded, obviously holding back some emotion that fought to be let out. Hez gave Mevi a powerful smile, one of a man who had seen much beyond the call of duty and finally saw their savior on the horizon. Mevi only hoped she could hold up to his expectations. Captain Hez took something from his hip, a small metallic cylinder. Staring down at it, he handed it to Mevi and said, ¡°My lady. We cannot go with you. But when you return, use this to signal us. We will charge out of this fort with the fury of the Magi¡¯s righteous to get you back safely.¡±

    Mevi smiled back, ¡°Thank you Hez. I look forward to seeing you again when we return, may you and your Legion be safe.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha!¡± Hez pounded his chest with a fist as he laughed, ¡°If any of these Undercity scum come to attack us before you return we¡¯ll drive them off with righteous devotion! I won¡¯t allow a single man to fall before you can return to bless our campaign!¡±

    Mevi parted from Hez, with one final smile, and prayed silently for their safety. As Mevi and her party walked towards the gate two Legionnaires rushed past to open it wide for their group. Stretching scorch marks wounded the metal landscape outside the barracks, old and burnt carcassess were strewn around the field that seemed to belong to both Legionnaire and ruffian. Left to rot or be stolen away by a desperate vagrant. Mevi conceded the lead of the group slowly to Zelkan, when they were out of sight after passing one of the large pipe-like supports that cover the Barge, she let Zelkan fully take the lead again. Letting out a great sigh of relief and stress, Mevi allowed her back to relax and muscles to unstiffen. Zelkan ensured their pace was slower than needed, and turned to look towards Mevi, ¡°I cannot express my pride my Lady. You knew exactly what to do with the soldiers. You looked the very picture of a Magi¡¯s Apprentice.¡±

    ¡°In truth?¡± Mevi said after she caught her breath and her heart began to slow, ¡°I just didn¡¯t know what to do or say, so I tried to say nothing¡­ I wish I only knew sooner what was happening down here.¡±

    Ouapi spoke for the first time since they had first met, ¡°There are many hidden battles fought across the Holy Barge by our Lord¡¯s faithful.¡± She said in a sullen and knowing tone.

 Chapter 6: The Undercity

    Mevi followed Zelkan closely, not knowing what dangers lurked within this dark expanse. Once their group had fully passed out of sight of the Legion barracks the light had reduced to almost nothing. Ambient light drifted in here and there where cracks in the tall ceiling let in glorious light. The illuminators Zelkan had picked up became immediately useful, their group illuminating long-stretching beacons of light across the area.

    The cave the Legion¡¯s barracks was located within was long, like an enormously wide tunnel. The sides of the internal structure were so far apart you could not fully see both walls at the same time. Yet even despite the great expanse, it was remarkably quiet. Mevi was unnerved by the silence, she had been told about the desperate souls that somehow live this far below the surface, but her only experience outside of orderly society was with natives of the Pipes. The long stretch of perpetual dark only heightened her fear of the unknown within these depths. Yet strangely enough, the rest of her party seemed at ease as they walked the darkness. They must know something Mevi didn¡¯t, as every shadow seemed to jump at her when she cast light across it with the beam of illumination.

    It wasn¡¯t a long walk, maybe an hour or two, before Zelkan began progressing more cautiously. Mevi could see his digital mask lighting up and displaying strange colors, even from behind him where Mevi watched silently. Mevi assumed he was using the mask as a digital display rather than his usual swirling clouds on a blue sky. Mevi was still curious what lay beneath the mask, able to only see hints and impressions of the man underneath the covering. But as she watched his mask suddenly went dark, dimming and shutting out all light from its illuminatory visor.

    Mevi had been staring into Zelkan¡¯s back, daydreaming about what lay beneath, when Zelkan¡¯s darkened mask turned to look at the group. Zelkan seemed to debate with himself if he should speak or not. He seemed to err on the side of caution, motioning towards his illuminator before he switched it off and signaled everyone else to follow. Begrudgingly Mevi adhered to the silent advice. In the dark Mevi could still see, her eyes being one of the few gifts she inherited from her family. Her people having lived in darkness, avoiding the death that was sunlight for unknown generations. Mevi could easily make out the forms of her companions, but even now she still dreaded the dark and its terrors despite her long hours of meditation in complete darkness. As Mevi began to fear the looming dark she noticed Saerin seemed to bumble around as if blind, while the rest seemed attuned to it. Mevi instinctively grabbed Saerin¡¯s hand gently, the woman jumped in surprise but attempted to maintain silent composure. It felt better to look after someone when she was scared, Mevi thought. She had to ignore her instinctual fear of the dark so she could take care of Saerin, who was disadvantaged in a place like this. Zelkan then began to lead them through the dark quietly, Mevi guiding Saerin along the metallic terrain.

    Zelkan led the group for a further ten minutes in complete silence. When Mevi was beginning to wonder exactly what they were doing, she heard something. A gravelly grunting followed by eager snorts. The entire group paused, each having heard the strange sounds. Mevi darted her eyes around the vast cave, the sounds had come from nearby she thought. Then she saw what the sounds had come from. A large beastial thing, fat and round like it gorged itself on food frequently. Four legs that slugged against the ground with a fleshy slap, making a sound like a suction cup as it walked. A long neck, held low to the ground, swiveled as an elongated snout sniffed the ground eagerly. The creature was a strange sight, its body so big Mevi wondered what threat it posed. As their group watched the creature in silence, Mevi saw something incredibly peculiar. The creature¡¯s underbelly began to glow with bioluminescence. Small luminescent orbs dotted the creature¡¯s stomach as it seemed to search the ground for something. After moments of the creature¡¯s light sources illuminating the ground, it stumbled upon a patch of some gooey mess that began to make a chiming sound in response. The pile of mossy goo stood no chance as the bovine creature voraciously devoured the substance.

    Suddenly, just as the fat creature began to eat its meal, a massive claw rocketed down from the distant ceiling. A massive hooked claw, that seemed more like a barbed cage, wrapped around the fat creature as it was pulled away into the darkness above in screaming terror. The moment the creature was attacked Zelkan grabbed Mevi and made her run. Mevi still held Saerin¡¯s hand and was trying to guide her through the dark as fast as they could manage. The capture of the fatty creature or the clattering noise their group made against the ground seemed to awaken some angry hive of ceiling-dwelling monsters. Screeching yells echoed from the ceiling as Mevi¡¯s group ran through the dark. Mevi could hear the billowing wind and hard crashes on the ground as something desperately tried to abduct them up to a death high in the air. It seemed that without light to aim at, the creatures only flailed angrily against the ground. Yet even so, they seemed to squeal excitedly at the fatty catch one of their number had acquired.

    Zelkan easily led the group out of that hive of ceiling dwelling terrors. While the monsters were distracted by the bovine creature they initially caught, the group made a quick escape. As they ran away from those creatures, and Zelkan¡¯s pace began to slow, Mevi could see a dim light in the distance. The light bounced around the cave walls, and seemed to emanate out from a turn in their path. At this point, as the light was fully visible in the distance, Zelkan finally stopped to let the group catch their breath. When everyone had stopped their heavy breathing, or mostly just Mevi as she was unfit for such exercise, Zelkan began to remove folded cloth from a small bag he hid under his robe¡¯s layers. The bag seemed to hold more than it should, or the cloth was folded in such a way to allow its easy storage. Regardless, Zelkan produced what looked like five long blanket-like cloaks. Handing them out to each of the group members, including the Sentinel, Zelkan said, ¡°While it will be difficult, we must attempt to adhere to stealth. The Sentinel will be our biggest worry, but we might manage if we can reach a market without detection.¡±

    ¡°A market?¡± Mevi asked, almost surprised at the notion.

    ¡°Yes my lady. Within the Undercity, and even some parts of the Barge¡¯s outskirts where Magi do not yet rule, many residents use a primitive economic system. It consists mostly of trading item for service, or item for item. Yet here in the Undercity, they have developed a sort of currency.¡±

    Saerin interjected, wanting to get to the reveal before Zelkan, ¡°They trade in Mana!¡±

    Mevi was genuinely surprised, and even confused, ¡°How could they trade in Mana¡­ Isn¡¯t that protected by the Custodians and Magi? How would they even hold it, is Mana something physical?¡±

    Giving Saerin a look, untranslated because of the dark but surely one of annoyance, Zelkan continued, ¡°Yes, normally it would be unthinkable for someone to handle Mana directly. But Mana powers all of our devices, weapons, technology, and is even used in our synthesizers for fuel. In truth, the outcasts here trade mostly in batteries, ones usually harvested from salvaged equipment that goes missing or is stolen from the Magi¡¯s faithful.¡± Zelkan looked at the Sentinel, who was much too large to properly wear the simple cloak, ¡°I acquired an amount of batteries we might trade for things we need down here. It looks as if we will need to use them to buy your Sentinel clothes.¡±

    The Sentinel was an odd sight. Its large body was much bigger than Mevi, and the cloak Zelkan gave it barely covered half of its golden armor. The creature seemed undisturbed by the lack of covering, but would almost certainly draw attention with the golden armor covering it from head to toe. Zelkan led them forward, towards the bright light that pierced the darkness of the cave. As they came closer to the bend in the tunnel, Zelkan tried to convince the Sentinel to stay behind, but the creature was unconvinced. Mevi had been followed by the large creature for so long, she often forgot about its presence and size. Knowing it would draw too much attention as it was, Mevi also asked the creature to stay behind. It seemed almost hesitant. As if conflicted between following its directions and doing its duty to protect. It shuffled in place for a moment as it processed the direction. It thankfully seemed to give into the command, but Mevi could almost feel its uneasiness. The Sentinel was worried, even as Mevi followed Zelkan closer to the light and the Sentinel stood in place nearby a tall pillar, Mevi could still feel the creature¡¯s unease at leaving her side. Yet even so, whatever logic controlled its actions seemed to understand the necessity to wait.

    Mevi followed Zelkan, with Ouapi and Saerin close beside her. As they rounded the turn, the echoing sounds of commotion flooded down the narrowing passage. As they approached, Mevi was met with a sight almost as awe-inspiring as the City of Light. They passed through the narrow tunnel and exited into a wide street. A terraced civilization lived etched into the walls and against the massive pipe supports. A grand cavern stretched out before her, as the exit of the tunnel placed itself near the top of this mountain of structures. Scrap metal, shining steel, and stone buildings covered almost every surface. Lights dotted on, in, and around the buildings sprawling well past Mevi¡¯s vision looked like thousands of hovering wisps of light scattered like burning embers. With their tunnel so high up, Mevi saw the Undercity limits stretch both farther than eyes could see and so deep light didn¡¯t fully escape the dark chasm. A bustling street of dirtied residents walked up and down the various roads, paths, bridges, and stairs that stretched in every direction to reach all levels of the city. This underworld seemed less populated than the streets above, but even so many dozens of bodies could be seen walking along the road at any one time.

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    The cloaks Zelkan acquired for them seemed to allow them to blend in, but even so several figures stopped to glare at them as they exited the tunnel onto the street. Even with the glaring natives, Zelkan quickly began moving into the crowd with the rest of the group following close behind. There was much more room to navigate the roads in the Undercity than the City of Light above, and it afforded them enough space to move as one group without getting separated. Zelkan seemed to know what he was looking for and pushed through the crowds without hesitation as if he¡¯d known this place his whole life. Wandering vagrants were scattered in the streets, sitting or laying on the edges of the streets in dirty rags. Ruffians passed back and forth, glaring at any who approached too close, and some even fought each other in the middle of the streets in brawls that people simply stopped to wait until it passed them by so they could continue on their way. Most of the creatures and people who walked the streets here seemed gruff and angry, while even those Mevi would consider ¡®normal¡¯ bore scars or angry expressions. Most inhabitants seemed to avoid the main street, and idled outside what might¡¯ve been their homes. As they walked, Mevi could even make out faces peering out cracks or make-shift windows in the sides of the buildings. Watchers who preferred the safety of indoors than to risk the violent streets.

    As Mevi and her group passed through the streets of rough people, they entered into what looked like a widened section of the road. Scattered across the more open space were stalls and small huts housing people that displayed what looked like junk and trash for sale. Scraps of electronics, pieces of technology, destroyed weapons, and any number of items that seemed useless to Mevi were peddled in this market. Even stranger was that the natives seemed to seriously consider the offers displayed by these merchants. Saerin whispered to Mevi so others couldn¡¯t hear easily, ¡°Many people down here make a living from scavenging things that fall through cracks in the city, are stolen by brave vagrants that reach the surface, or are thrown into trash disposals that lead down here. To survive they need the scraps to repair their own equipment to make food and defend themselves.¡±

    ¡°This is¡­ horrible. Why do the Magi let them live like this?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°The Magi do not force people to obey them. Many of the Magi¡¯s servants have children, who might have their own children, and many of those descendants are given the option to follow their parent¡¯s lord¡­ But many also choose to live within the dredges of society so they might claim to be ¡®free¡¯ instead.¡±

    Mevi was conflicted. Within her she knew the desire to be free. Her family had owned her and threw her away as a tool. She tasted what felt like freedom with Kalesi, her comatose mentor, but it was quickly lost when Kalesi was wounded. Yet even with that taste of freedom, she felt she wouldn¡¯t trade it to live in a place like this. She knew the Magi proclaimed any who wanted to return and dedicate themselves to them are allowed to, most with open arms. What could possibly have motivated so many people to flee the Magi into squalor instead of serving them?

    As Mevi¡¯s mind was distracted with pity and conflict, Zelkan seemed to find a place that satisfied him. A small house that hung above several others, with a rickety metal stair leading up to it. Zelkan helped Mevi ascend the steps as they entered the small house with a badly carved sigil on the front door. As they entered, the store seemed to be what might be considered a ¡®fancy¡¯ shop within the Undercity. Yet even so, the rust, dust, dirt, and discarded junk within the premises still seemed to perpetuate regardless of the establishment seeming a higher class than the other market stalls. A man turned at the opening of the door, with a gleeful expression. Shorter than Mevi, but not by more than a few centimeters, he rushed over to greet them. Ushering them inside, welcoming them profusely, the man looked the group over ¡°Oh welcome! What might ya be lookin for?¡±

    ¡°We require new clothing, something discreet.¡± Zelkan told the man.

    ¡°Ah, I see! Goin about a secret are ya? I¡¯ve just the things!¡±

    ¡°We also need something large enough to fit a Behomarian or Warrior Bug.¡±

    ¡°Weird ask, but my stock is just the thing for it!¡±

    The short man rushed off into a doorless room entering further into his small store. The four of them were left on their own, unguarded, in the man¡¯s store. The main room, if it could be called that, was little more than a few piles of metal junk and a crumbling table at the end of the room. There were no clothes set up for looking at, or furniture to sit on to wait. It was obvious this man had very little to his name, but apparently enough to afford a house even as bare as this one was. The man came back quickly, holding bundles of clothes that seemed to be meant for them. An assortment of simple, and mostly clean, clothes that were drab and dark compared even to the simple cloaks Zelkan brought. Browns and faded blacks made up the bundles of clothes that were haphazardly stitched together to make hanging cloaks and thick trousers. There were two normal shirts, stained with water and badly faded from ineffective cleaning methods. Zelkan immediately delegated one of the shirts to Mevi, which she quietly was grateful for due to the rough and scratch look of the cloaks. Saerin agreed to let Ouapi have the other shirt, while she would wear one of the cloaks and a large shawl over her robes. By the time they were fully dressed they were garbed in an uncomfortable amount of layers of additional clothing, but it did completely cover their formal robes underneath.

    By the time Mevi had finished dressing in the simple garments, Zelkan was already negotiating with the shopkeeper by the table. Zelkan had laid out two small metal cylinders no bigger than his thumb. They seemed extremely simple energy canisters, even from where Mevi stood she could see the faint blue glow of energy that came out of the small containers. A slit, barely a millimeter wide, displayed how much of the glowing material was inside. The shopkeeper looked down at the two canisters, not bothering to hide his eagerness for the batteries. Zelkan was patient and looked down at the man cautiously, ¡°The first is to pay for our clothes. I am sure it is more than enough. The second however¡­ the second battery is to purchase your silence.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve no worries from me good sir! My silence is my best product!¡± the man replied, reaching towards the batteries.

    ¡°If.¡± Zelkan said with emphasis as he put his hand over the batteries, ¡°If we find that someone follows us. I will assume where they came from. Do you understand me?¡±

    The short man nodded eagerly.

    ¡°Good man.¡± Zelkan said as he removed his protective hand from the two batteries.

    The short man gathered up the two batteries quickly, almost slapping Zelkan¡¯s hand in his haste. With his payment in hand the shopkeeper smiled wider, waving his customers goodbye as Mevi¡¯s group left. The group followed Zelkan out of the store and back to the road below, then began their trek back to the Sentinel. Mevi was astounded by Zelkan, he was almost like a different person down here. She was amazed that he somehow knew exactly how to deal with these people, who seemed to be gruff and hostile even as they simply walked the road. Mevi was tempted again to ask about Zelkan¡¯s past, but after what happened last time when Saerin spoke about Modrak, Mevi was hesitant to dredge up what might be dark pasts again.

    Mevi followed Zelkan with Ouapi and Saerin trailing at her sides protectively. They quickly reached the tunnel they had come out of, but to Mevi it looked just like every other tunnel, dugout, road, or natural feature they had passed; as the Undercity was covered in strange places that led to dark alleys or darker pits. Yet even so, Zelkan seemed to know his way around, as if he had been here before. The way he acted, walked, and how he knew what to do Mevi was almost certain he had traveled these parts at least once before. The mystery of the masked man continued to grow as Mevi started to realize how little she knew of any of her companions. It made her almost sad to realize she had been so focused on her studies that she didn''t find time to get to know the people who claimed to now serve her. It made her a poor leader to not know anything beyond surface views of her companions, but delving into their past would need to happen another day.

    As Mevi rounded the corner of the metal cave tunnel she eagerly searched for her golden Sentinel. Its presence was sorely missed, the leering glares from passersby on the road made her uncomfortable and every person seemed angry or hostile. She felt almost naked without her golden shadow looming over her protectively. Another thing she took for granted, Mevi thought. When the dark expanse was visible again, Mevi searched for the tall golden form of the Sentinel. Yet it was nowhere to be seen. The group encroached carefully into the darkness once again, silently looking for the large creature. As they pressed further and further away from the light¡¯s illumination, Mevi began to become worried something had happened. As they began to leave the edges of the warm glow from the tunnel, a form stepped out from behind one of the large metallic pipe pillars. The Sentinel approached with an eager gait. The group breathed a collective sigh of relief, it seemed Mevi wasn¡¯t the only one who briefly worried if the Sentinel had disappeared.

    With their group reformed, and the Sentinel robed in heavy cloth that wrapped over every part of their armor, their group set themselves back upon the bustling road. Somewhere within the Undercity was a once-was man named Modrak, and Mevi was tasked with finding this entity for the sake of her mission. With her companions at her side, Mevi followed Zelkan back onto the road to delve deeper into the Undercity.

 Chapter 7: A Dark Past

    As Mevi entered the bustling street, once again following wherever Zelkan led, she was met with a slightly different set of looks from before. Rather than suspicious glares or greedy learning, the gruff inhabitants seemed instead cautious, yet mostly at ease. It was plainly obvious the effect Mevi¡¯s massive Sentinel had on those that might¡¯ve once seen her group as easy pickings for robbery. As they walked the streets, now accompanied closely by a large and intimidating guardian, their group seemed to almost fit in easier. As if the locals became at ease to see their group passing by in a more reasonable party, like it was expected to display your power and weapons bluntly to ward off danger. In fact, Mevi realized the rest of her companions had been holstering their various weapons plainly to see on their belts. Even the Sentinel protectively carried its large energetic rifle in its arms. Mevi had tucked away the small defensive blaster into a pocket on the inner lining of her robe and almost forgotten about it. Thankfully they hadn¡¯t paid for any mistake her not obviously wielding a weapon might¡¯ve caused from their breif jaunt through the street.

    Zelkan led Mevi¡¯s group further into the Undercity, taking them over and under many passes that made Mevi lost within the first few turns of the road. By an hour past they seemed to have effortlessly descended four or five levels in the city terrace, but Mevi didn¡¯t recall going down any slopes or stairs. They were making a remarkably fast pace with Zelkan as their guide. They must¡¯ve been traveling for several hours with a deafening silence over their party, no one asking where they were going, how long they would be traveling, or even making pleasant conversation. They simply followed Zelkan in a silence that began to worry Mevi.

    Mevi lost track of time, it was already difficult to keep track of time in the Barge without an obvious light cycle, but within the Undercity it was perpetually dark. Her body seemed to yearn to sleep in the dimness of the streets. The distance they had traveled seemed to have taken them far away from the dense population centers, even the streets seemed empty and sleepy with so few people braving the dark. Zelkan seemed to notice Mevi¡¯s growing sluggishness and spoke without slowing their pace, ¡°My lady, we must continue downward if we are to make decent time. If you cannot continue walking, I would advise your Sentinel to carry you.¡±

    ¡°I apologize, Zelkan¡­ The darkness down here is simply confusing my body, I think. I can continue for a while. But I am curious how far we must go.¡± Mevi replied, trying to shake off the creeping sleep.

    ¡°Modrak resides deep in the Undercity, past even the outskirts.¡±

    ¡°Past the outskirts? I remember Modrak was closer to the scrap heaps?¡± Saerin interjected.

    ¡°You remember wrong.¡± Zelkan said with a drip of toxin in his voice.

    The conversation was cut there. Zelkan¡¯s mood became more serious, or dread-heavy, as they progressed downward. Saerin seemed to want to reply in a smart way, but seemed to decide against it after considering Zelkan¡¯s mood. They continued to travel in silence, delving deeper and deeper into the Undercity¡¯s depths. As they continued, Mevi could see Saerin staring hard at her surroundings as the dark continued to become thicker as they descended. Mevi offered Saerin a hand, which was gladly taken with the dark becoming more and more powerful.

    The journey was quiet and the air was tense as the five of them continued further into the Undercity, they seemed to travel for another few hours beyond what already felt like a day¡¯s journey. The Undercity transformed before Mevi¡¯s eyes from a bustling populace to barren ruins. Most of the area they walked after reaching where Saerin could hardly see became loosely populated ruins, what could be described as the dredges of society; despite the Undercity already considered the dredges of the Magi¡¯s society. Most buildings hugged tightly to the looming walls and thick support beams, but as the terraced city¡¯s bounds became wider so were the residents forced to build their homes in the open. Most structures that were not attached to the strong metal walls seemed to be in disrepair, if not entirely abandoned. Yet even in the far depths of the Undercity there were still many people peering cautiously at Mevi and her companions.

    Mevi felt herself becoming legitimately tired as they continued further into the Undercity depths, or what might now have been considered the outskirts. Mevi was curious about the layout of the city and what resided within its reaches, but she felt asking unnecessary questions would only force up unwanted memories in Zelkan. Mevi was not sure exactly how to handle her companion¡¯s dread and anger, Zelkan was normally so calm that his new attitude was like she was dealing with a new person entirely. After Saerin stumbled against a jutting piece of metal scrap in the crude pathway, one of many stumbles at this point as her eyes became almost useless in the near-dark, Zelkan finally stopped. ¡°We make camp here. I will search for an empty building that can suit us, stay here and off the road until I return.¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we stay together?¡± Mevi called after Zelkan as he walked away.

    ¡°I will be fine, stay off the road.¡± Zelkan simply replied.

    After he left the Sentinel took to standing over the three of them, placing itself between Mevi and the road Zelkan warned of staying atop. The three of them subsequently walked off the road and the Sentinel did as its title bid, watching the area carefully for any sign of danger or movement. Ouapi made herself comfortable on the rough road, sitting in a sort of meditation while Saerin and Mevi stood idly against a tall support. The area they had been traveling through was mostly abandoned, or it seemed to be abandoned. The path they had been walking might be called a road, if it wasn¡¯t simply the only flat surface in these dark depths; the rest being rounded structures that were becoming more and more reminiscent of the Pipes. By this point it had been at least two hours since the last time Mevi had seen a living soul on the roadway, most hid within their houses and rarely peeked their heads out of windows long enough for Mevi to even get a glimpse of life. Their group had walked past several people that were on the road, but were plainly dead and stripped of anything valuable. In many cases they were being actively eaten by strange scavenger creatures, rat-like things with eight legs rather than four and almost impossible to get a good look at with their immense speed. This region, which Mevi assumed to be the ¡®Outskirts¡¯, was a ghost town with the decaying corpses to accompany it.

    Zelkan returned, ducking out of an alleyway and back onto the road. Gesturing for the group to follow him once more, they all entered into the back alleys until they found a small abandoned house. The structures this far out had no tall walls to cling to, the terrain stretching longer and farther the further down the terraced city you went. By this point this level of the Undercity must¡¯ve gone on for a league or two without a change in elevation and seemed to have plenty of distance yet to cover. Descending further only promised even longer stretches with progressively smaller houses, if any were built or survived at all. Most buildings were squat things, lacking support of a strong wall to build upon, and they fell apart in crumbling ruins even while people lived within. This building Zelkan had found for them was no different, it seemed to only have one floor with no roof, but it at least had all four walls with no windows. There was only one obvious entrance, other than a few small cracks in the higher parts of the walls that a small creature might scuttle through. With no door, the Sentinel put himself next to the entrance to watch it diligently, while Zelkan had already begun laying out the cloaks they had brought as make-shift beds.

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    Once their campsite was finished, their five cloaks wrapped as padding against the metal floor along with a handful of food supplies stacked in the center, Zelkan began to take out his weapon to maintain it. Ouapi was doing the same, but Saerin and Mevi were still standing there quietly. Zelkan had forgotten to activate one of their illuminators for Saerin to see again, so Mevi took out hers to activate its beam. Zelkan looked up towards Mevi, his expressions hidden in the dark tint of the low light, and rushed over to snatch the illuminator away to deactivate it. Mevi was surprised and stumbled backwards, causing the Sentinel to move forward protectively before Mevi stopped it with a reassuring hand. ¡°We cannot risk any light!¡± Zelkan said urgently.

    ¡°I apologize, again¡­ I didn''t know, and Saerin can¡¯t see very well down here.¡± Mevi stuttered out, realizing she did something wrong.

    Zelkan, still holding the illuminator tightly in his hand, seemed to soften his posture until he collapsed to the ground to sit, ¡°No¡­ I apologize, my lady. I have been an improper aid. I should have told you rather than assuming. I will accept any punishment you deem fit.¡±

    ¡°Punishment? Why would I do that, Zelkan? You haven¡¯t done anything wrong, you simply want to protect me. I know that.¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t been open, and I allowed sour memories to get the better of my mood that might¡¯ve endangered us with my silence.¡± Zelkan sighed, and seemed to become smaller as his anger, dread, and confidence melted into a vulnerable sadness.

    Mevi could almost know what he was feeling. His sadness flowed out of him like streaming tears that Mevi could recognize as easily as her own emotions. Mevi sat next to him, placing a hand on his where it lay on the cold metal ground. Zelkan straightened himself, as if preparing for something uncomfortable. ¡°I should be honest with you, my lady. Keeping secrets is a poor thing to do as your aid.¡± Zelkan said suddenly.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need to tell me anything you don¡¯t want to, Zelkan. But I would be lying if I wasn¡¯t concerned¡­ and curious.¡± Mevi replied with as much tenderness as she could give.

    ¡°I was not recruited into the Magi¡¯s service, like most of my peers. I joined willingly. A long time ago, when I lived in the Undercity.¡± He paused, as if recalling a painful memory. ¡°It was difficult living here, and I thought the Magi could save me from it. I joined for entirely selfish reasons, and at the time I didn¡¯t truly believe in the Magi or their purpose. But it was Modrak who changed that for me.¡± Turning to face Mevi, he seemed to debate what exactly to say. ¡°I was first welcomed as a tributary. The lowest level of the hierarchy, ones who don¡¯t even receive a calling. We tributaries offer our bodies in exchange for safety and sustenance. Mana comes from living things and is normally extracted passively you see, but a tributary lives to give what might be within to help power the Barge we graciously inhabit. I would be lying if I said it seemed like a good trade, but I was fed and kept healthy in exchange for essentially no work or effort on my part.¡± As Zelkan paused to continue, Mevi thought she could see the outline of a subtle smile but the darkness prevented any real detail escaping from under the mask. ¡°Then Modrak came. He made a habit to visit the tributaries, even sometimes venturing into the Undercity or Pipes themselves too. He would test those he found, spending days in the filth that we willingly lived within. Those he found suitable were taken away, never to be seen again. I had always assumed they were deemed too useless to even be a tributary, but it was later when I found out his real purpose. He was saving us, in a way. Finding those with the talent, aptitude, education, or anything that could prove actually useful to the Magi. Modrak would somehow convince those above him to promote us to a higher standing, and he would mold us into useful servants of the Magi.¡±

    Zelkan stopped speaking, a dour shroud overtook whatever pleasant memory might¡¯ve been. He took several moments to gather himself again before he could continue his tale. As he mustered his courage and he began with a depressed sigh, ¡°I was his last pupil. He was like a father to me, as I never knew my own parents. I only knew survival at any cost. Modrak removed that mindset from me, and gave me a purpose. Raising me through the ranks of the initiates and eventually my ascension to acolyte was near. But then something happened. Modrak was experimenting with something, working on a project given to him by Lord Magi Odion. It was Modrak and Lord Magi Odion¡¯s Magi Apprentice-in-training, one who should have become co-apprentice with Alestair. The two of them were bright minds, no secret of the Barge could withstand their combined attention. Her name was Ress¡¯kasa, she was a creature that was beautiful despite scale and claw. I think they loved each other once. But it didn¡¯t matter in the end.¡±

    Zelkan sat for a moment, not speaking, only staring at the ground blankly before starting again. ¡°I had received a missive to assist Modrak and Ress¡¯kasa, simply as an extra pair of hands while they worked. When I arrived things were dire, something had gone wrong in whatever experiment they worked on. Mana, electricity, and dangerous gasses were out of control in their lab. I rushed in, hoping to find and save them. The searing gasses, whatever they were, charred my skin and melted flesh. It is the reason I wear a mask to this day. Yet even despite my attempt to penetrate the danger, at risk to my own body, nothing could be done. But then I saw Modrak, standing over Ress¡¯kasa¡¯s body as if nothing had happened. Staring down at the corpse like one might regard a dropped tool or fallen chair. He was unfazed by the writhing chaos around him, and instead stared down at Ress¡¯kasa¡¯s corpse like it was an incredible annoyance. There, beside the two of them, was an out of control experiment. A ball of some sort, exploding with energy powerful enough to instantly melt steel. Modrak simply reached a hand out, grasped the orb, and the chaos subsided. Just like that. All the chaos, danger, and my own sacrifice was meaningless as the air cleaned and dissipated into normalcy.¡± Zelkan clenched his fists, as a fit of frustrated anger began to creep in. ¡°A wave of his hand and what had killed Ress¡¯kasa and had mauled me, all of it was gone¡­¡± Zelkan sighed, grief obvious in the conflicted emotions that infected his voice. ¡°He was like another person after the incident. Cruel, logical, willing to use or abuse any to further his experiments. Lord Magi Odion seemed to feel his knowledge, which was apparently gained from his botched experiment, was worth keeping. Even so we held a funeral for Ress¡¯kasa, something that almost never happens apart from the most important individual. Everyone in our facility attended, Alestair even arrived to give a speech. But Modrak was nowhere to be seen. At some point Modrak decided he couldn¡¯t reasonably work within the facility, so Lord Magi Odion gave him leave to venture into the Undercity to continue his experiments. I tried visiting him, tried reasoning with the man who I respected for so long. But I only found a monster that experimented upon living ¡®volunteers¡¯ coerced into offering themselves like tributaries. The very thing he had once before tried to stop the practice of.¡±

    Zelkan became quiet. The story drained him as his last word left. He seemed to finish his tale, and sat there quietly in somber silence. Mevi squeezed his hand, unsure what to say at such a revelation. Even Saerin seemed almost shocked and disgusted at the details of Zelkan¡¯s recount. They sat there in silence, until Zelkan muttered, ¡°That monster is no longer Modrak. It is not even a person anymore.¡± But with that final comment the conversation was done. They soon situated themselves at the basic campsite and began their rest. With the promise of more walking in the dark whenever they might wake up. The Sentinel diligently guarded them as they slept, and it was a welcome comfort for Mevi. The idea of this Modrak, what had happened and what he might be doing even now, unsettled Mevi. Knowing the Sentinel was there gave her an air of safety, but it didn¡¯t prevent Mevi from wondering what this Modrak could possibly offer to her task. She silently hoped this madman would not need to travel with her, but she feared that was exactly what the Magi had intended.

    As they rested, the night was short. Well, if it could be called night. Mevi and her companions awoke after only a few hours of sleep and relaxation. Before long after the last of their number awoke, so few getting any real sleep in the desolate dark, Zelkan hurried them to continue. By his memory, they were less than an hour away from Modrak¡¯s personal facility and this rest would be needed for the strength that waited for them ahead.

 Chapter 8: The Castle

    Mevi and her companions began to venture forward into the darkness once again. The desolate ruins of a once-city surrounding their path as they continued further down into the oppressive darkness. Zelkan had said there was only an hour or so left before they reached Modrak¡¯s facility, but Mevi began to silently wish they wouldn¡¯t find it and turn back towards the surface. Yet within the determined steps of Zelkan, there stood no chance of fleeing from this quickly darkening quest.

    It was only thirty minutes after their start when Mevi noticed an abrupt change in scenery. Almost suddenly, all the structures were gone. As if an invisible wall prevented the residents of the Undercity from building any further, so they all just stopped. Here, in the wide open of the dark chasm, Mevi felt a chill run down her spine. The ruined huts and decaying buildings were imposing, but they at least offered sanctuary from the wide open, and promised that living people might¡¯ve once resided here. Yet even as the party slowed to a half pace in the dark plain, a bright beacon could be seen shimmering on the horizon somewhere below their current position. Zelkan pointed, ¡°That is what residents of the Undercity have grown to call, ''The Castle''. It is also our destination.¡±

    ¡°Incredible, its so bright I can almost see again. Almost.¡± Saerin said, trying to lighten the mood.

    ¡°It is almost¡­ Ominous.¡± Mevi replied, still hesitant after the dreadful story from last night.

    The group continued further, almost more relaxed than they were when creeping through the ruins. The bright sign of their destination seemed to almost put the rest of the group at ease, but Mevi couldn¡¯t help but feel something was going to go wrong. Yet despite her trepidation, the group continued forward. Cresting a small cliff, Mevi could now see the source of the gleaming light. A vast facility, layered with four separate walls, all of the city-like structures within the tall walls climbed higher and higher until the centermost spire reached up like a jutting metallic earth-bone climbing in a vain effort to reach the surface. The walls were covered in spotlights, stretching their beaming illumination back and forth eagerly searching for any sign of movement. While the buildings inside, which there was easily a city¡¯s worth, glowed with an orange light reminiscent of the City of Light above. The entire complex seemed much too large for a single person to build on their own, let alone live within alone. The towering structures seemed to fight for dominance against the high walls, which both stretched tall with sleek curves lined with strange runes similar to the ones within Maphet¡¯s facilities.

    Mevi¡¯s party stopped atop this cliff, the sheer cliff wall dropping ten or so meters below to rounded metal hills. Zelkan seemed hesitant, while Saerin was just glad to be able to see once again, and Ouapi showed no emotion other than silent curiosity. Mevi felt a powerful force of unease come over her. Something was wrong, or this place was wrong. She felt as if she were moments from retching, even so far away the feeling was like a foul stench hung in the air only she could smell. Mevi held her instincts back, but couldn¡¯t stop herself from leaning against her Sentinel. The large bodyguard didn¡¯t seem to mind, and its cloaked head looked down at her and Mevi pretended there was a look of concern under the Sentinel¡¯s hard armored exterior.

    Mevi gathered herself just as the rest of the group began to venture along the edge of the cliff, eventually finding purchase enough to slide down without too much danger. Following Zelkan¡¯s lead towards the well fortified facility, the group made their way towards the outer wall. It was here, slowly approaching what looked like an open gateway, that Mevi could see strange creatures.

    Occasionally, as if following the beams of light, there were floating metallic constructs. Orbs, for lack of a better term, with strange thin appendages dangling below them loosely. Large lenses dotted the orb in a ring around the midsection that gave it the look of a many-eyed monster. Even Zelkan seemed to be surprised by the appearance of this construct, becoming wary but still pushing the party forward towards the large gateway entrance.

    As Mevi and her party neared the gateway, only ten or fifteen meters away, one of the floating constructs seemed to finally notice them after they fully entered the light of the facility. Its eyes seemed to light up green, and it approached quickly towards Zelkan. Suddenly two other of these constructs also appeared as if from nowhere, both also glowing with green lights in their eyes. The three constructs encroached near enough to smell oil and rust, putting their green-glowing lenses close to Zelkan and the rest of the group. Saerin laughed awkwardly to herself, ¡°Zelkan? Did this happen the last time you were here?¡±

    ¡°No, these things weren¡¯t here when I came here before. Neither were the fortifications so high.¡±

    The strange constructs bobbed up and down as if they were getting a better look at the party from different angles. Where Mevi and her companions had stopped they were only moments from reaching the gateway, which was open welcomingly with a cobbled road leading straight toward the central spire. As Mevi looked towards the spire, confused as to what these constructs were doing, she saw what seemed to be a crowd of people rapidly marching towards them. Before she, or any of her companions, could react the Sentinel pushed itself in front of the group protectively. Just as the Sentinel did so a blast of energy careened down from the central street, blasting against the Sentinel¡¯s back as it attempted to cover them with its large body. Crackling energy sizzled in the air, and static made Mevi¡¯s hair stand on end, but before she could comprehend they were under attack the Sentinel already made to grab her and dash off.

    The Sentinel grabbed Mevi in one quick sweep, and the rest of her companions quickly attempted to follow the large being. Yet as the golden guardian¡¯s powerful build began to run, the others were quickly left behind. The many-eyed floating constructs began to blare red in their eyes and grabbed at her three companions with their spindly appendages. It was moments after Mevi noticed many others of the floating constructs swarming over the walls, they had been mere seconds before descending in a horde of metal and red light. Before Mevi even knew what was happening Zelkan, Saerin, and Ouapi were tangled in a mess of metal claws while a group of others chased Mevi and the Sentinel. Yet the Sentinel used its power and build to the fullest, quickly outpacing the comparably slow constructs and leaping back up the cliff in a single bound. Mevi flew through the air as the swarm of robotic assailants clattered against the cliff face like a wave of metal.

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    The Sentinel didn¡¯t stop there, it continued to run with Mevi over its shoulder. Mevi had barely had enough time to process her companions being swarmed before they were already leaping back over the cliff. Mevi began to bang on the Sentinel¡¯s back, trying desperately to get its attention and listen to her. Through confused huffing and angry tears that began to well, Mevi demanded the Sentinel stop its flight and go back to save her companions. In response the Sentinel slowly came to a halt, but by this point they were much too far away to see more than the highest of structures from The Castle.

    The Sentinel placed Mevi back on the ground, where she was still deliriously banging her hand against its hard-armored waist, most of its cloak had fallen off in the haste or had been signed badly enough from the opening blast they began to rip apart. Mevi wasn¡¯t even fully aware of what she was saying or doing, dropping into a heap on the floor, memories of Kalesi being wounded flooded back in. The anger and pain of losing her only friend, her newly acquainted family, in the rust-covered Pipes. The trauma that had sent her into a mad rage, overtaken by her emotions and driven to the brink of madness that allowed her Daemon to take control so to wreak havoc and death. The memory of the incident flooded back to her, and before she realized it, she had fallen to the ground and was heaving heavily as she held herself for some pretend comfort. Mevi tried to force herself out of the episode, but its power over her was more than she could bear. Seeing herself so powerless to do anything to save people she cared about made her again realize how weak and useless she was.

    Suddenly, Mevi felt a hand placed on her shoulder. Her eyes shot open, not even realizing she had closed them because the images in her head were so vivid. The Sentinel had placed its massive hand on her shoulder, the creature seemed five times its normal size as Mevi cowered against herself on the ground. It almost seemed to be attempting to comfort her, it knelt down with its hand on her shoulder, its massive frame blocking all of the orange-glowing light that came from the direction of The Castle. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how long she had been in this state, but she suddenly felt her physical faculties return. The dust clinging against her skin, sneaking its way through the heavy clothes, and dirt crusting against her face turning to thin mud where her tears fell. The feeling throughout her body slowly returned to her, and her breathing began to stabilize.

    Mevi pulled herself up, the panic that gripped her gave way like a tide receding back into the ocean. She couldn¡¯t be distracted by fear and panic, not after her friends were taken by a horde of robotic horrors. Looking at her Sentinel, its ragged disguise giving way to the golden armor underneath. Mevi took in a breath of air to fully calm her nerves, then Mevi began back towards the cliff. The Sentinel followed wordlessly, keeping close behind her. The two of them arrived at the edge of the cliff, and Mevi attempted to sneak close to the edge as carefully as she could, but the large frame of her guardian didn¡¯t assist in her attempt at stealth. The Castle was swarming with activity, like a hive of insects disturbed to an intruder. Floating constructs swarmed the walls and patrolled the gateway, but otherwise seemed distracted by the excitement up the street. Humanoid constructs, not dissimilar to the ones seen within Odion¡¯s tower, patrolled the streets of the facility. A large crowd of these humanoid constructs seemed to be crowding upwards toward the central spire, hopefully that was a sign of where her companions were taken as there was no sign of them in the open. Mevi looked at the Sentinel after crawling back behind the edge of the cliff, ¡°We need to get in there and save them and find out why they were taken¡­¡±

    The Sentinel continued to look forward at the fortifications, its steely silence evident of its opinion.

    ¡°It does look difficult, but we can¡¯t leave them. Besides, the Magi need me to find Modrak, wherever he is.¡±

    The Sentinel looked at Mevi, no expression passed through the metal helm that covered everything but two gleaming red eyes.

    ¡°You probably think its too dangerous¡­ But we need to get inside regardless. Do you have any ideas?¡±

    The Sentinel almost seemed to think, before ripping the cloth off its arms to expose the gauntlets underneath. Then, with a twist of its wrists, long silvery blades shot out of the front of the gauntlets like a large singular spike on each arm.

    ¡°What would we do with those? I want to stab these constructs as well, but we couldn¡¯t possibly take on them all with how many there were¡­¡±

    The Sentinel pointed towards the facility, and it took Mevi a moment to realize it was pointing at the wall itself rather than the gateway entrance or anywhere within.

    ¡°Are you saying that we climb up the wall..?¡±

    Without further ¡®conversation¡¯ the Sentinel stood tall, and offered a hand down to Mevi to assist her upwards. The Sentinel seemed to have a plan of some kind, and Mevi trusted its military instinct. If it thought there was a chance to climb the wall, or otherwise enter without alerting the hive, Mevi would trust her guardian to do what it thought possible. Mevi stood, taking the hand offered to her, and with the momentum of standing the Sentinel scooped Mevi onto its shoulders. After affirming that Mevi was secured, which was easy with how wide the Sentinel¡¯s shoulders were, the golden guardian leapt down the cliff.

    Holding on for dear life, Mevi was treated to a swift sprint across the open field. The Sentinel dodged the light being beaconed down by spotlights. Crossing seamlessly from shadow to shadow, avoiding detection of the patrolling constructs with many eyes. Within mere moments the Sentinel had delivered them to the base of the wall, dodging several spotlights in a few powerful leaps. Once it reached the base of the wall, the Sentinel waited in observation of the spotlights. Several of them seemed to beam down far enough to cover some parts of the wall, but never all of it at once. The Sentinel seemed to study whatever pattern the lights followed, and readied itself to ascend the wall. It ensured the gauntlets were secure before beginning its climb.

    Ramming the spiked claw of the gauntlet hard into the metal wall, hardly a sound was made from the scratching metal despite Mevi¡¯s brace against what she thought would be a screeching echo. Either the Sentinel was so powerful it made the scrap-metal walls seem as weak as cloth, or the blades it bore were so sharp to easily cut through metal; Mevi realized it could also be a terrifying mixture of both. As the Sentinel confirmed the durability of the walls, it began its climb upward. Penetrating the wall as if it were a completely mundane activity the Sentinel climbed upwards. As it began its ascent a spotlight began making its way towards where they were, and Mevi ducked close to the Sentiel, only for the light to just barely pass by where they were climbing. The Sentinel stopped only for a few seconds before resuming its pace upwards. As they made it halfway up the large wall another spotlight came bearing down towards them, this one the Sentinel seemed to deem a threat. The Sentinel thrust itself to the right, free flying with the strength of the quick push. Then, as the spotlight seemed to chase them through the air, the Sentinel rammed its claw once again into the wall, stopping their travel with a sudden jerk. The spotlight stopped just an arm¡¯s length away from where they landed. The Sentinel continued climbing up, without issue for the rest of the journey to the top of the wall.

    As the Sentinel reached the top of the wall, Mevi still clinging tightly to its shoulders and body, it waited for a few moments. There were several patrols of the floating orb-like constructs with many eyes. They passed up and down the wall with a rapid pace, and the Sentinel seemed to be eyeing them up to determine its plan. Mevi silently readied herself for a potential fight, but it wasn¡¯t necessary. As a gap in the patrols opened, the Sentinel jumped up onto the wall past the parapet. Then quickly darted across the walkway, but the span of the walkable wall was wider than the Sentinel or Mevi had thought. At least fifteen meters wide, the walkway left them open in the light for several moments even with the Sentinel¡¯s speed. As they reached the other side a construct began to turn around towards them as if alerted to something. In a moment of emergency haste, the Sentinel moved Mevi to the protection of its arms, and then threw itself from the wall¡¯s heights into the lower city of The Castle.

 Chapter 9: Arrogant Shadows

    A hard crash and the sound of screeching metal against metal as Mevi and the Sentinel careened down into The Castle cityscape. Crashing against one of the tall tower-like structures the Sentinel put its armored body between Mevi and the metal wall, producing an ear-piercing metallic echo. Mevi was huddled close to the Sentinel¡¯s chest, with one of its large arms holding her tight while the other arm flailed at the metal building. Mevi could barely see around herself, but as her sight escaped the smothering body of the Sentinel she could tell the ground was quickly approaching. Suddenly the Sentinel found purchase against the metal structure, stabbing its clawed gauntlet into the surface and cutting through the metal in a great swath as the two of them fell downward. The claw made a screeching clatter unlike when the Sentinel silently climbed the wall before, but it soon stopped their rapid descent.

    Alarms seemed to be going off all around them, their cover blown before their rescue mission had even started. The Sentinel didn¡¯t waste any time, pulling out its claw from the building and dropping to the ground at a more manageable descent. The Sentinel then began ferrying them deeper into the metal alleyways of The Castle. The two of them hid themselves away into the first dark alley the Sentinel found. Their landing zone was quickly left behind as the two of them disappeared away from the clamorous search for the source of the damaged building and echoing noise.

    As Mevi was carried into the strange facility, she was finally admitted enough leeway to poke her head from the tight embrace of her protective Sentinel. Despite the bright lights lining the spike-shaped buildings, great shadows covered many areas of the ground and roads. The densely packed buildings stretched high to compete with each other and formed into twisting spires like a field of dead metal trees. The lights which illuminated the area so brightly also cast long shadows against the ground below them due to the tightly packed buildings. Their size, style, height, and even material seemed to vary so greatly that no building looked even remotely similar to the others beyond a tendency towards tall and thin. The inside of the facility looked more alien than the outside looking in was intimidating, and the purpose of the buildings could only be guessed at by Mevi. Yet as she and the Sentinel stopped to hide within a dark shadow, Mevi could almost sense a foul presence dominating over the facility¡¯s bounds. The foul stench she sensed outside the facility was replaced by an overwhelming presence that seemed to watch her every move.

    The Sentinel slowed to a stop, it had dashed from alley to alley and hid them in various shadows to progress them quickly into the facility. Mevi hadn¡¯t seen, or even heard, any mobile constructs for a minute or so now and the Sentinel seemed to agree. Mevi was gently placed on the ground, but she did take note of several spots of pain along her waist and legs where she bore the brunt of spraying shrapnel and the vice-like grip of the Sentinel during the crash. Regardless, Mevi brushed herself off and the Sentinel seemed content to stare at the small girl. Mevi shared the glace with the Sentinel but quickly looked up towards the central spire.

    From within the facility the central spire towered like a cruel barbed tooth, piercing upwards beyond what seemed necessary. Its farthest reach seemed to almost claw angrily towards the extremely distant ceiling of the cavern. Jagged teeth seemed to line the top parts of the spire like barbs or serration. As Mevi looked on at the spire it almost reminded her of an evil dagger, one meant to inflict pain rather than kill or give mercy. Mevi knew the foul aura and dominating presence emanated from that spire, but she had no clue how to reach the center of the facility. Again Mevi looked at the Sentinel, who stared down at Mevi as if she would know what to do next. Mevi was tempted to speak to the Sentinel again, but didn¡¯t want to risk any unnecessary noise in case there was some way they would be heard.

    Mevi needed a plan, and she knew she had none. Her tactical ability was nonexistent, and her knowledge of what the Sentinel could do was apparently equally nothing. She could only rely completely on the Sentinel and its skills. Pointing towards the central spire, Mevi hoped the Sentinel would understand. The Sentinel looked towards her direction and seemed to contemplate what was behind her gesture. The creature stood idly, both arms vacantly dangling at its sides while its large weapons were slung under arm and magnetically held against its back. The Sentinel at times seemed to have no thoughts or intelligence behind it, it so often moved less than a statue and it could almost pass as one. Yet Mevi had been proven time and time again that the creature thought a great deal, or at least understood a great deal. The Sentinel stared towards the spire, seemingly in what qualified as deep thought. Then the Sentinel silently turned its head back towards Mevi, then began to walk forward into the alleyway.

    Mevi followed the Sentinel, hoping that it understood her as it did before despite the wordlessness of her command. The two of them walked in the dark alley, making their way slowly towards what Mevi thought was the main road. Mevi hoped the Sentinel¡¯s intent wasn¡¯t to walk down the main road, otherwise they should have just entered through the main gate and ran down towards the spire in the first place. Yet it was quickly evident that the Sentinel intended to sneak towards the road, despite the massive frame the Sentinel stuck close to the ground in a low walk. Keeping close to walls and shadows the two of them made seemingly easy work of hiding behind and within the shadows cast by the large buildings. Their path led to the edge of the road, somehow finding shelter in a shadow that crept close enough to see up towards the spire.

    As Mevi looked up the cobbled road, the gateway leading in resembled more a monster¡¯s jaws than any door or entrance. She became possessed by the fear of something that dwelt within these gates, the dominating presence pressing itself harder the longer she looked towards the angry spire which was the king of this metal forest. Her senses warned her against going further. Some part of her, which was only disgusted by this place before, was now terrified and her mind darted towards the thought of racing down the road and out the gateway. Yet Mevi recalled her companions, and then remembered her mission. She needed to save her people, she brought them here and must ensure their safety regardless of some disembodied fear. Whatever task her Lords Magi gave her here was important enough to postpone her own mission to the planet below, and so Mevi shook free of the gripping sensation of terror. Recalling where she was, Mevi looked around and saw the Sentinel staring at her intently.

    Shaking free the residual feeling that poured from the spire, Mevi returned her mind to the task at hand. Both she and the Sentinel looked around in an attempt to find a way forward. After the Sentinel¡¯s loud entrance, the walls seemed swarmed by many different constructs. The base of the walls and the wall¡¯s walkways seemed patrolled by many lookouts and guards, which seemed to dissuade the Sentinel from repeating their previous strategy. What choice was left was the road, or some path currently unknown. The obvious solution was not one they could risk to take, the main road was watched and constantly illuminated by bright spotlights. From her brief memory atop the cliff Mevi couldn¡¯t recall any clear way to progress besides the gates. The facility was built like an impenetrable fortress with layers of walls, each built higher than the last. Even if the Sentinel could attempt to scale the walls, by the time they reached the inner wall the height they would need to climb would surely spell death if even a small mistake was made. The Sentinel seemed to be contemplating this, looking back and forth at its surroundings trying to gauge the land¡¯s value in different places. Mevi began to regret the idea she had begun to form, and dreaded its proposal.

    ¡°Sentinel.¡± Mevi said quietly.

    The Sentinel turned to look at Mevi, its gleaming red eyes staring in blank expression beneath the full golden helm.

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    ¡°I think we will need to let ourselves be taken, I can¡¯t think of any way for us to reach the center without a fight breaking out.¡±

    The Sentinel stood to its full height after the remark, obviously not impressed, and began to lead Mevi back into the deeper parts of the alley.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like the idea either, but Zelkan, Saerin, and Ouapi were clearly taken to the center of the facility right? We can¡¯t very well fight off a horde of robotic monsters can we?¡± Mevi frantically whispered as she followed the Sentinel.

    The Sentinel stopped when they were enshrouded fully in darkness, the environment painting what Mevi thought was the Sentinel¡¯s silent mood.

    ¡°If you have a better plan then we can try that first, but I can¡¯t see any way to go forward. The walls are too high and there are too many guards¡­¡±

    Mevi could barely understand the Sentinel, but in some unique way it seemed to express emotion very vividly. Through completely mundane movements, slight changes in the way it stood or walked, and even physically moving to different places to stand in a certain way. The Sentinel almost seemed to be trying to converse with her, but after Mevi¡¯s admittance to their situation the Sentinel went quiet. Mevi could not tell, but it almost looked as if the Sentinel was clenching its fist in frustration. Yet the creature¡¯s posture was so normal it was impossible to tell. After its silent debate with itself, the Sentinel moved to flank Mevi. The point was conceded, despite their attempt to infiltrate the facility and even their progress this far, it was clear when they were outmatched. Mevi could not guess at the Sentinel¡¯s powers, skills, or even apparently what tools it carried, but Mevi could tell when someone felt defeated. The Sentinel walked behind Mevi the same as if they were in a completely normal situation, but it almost felt like the Sentinel¡¯s boots were weighed down with dread.

    Despite their effort, the two of them returned to the edge of the shadows onlooking upon the main road. As Mevi prepared herself to walk into the light, something caught her eye. Across the road, hiding within a shadow just like her, was a man. Not like the constructs modeled after humanoids, but what seemed to be a flesh and blood person. The man seemed to stare towards her desperately, hiding behind a cluster of scrap metal within an alley across from Mevi¡¯s own alleyway. His eyes begged for Mevi¡¯s attention, and more so than that to prevent her from revealing herself. Almost as Mevi stared at the man, the Sentinel spotted him and the man spotted the Sentinel. His face filled with panic and he darted back into the shadows. Turning quickly to the Sentinel Mevi demanded, ¡°Sentinel! We need to follow that man, they might know something if they haven¡¯t been captured yet!¡±

    The Sentinel looked towards the spot the man once was, and understood the assignment immediately. Grabbing Mevi, who already prepared herself to be carried, the Sentinel darked back into the alley they had just come from. The Sentinel¡¯s memory was perfect as it searched the darkness for what it was looking for. As they raced from shadow to shadow, the Sentinel traced their path to one of the taller structures in the area. A curving and spiked thing, with spines stretching upwards. Yet that aesthetic facade gave the Sentinel exactly what it needed. A mighty jump sent the two of them upwards, and Mevi was hanging around the Sentinel¡¯s throat with her legs wrapped around its body like a strange silver-haired animal. The Sentinel reached the lowest of the curved spines, and quickly began to hoist itself upwards following the flow of the spikes. The illumination¡¯s source came from the uppermost reaches of the spiked structure, and the strange spines exploded out of the structure in such ways that the Sentinel could briefly hide within small shadows. Yet even as it hid, the golden armor escaping through the remains of the cloth coverings glowed like a beacon when they passed from one thin shadow to another. Despite the golden sheen, the speed of the Sentinel allowed their quick passage. As the Sentinel reached a high enough perch, it pulled itself to the top half of the spine and readied itself and Mevi to fly once again. Illuminated by orange-glowing glory, and hearing the faroff yelling of mechanical alerts, the Sentinel moved to secure Mevi, but she was already prepared. As Mevi hugged close to the Sentinel¡¯s body the two of them were thrown forward into the air. Darting through the air like a golden falling star. The Sentinel¡¯s raw power was enough to propel them far across and above the cobbled road and to the other side of the facility.

    As the Sentinel flew through the air, it turned its body intending to have its back meet the building they careened towards. With one arm holding Mevi close yet again, and the other prepared to grapple against their descent, they hurtled once more into metal structure and fell towards the dark alley below. The silvery blade caught their momentum and slowed their fall, and the speed of their flight confused the constructs so much that they split into several groups both searching where they had come and spreading out into the facility where they were going. Yet the Sentinel¡¯s speed outmatched the confused constructs easily as the two began to race once again from shadow to shadow. A new hope ran through Mevi as she was carried forward, if there was a living person here they might have a way to pass through the facility unseen.

    Blaring alarm sounded around Mevi and the Sentinel, but as the Sentinel raced through the dark and hidden ways within the facility the sound quickly faded to nothing. The Sentinel had picked up the trail, Mevi noticed when it stopped briefly to investigate a piece of unassuming terrain. It quickly darted from building to building as it followed tracks Mevi couldn¡¯t even comprehend. Then, as the Sentinel turned a sharp corner, they were upon him. A man hiding behind a pile of sharp rubble, staring towards the light of the main road with fear and worry evident by his trembling. The Sentinel, despite its size, made few sounds even when running at full speed. They stopped in the alleyway and were positioned behind the man. Mevi was let down and she gestured for the Sentinel to back up into a hidden place behind her. Walking forward, quietly but not with intent to hide from the man, she approached the cowering individual. Turning fast at the sound of Mevi¡¯s footsteps, the man was terrified to see Mevi but also seemed equally confused. Looking back and forth between her and where she had been only a few minutes ago, it was clear the man wondered how she had reached him so fast. ¡°Please calm down, we escaped the guards so you¡¯re safe.¡± Mevi said, attempting to reassure the man¡¯s fears.

    ¡°Oh no, you don¡¯t understand. Once you stir them up they¡¯ll keep on coming. You have no idea.¡± The man¡¯s voice was strangely eloquent, like he might¡¯ve once been a noble, but he was gruff and almost sad in the way he spoke.

    ¡°My friends were taken, do you know where or why?¡±

    ¡°If they were taken, they¡¯d be better off dead. You should get out before that big robot comes back. I saw it following you, how did you escape it?¡±

    ¡°Well, I actually didn''t. It is my¡­ my friend.¡±

    When Mevi mentioned the Sentinel, as if on cue, the Sentinel revealed itself from the shadows. The gruff man fell backwards and almost began to scream, but he covered his own mouth to stifle and muffle his own cries of fear. Tears welled in his eyes and he darted his head back and forth looking for an escape. Mevi moved to get in between him and his desperate search for escape, ¡°Please! The Sentinel is friendly, it protects me. We came here with three others and they were taken. The Sentinel managed to escape with me, but we need to rescue my friends. Please just calm down.¡±

    The man was still panicked and terrified, but managed to gasp out, ¡°It looks like the bigger guards further in. How can you trust that thing? Did you reprogram it?¡±

    ¡°I wouldn''t know anything about reprograming¡­ But the Sentinel was given to me, I suppose you could say. It protects me, and it can protect you from the constructs as well. We can help you get out of here, but we need to find my friends first.¡±

    ¡°Get out? Even if I wanted to, the walls are too high and there are too many. You are stuck here like us.¡±

    ¡°Us?¡± Mevi asked, her hope growing at the prospect of more people hiding here.

    ¡°Damnit, me and my loose lips.¡± the man swore to himself, staring with a sort of fearful anger towards the Sentinel.

    ¡°Please, if there are more of you, and you can help us, I am sure we can help you somehow.¡± Mevi pleaded.

    ¡°I¡­ I can¡¯t let that thing come close to the rest of us. But if it does follow your orders¡­ I can¡¯t make this decision. If you really want our cooperation, you need to wait here. I am going to get some people, if I come back we¡¯ll have to strike a deal. If I don¡¯t come back, get out of here if you think you can. Your friends are probably goners anyway.¡±

    Before Mevi could say anything or ask another question, the man picked himself up and ran. He ran fast away, looking back only once towards the Sentinel like that was what he was running away from. Mevi was left with the Sentinel in the dark alley looking out towards the main road. Activity was spiking even compared to before, strange flying constructs darted around the edges of the light¡¯s illumination. Mevi and the Sentinel hid against the base of the structures and piles of rusting rubble to avoid detection. But there was no knowing when the man would return, or if he would return. Regardless, Mevi had to take the chance. So she waited.

 Chapter 10: Static and Rage

    Mevi and the Sentinel waited in the dark alleyway for what felt like hours. In reality the stress of the situation simply stretched the minutes to agonizing lengths. What was probably thirty minutes had passed. By this point the robotic hive had calmed down and began its normal routes of heightened patrol throughout the cityscape. As Mevi watched out of the alleyway, trying to find some gap in the robotic guard¡¯s patrols, a whisper came from behind her further into the darkness.

    The man who had left before returned, hiding amongst the rubble and scrap piles as if trying to avoid the Sentinel¡¯s detection. The Sentinel, like Mevi, was able to notice the man despite his attempt otherwise. He flinched as the Sentinel turned towards him, the Sentinel stood in front of Mevi as if the man might now suddenly pose a threat. Mevi calmed the Sentinel with a hand against its arm and the man slowly approached, but stayed a distance just barely close enough to be audible. He still clearly feared the Sentinel and refused to approach any closer. Barely audible as he whispered, the man said, ¡°You and your robot can come with me. Follow me at a distance, I still don¡¯t trust that thing.¡±

    Mevi nodded eagerly and began to follow the man at a span of five or six meters away. Following him around turns and corners was briefly difficult, but the Sentinel seemed to always know what direction the man disappeared to. The man led them deep into the facility, and despite the glowing towers above them the darkness became thicker and thicker. Further into the facility, and closer to the inner wall, the structures seemed to compete with each other so feverishly they were almost built atop one another. The facility¡¯s construction made no realistic sense to Mevi, as if almost no plan was enacted for its construction and the architect just put up buildings as need was required for more. Even this far into the facility there still seemed to be no method to actually enter any of the buildings, and Mevi began to wonder if they were just strange artistic pieces rather than something that served a purpose.

    Mevi¡¯s marveling was interrupted after following the man for about ten minutes. Suddenly, the Sentinel stopped as the man turned a corner into a long and narrow alleyway. Perplexed after the Sentinel¡¯s sudden halt, Mevi looked around the corner, the man walked through a narrow passage that struck straight for a decent distance more than even Mevi felt was comfortable. The Sentinel seemed on edge and its helm stared down the alleyway silently as if it was trying to intimidate it. Mevi placed a hand on the Sentinel¡¯s arm to bring it back into focus and the Sentinel¡¯s hard stare ended as it turned to look down at Mevi. The man was continuing further, having doubled or tripled the distance he normally kept between himself and Mevi. Stopped, the man seemed clearly agitated as he frantically motioned for Mevi to continue following. Without any other real choice Mevi silently motioned for the Sentinel to continue with her, and the two of them walked forward into the alley.

    The man waited at the end of the alleyway, still motioning for them to follow, but as Mevi and the Sentinel walked just under half the distance a trap was sprung. People and creatures sprung out from shadows and from hidden spots in the attached alleyways. Four of the assailants charged towards Mevi and the Sentinel, wielding long metal staves with glowing electrical arcs shooting out of the ends. These four attackers thrust their weapons towards the Sentinel, but the Sentinel was fast. Grabbing two of the staves and ducking at the same time, the Sentinel was able to easily throw them to the side. Yet even as the Sentinel moved to intercept the other two, one of the attackers managed to stab the electrical end into the Sentinel¡¯s large body. The narrow alleyway restricted the Sentinel¡¯s movements too much it seemed, and the electricity visibly shot through the Sentinel¡¯s armor. The massive creature, who Mevi thought indestructible, almost fell to one knee and actually seemed to struggle to fight off the remaining electrical staves. Other attackers sprang into the narrow alleyway and picked up the discarded weapons only to quickly stab them into the sides of the Sentinel. The power of the energy seemed to hurt the Sentinel greatly, and Mevi began to shout but was grappled by a large man who covered her mouth.

    The four weapons were wielded by various attackers and brought the Sentinel low, kneeling fully to the ground as a low metallic groan thrummed out of the Sentinel¡¯s body. Other attackers threw ropes or cloth over the Sentinel as if to bind them, the staves being retracted for only moments as crude bindings were made to restrain their large golden foe. Mevi struggled against the strong grip of the person that grabbed her, and the man¡¯s voice was strangely calm as it instructed, ¡°You¡¯d better not shout, ¡®ear me?¡± and the man slowly removed his grip over Mevi¡¯s mouth, to her surprise.

    ¡°Stop! You¡¯re hurting my friend!¡± Mevi said, trying with all her power not to fall into shouting hysterics.

    ¡°We ¡®ad to. Thing¡¯s one of em big bots. Can¡¯t trust it.¡±

    ¡°You can trust the Sentinel, please. They have only ever protected me, we were together long before I ever came to this place.¡±

    ¡°Even so.¡± the large man said, his voice trailing off.

    Mevi struggled against the man¡¯s grip in vain, and began to shout in her own mind in attempts to summon her strange powers. What vile tricks her Daemon played on her, ignoring her when she needed help and possessing her when she was at her weakest. Her powers were nothing but a curse, one that because of her inabilities might soon have her punished by Maphet and Odion. Yet Mevi¡¯s mental taunts did nothing to stir the thing sleeping within her soul. So Mevi focused on trying to find any source of energy or emotion she could draw upon for some tangible force, but without the help of the cursed gloves she once used, Mevi was effectively useless. Powerless in every sense of the word.

    As Mevi struggled against herself, and berated her own inability, a hard thud sounded against the metal ground. Mevi refocused, fearing the Sentinel¡¯s body had hit the ground. Yet as Mevi watched, the Sentinel had punched its gauntleted fist into the ground. A deep dent, several centimeters depressed into what should have been solid metal. The Sentinel¡¯s second fist planted into the ground likewise making a dent. Fearful and surprised faces spread across the gathered attackers. There had to have been twenty people of various shapes and sizes huddled into the small alleyway. The alley was barely big enough for three normal sized humanoids to walk abreast. In the narrow passage, all could see the massive Sentinel slowly pick itself up to eventually stand. Even being tied, held down by ropes, and being actively electrocuted the Sentinel picked itself up in jolting movements as it groaned against the strain.

    As the attackers watched in horror, the man holding Mevi ignored his own advice and began to yell, ¡°Grab it!¡± but before he could even finish the words the Sentinel retaliated. Reaching a fist out like lightning, the Sentinel grabbed the throat of one of the attackers wielding an eclectic staff. Mevi could barely whisper, ¡°Don¡¯t kill them!¡± before the Sentinel stopped itself from doing worse. The Sentinel took the attacker and threw it hard against the wall like it was a toy. In a whirlwind of motion, becoming progressively faster every time it disrupted the electrical attacks, the Sentinel disposed of the attackers attempting to subdue it. At least six of the assailants were flung into the walls, while several more were knocked out or fell to the ground. The man clinging to Mevi tightened his grip and dragged her further into the alleyway. He began yelling again for the others to attack the Sentinel. Several of the attackers charged, but most turned and fled into the dark alleyways. Those few that stayed were tossed aside as if they weighed nothing.

    Mevi was pulled to the end of the alley, the man gripping her tightly enough to cause her pain. The Sentinel marched forward, unstoppable despite the vain attempts of its assailants that still fought. Some that were thrown got back up and tried a second time, others even attempted attacks with the electrical staves. Nothing would stop the Sentinel from slowly closing the distance between him and the one that held Mevi against her will. Back pressed against a smooth metal wall, the large man had nowhere else to try and run to, then he stupidly pulled out a crude metal blade to hold it against Mevi¡¯s cheek as if to threaten her. Mevi saw, for the first time, emotion flash across the now fiery red eyes under the golden helm. Rage. The Sentinel almost seemed to glow in the dark alley, electrical current still flowing through its golden armor. Through that glow Mevi saw its red eyes glaring with rage at the man who threatened Mevi. In one swift leap, in the same moment the blade tapped against Mevi¡¯s skin, the Sentinel closed the distance as it pushed itself hard enough against the metal ground that a creaking metallic rip echoed after the sheer power propelled the Sentinel forward. Slamming hard into the wall, the Sentinel suddenly appeared looming above Mevi and the large man, one of its hands was used to stop its forward momentum and the other slammed into the man¡¯s weapon arm, a loud bang and audible crunch could be heard just above Mevi¡¯s head. The man began to shout in pain, as his arm was clearly crushed at the wrist, but a swift blow from the Sentinel knocked him unconscious.

    Falling forward into the Sentinel, Mevi hugged the large creature that had saved her once again. The Sentinel laid a hand against Mevi¡¯s shoulder, but as Mevi looked up into its helm all emotion was once again lost. The electricity had quickly traveled into the metal structures around them and the mighty glow that illuminated the Sentinel¡¯s golden armor was gone. Yet Mevi was still glad and pretended the Sentinel¡¯s hand was one of reassurance and comfort.

    The man who had originally led Mevi and the Sentinel here was cowing in a corner, only a few steps away from where Mevi currently stood. Turning to the man, in an uncharacteristic anger, Mevi demanded, ¡°Do you know how we can get to the central spire or not?¡±

    Fear tinted the man¡¯s voice as he trembled, ¡°I¡­ I, yes, I do. We do. I am sorry! I¡­ I¡­¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.¡°How?¡±

    ¡°Oh! My boss, our boss¡­¡± he gestured to the unconscious man who had threatened Mevi, ¡°His boss too. They¡­ he knows a way. I can take you! Please don¡¯t hurt me!¡±

    ¡°Take us to him now. I won¡¯t hurt you, and the Sentinel won¡¯t as long as you do not attempt to harm us again.¡±

    After Mevi¡¯s words the Sentinel brought out its halberd, an elegantly crafted weapon that seemed to have technology embedded into the otherwise mundane haft. The man couldn¡¯t spare any more words out of the mumbling fear struck into him, but stood up and eagerly led Mevi further into the facility alleyways. Behind them the remaining attackers picked up the unconscious leader of the attack, and dispersed into the dark as beeping alarms sounded in the distance in response to the echoing fight. The cowardly man didn¡¯t seem particular about how far away Mevi and the Sentinel stood from him now, eagerly leading them away from the carnage of the Sentinel¡¯s rage.

    As Mevi followed the man, to whatever place they were now being led, she couldn¡¯t help but feel a knot in her chest. Time after time she had proven to be more of a burden than anything, and dark thoughts against herself couldn¡¯t be kept away in the walk to whoever they would soon meet. Mevi tried to reach out to the self within her, but even more than usual her Daemon was quiet and unresponsive. Mevi needed to find a way to trigger its powers as she once did, she hated feeling useless. It was a miracle, or probably Mevi¡¯s own uninformed knowledge, that the Sentinel could fight off so many at such a disadvantage. Any normal person, or probably even a robot, would surely have been crippled by such an ambush. Yet despite Mevi¡¯s dark thoughts she kindled a new respect and care for the Sentinel. It may very well be an unthinking automaton, but Mevi began to hope that it might care for her as she began to care for it. Mevi hoped that she had a friend in the golden creature, it was all she could do to keep away evil thoughts of depression during a time she needed to focus on retrieving her companions.

    Through the walking and hiding in and out of alleyways, it wouldn¡¯t take much longer than they had already traveled to reach what seemed to be their destination. The three of them approached a small hill with curving architecture all connecting to a single tower that stood at a medium level compared to the rest of the buildings. Yet its expansive extensions seemed to stretch out walkways and passages into the nearby structures which created a sort of complex of buildings all connected into one cluster of small towers. The man led them forward up the hill to a jagged cut in the otherwise smooth metal.

    About the size of a man tall and two chest widths wide, the cut was an opening into one of the buildings. Mevi noticed she was almost excited to finally gain a glimpse of what was inside the strange structures, but would quickly revise that excitement to dread. As Mevi followed the man into the opening, and the Sentinel struggled to fit through but eventually managed, they passed through a short hallway leading towards the main tower. As they passed through the hallway Mevi couldn¡¯t help but notice how strange the hallway itself was. Its floor was plated with scales like a lizard¡¯s back, making the ground have small spikes in the floor that almost seemed purposefully designed to impede walking. While the walls were smoothed to a fault, strange curves and wisp-lines twisted in the tube-like hallway to make an ethereal vision. The sight of the walls began to almost confuse Mevi and it made her dizzy to stare at the designs too long, Mevi almost tripped over the odd spiked floor as she began to unconsciously try to follow the entrancing decorations. Almost as if the interior was designed to confuse and enfeeble a person if they looked anywhere besides their own feet. Mevi occasionally noticed scars in the walls ranging from scorch marks to long cuts in the otherwise smooth surface; likely an attempt to disrupt the confusing architecture by whoever lived here.

    As Mevi followed the man and entered the main tower properly, exiting the confusing hallway, she was met with a terrible sight. In the center of the tower was a climbing pillar that seemed to jut out pods in every direction, each clearly contained a motionless humanoid. Glowing greenish blue light streaked from the pods and flowed downward into the floor in thick see through pipes. While at the same time the walls of the tower were lined with additional pods, also containing humanoids, and streaking even more glowing pipes into unknown underground reaches. The tower seemed built to contain an army¡¯s worth of sleeping creatures of all kinds, each pod specially sized and made to fit whatever occupant was inside. The pods stretched as far as the tower could reach upwards, and it easily met distances of at least thirty or fourty meters.

    Near the center pillar there were small walkways, all designed with the same spiked flooring, but almost beautiful wisps of light floated around the tower like fireflies. A group of ten individuals grouped around a makeshift camp with a scattering of equipment. Metal makeshift boxes, strange equipment rigged directly to the strange green-blue pipelines, and crude bunks forced in between the small gaps of the pods.

    The gathered people looked up as Mevi, the Sentinel, and their guide entered the tower. Each drew crude weapons of various types as they saw the Sentinel, which at this point had so few rags hanging from its armor that its form was plainly visible. One from the group shouted out, ¡°Damnit Vin! You led one of the big ones right to us!¡±

    ¡°Wait! This is the Sentinel, they are my friend and protector. We won''t hurt you if you don¡¯t hurt us, I promise.¡± Mevi countered, attempting to defuse their fear.

    The man who led Mevi here, apparently Vin, followed Mevi¡¯s statement, ¡°The thing follows this girl¡¯s orders! It protects her, and fights like I¡¯ve never seen!¡±

    One from the group called out, ¡°Then the hell¡¯d you lead it ¡®ere for?¡±

    ¡°It took out all of Mak¡¯s crew. We had four bot stunners plugged into it, and the thing still got up when this girl looked like she was in trouble! The thing¡¯s a powerhouse, it might be able to help us¡­ And I couldn¡¯t really say no after it cleaned up everyone like that¡­¡± Vin replied, becoming almost shameful at his own cowardice.

    A single figure took a step forward. A roguish man with military short black hair, dark blue tinged skin tone, and piercing purple eyes. He looked Mevi up and down, still holding what looked like a heat blaster similar to what Zelkan gave to Mevi. ¡°Mak took twenty-two guys with him, this thing put all of ¡®em down?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Yeah, each and every one of them. The thing threw them around like they weighed nothing at all.¡± Vin replied eagerly.

    ¡°We didn¡¯t kill anyone, so no one was ¡®put down¡¯.¡± Mevi pointed out.

    The blue man almost looked even more impressed, ¡°Not only did this thing take ¡®em all out, it somehow did it without killing anyone? That¡¯s some crazy kinda restraint. I¡¯ll take it that¡¯s because of you, missy?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I asked that the Sentinel not kill anyone. I hope that you will help me rescue my friends, or at least help me get close to the central spire.¡±

    The man laughed, as if Mevi told an incredibly funny joke, before slowly realizing Mevi wasn¡¯t joking, ¡°Wait a sec. You want to go rescue someone? You want to go to the Tower of Pain? You¡¯re crazy, with this thing you could easily just get out of here.¡±

    ¡°Like I said, my friends were taken. I plan to get them back.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re either brave, or really dumb missy.¡± The man strode forward despite the fear of his fellows behind him, thrusting a hand towards Mevi he put his weapon away in his belt, ¡°Name¡¯s Hellion. And you got me burnin hot for you right now ma¡¯am.¡±

    Mevi gingerly took the man¡¯s hand to shake it, ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you Hellion, my name is Mevare Bensari. You may call me Mevi if you¡¯d like.¡±

    ¡°Got manners to boot! You¡¯ve sold me, you do me a favor, I''ll do you one.¡±

    When Hellion made his statement he was followed with sounds of disagreement and yelled protests from the people gathered behind him. Even Vin seemed a bit surprised at how easily Hellion agreed to Mevi¡¯s request for help. Hellion ignored them for a few moments, grinning down at Mevi while he held her hand for a few moments longer than what was comfortable. Turning back to face the protests, Hellion quieted them down so he could speak, ¡°Listen. This thing this missy has took out over twenty guys, big ones too. Mak isn¡¯t a pushover himself neither. Think about what it could do to the bots? We could have this thing nab us some bodies, we take ''em apart like we do, and finally get us some good gear. Maybe stuff good enough to open up these pods. ¡®Sides, if I take this thing down into the tunnels and to the Tower, think of how distracted those bots¡¯ll be. We could ransack the place free to pick and choose what we want to open up!¡±

    Mevi watched as Hellion only smiled and laughed as the others of his group yelled their protest. She was enthralled with his confidence and unwavering charisma. Even as the others vehemently disagreed, Hellion played to their desires and want for greed. One at a time each one became quiet and begrudgingly agreed to his ideas, being swayed by how much tech they could steal if ¡®The Missy¡¯s bot¡¯ attacked the central spire. It was no time at all before Hellion had his crew eating out of his hands with promises of loot and gear, maybe enough to bust open the pods and add more people to their crew. Mevi knew when she wasn¡¯t needed to speak and let Hellion talk his way around the other¡¯s complaints.

    After putting down the complaints of the others fully, Hellion turned confidently to Mevi. In a flourish Hellion bowed deeply to Mevi, ¡°We are at you¡¯re service m¡¯lady.¡± Mevi had no idea how to respond, and found herself embarrassed at the exaggerated gestures Hellion made. ¡°Lets get to know each other first, we¡¯ve a bit of time to kill after all.¡± Hellion said, leading Mevi down into the disturbing complex.

    ¡°What do you mean, I need to help my friends as soon as possible. Everyone isn¡¯t making me confident about what is happening to them.¡± Mevi replied, begrudgingly following Hellion down to their makeshift base.

    ¡°Well, since I am the expert here I¡¯ll give ya some wisdom. The bots can¡¯t work forever, they need to rotate shifts to recharge. You very graciously stirred up the hive for us.¡±

    ¡°Are you being sarcastic?¡±

    ¡°Oh no missy, you¡¯ve done us a favor already without even knowing it. These things swarm when something makes lots of noise, worse when you start damaging buildings. They like to send out all the bots they got when you make a lotta noise, even their reserve bots that should be charging come out too. I¡¯d say we have three or four hours before all of em are running on empty and need a recharge. Then we¡¯ll only have a skeleton crew to deal with.¡±

    ¡°I see, and will we walk down the main road? Should we not be preparing to leave in the meantime?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve nothin to worry about! They¡¯ll go in for a recharge in a few, and we¡¯ll head into some tunnels and be where ya need to go in no time.¡±

    ¡°But what about my friends, your companions don¡¯t make a good case for them being safe right now¡­¡±

    ¡°Lets put it this way, the bots want to keep em healthy and alive so they can put em in a pod. So they won¡¯t be too badly hurt, long as we can pop the pods they¡¯re in we can get em out later! See, nothin to fear!¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you mention not being able to open the pods and needing our distraction to be able to get gear to open them?¡±

    ¡°Ah! Like I said, no worries, we¡¯ll figure it out. Your big friend sounds like he could probably rip open a pod if he had to.¡±

    Mevi realized the futility of arguing with Hellion and almost began to empathize with the others that were so quickly persuaded to help Mevi. He had a quick counter to any idea or question Mevi had, and even if it didn¡¯t make sense he could spin his words in a way to end the argument in a draw. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but fear for her friends, but she couldn''t see any other choice than to do as Hellion said and hope they were indeed safe.

 Chapter 11: Tower of Pain, part 1

    Mevi sat with the Sentinel for several hours in silence. Hellion attempted, on several occasions, to ingratiate himself to her. Yet Mevi remained distrusting of the man and his crew, sticking close to the Sentinel at all times. Her attitude didn''t stop Hellion¡¯s attempts however, and several times Mevi almost felt herself begin to reason why she should listen to him. Ignoring his charisma, and the poor decisions that came with it, Mevi remained stalwartly unimpressed in her outer demeanor. Mevi still wasn¡¯t sure if trusting him was a good idea, or if he had ordered the attack on her Sentinel since Vin had said Hellion was his boss after all.

    The time waiting swapped between tense silence and boredom to loud attempts to socialize from Hellion to Mevi. In the last hour of her wait, which at this point had felt like a day¡¯s worth of stress and worry about her captured companions, Hellion finally quieted. The roguish man seemed to begin strategizing with his crew and checking what little equipment they had for flaws. From what Mevi could hear Hellion¡¯s plan was pretty simple. He would escort Mevi and the Sentinel in underground passages connected to their base, while the rest of his crew did jobs on the surface. They had to first gather up the crew that was hiding after the Sentinel¡¯s brawl, most of their present crew left immediately to do this while a few stayed behind to strategize the rest of their ¡®heist¡¯. They began calling their plan the ¡®Grand Heist¡¯ or something to that effect, they were going to use Mevi and the Sentinel as a distraction so they could use all their equipment to begin cutting into all the nearby buildings and spires. They seemed to expect treasure or loot within, Mevi expected all they would find were more trapped souls within the horrible stasis pods.

    The air in the rogue¡¯s base was tense with anticipation, Hellion¡¯s crew must have taken apart, cleaned, and then put back together their gear four or five times now. Mevi felt her own anticipation as well, her excitement at rescuing her companions was brewing as the minutes passed so slowly by. Almost without saying anything Hellion¡¯s crew started getting up and filing out of the base until only Hellion, Mevi, and the Sentinel remained. Hellion grinned with silent excitement and Mevi couldn¡¯t help secretly sharing an eager hope. Suddenly Hellion¡¯s head darted up like he heard something, Mevi noticed the Sentinel doing the same, they both heard something Mevi didn¡¯t somewhere in the distance. As if that were his signal Hellion stood up to face Mevi with a wide eager smile that refused to leave him. ¡°Time to go!¡± Hellion said with excited confidence.

    Hellion darted across the base to the central pillar, then he began pulling up a large panel that was obviously dislocated. Revealed under the panel was a narrow drop that seemed to go forward as an equally narrow tunnel. As Mevi got up to look into the tunnel she worried the Sentinel wouldn¡¯t fit, and she saw the moment of hesitation on Hellion¡¯s face when he obviously wondered the same. Almost as if sensing the unsaid question, the Sentinel began removing the bulkier parts of its armor. Its pauldrons, waist guard, cloak, and a few pieces that seemed like spiked decorations. Its armor thinned down untill it seemed to only be wearing a thin metal exoskeleton rather than the impressive golden armor from before. The new outer shell was still impressive and decorated with gold with inlays of silver runes, but it reduced the Sentinel¡¯s bulk by a significant amount.

    With the Sentinel slimmed down and Hellion eager to proceed, Mevi readied herself for whatever conflict was ahead. The three of them vaulted down the tunnel, the Sentinel making a snug fit but able to move, and they began to crawl through the narrow tunnel. Yet the tunnel was still large enough for Mevi to only need to be on her hands and knees, even Hellion was almost on his stomach in a crawl like the Sentinel was. The passage didn¡¯t seem suited for their travel and many spikes, wires, tubes, and other obstructions poked out to slow their progress occasionally. Mevi could only guess at how Hellion found this tunnel, and what poor person lost a bet and had to explore these tight confines.

    As the three of them crawled through the expansive technology, whirring and beeps echoed from many directions. They passed by various turns and sudden angles that had strange mechanical sounds echoing out of them. Mevi began to wonder if there might be other things lurking within these technological mazes. Yet despite the strangeness Hellion seemed confident of what directions to take. They only turned into different tunnels twice before Hellion began to slow and occasionally bang on the metal roof.

    Suddenly, after a more hollow bang than the rest, Hellion turned back with a boastful grin like he had just won the lottery. Turning himself fully around, then backing up slowly, Hellion pointed at the bare metal roof, ¡°I need your friend to bust us a hole outta here.¡±

    Turning back to the Sentinel, and seeing how it struggled just to crawl, Mevi asked, ¡°Are you able to position yourself to do that?¡±

    Without further words the Sentinel crawled under the designated spot and began the process to turn itself onto its back. Once it was positioned, its arm came up in a tight posture ready to punch at the hard metal. After a short struggle to position itself properly, the Sentinel launched a swift strike against the metal surface above. The strength of the hit was greatly reduced from the awkward positioning, but a loud crack and metal bang rang out as the metal was left with a large dent. A second strike later and the panel above the Sentinel was sent flying upwards, detached from whatever it was once secured to.

    The Sentinel quickly pulled itself out of the tunnel to investigate the area for threats, as Mevi and Hellion watched quietly the Sentinel looked back and forth to scan the entire area. After a few tense moments the Sentinel reached a hand down as if to help Mevi out of the cramped tunnel. With the three of them clambering onto the surface, Mevi got a sense of her surroundings. They were exited onto some kind of metal courtyard, like a garden in mimicry of Odion¡¯s own artistic experiments, but sculpted from crude metal imitations. They were within the innermost wall, and the barbed spire stretched upwards in an attempt to reach the far off ceiling. The crude dagger-like spire twisted with cruel inspiration upwards and cast down a shadow over the entire courtyard. In the distance Mevi could hear frantic beeping and robotic yelling, but before them was an immediate threat.

    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    From the base of the central spire there was an ornate entryway, a pair of solid metal double doors covered in etchings of indecipherable runes. The doors to the spire began to swing open, and the Sentinel prepared to fight. Out strode four impressive figures, almost identical in style and bulk to the Sentinel in its full gear, save for a iron color to their armor instead of the pure golden sheen of the Sentinel¡¯s. The four of them carried halberds in the same fashion as the Sentinel¡¯s own, and they crackled with electricity. The Sentinel didn¡¯t hesitate or wait for instructions, pulling out its energetic rifle that was still slung over its shoulder with a thin leather-like strap. Pulling it up to aim, the Sentinel fired the weapon after a second of energetic buildup. A swirling pulse of color carened out of the weapon leaving an iridescent trail of energy behind its path. The blast slammed against one of the lead iron sentinels, scattering glittering power in arcs past the target¡¯s form. The one that was shot staggered forward, but caught itself at the last moment to stand back up again. A massive spot of char and melted metal was left where the weapon¡¯s attack had hit, a strike that would surely kill a normal creature only left this target slightly slowed.

    After witnessing the Sentinel¡¯s powerful weapon, the other iron sentinels began to sprint full force forward, while the one that was attacked slowly jogged behind them. The Sentinel only had enough time to place one more blast, and as the other iron sentinels began to run in a way to dodge the attack the Sentinel simply finished off the first target. The second blast tore apart the upper half of the iron sentinel and the automaton fell to the ground in a smoldering heap. Yet that didn¡¯t deter the others from attacking the Sentinel in close quarters combat.

    The Sentinel pulled out its own golden halberd and engaged the remaining three attackers in a swirl of frantic motion. Hellion took no time to debate his plan and grabbed Mevi and began pulling her forward towards the still-open doors. Mevi almost fought against Hellion¡¯s direction, but then she looked back towards the Sentinel. The three remaining iron sentinels jumped to engage. One was skewered by the Sentinel¡¯s halberd, while the other two were dexterously dodged with a sidestep. The skewered iron sentinel flailed at the Sentinel without any hint of real intelligence. The cheap copy was thrown to the side, and the Sentinel moved to quickly follow Mevi and Hellion. As the three of them dashed towards the open doors the iron sentinels picked themselves up to pursue.

    Mevi and Hellion might as well have not even been moving compared to the speed the automatons and the Sentinel displayed. Turning to face the attackers, the Sentinel hefted its halberd high and threw it straight as an arrow and with the force of a cannon. The halberd flew faster than the iron sentinels could react, and the previously wounded pursuer was skewered once again but this time was subsequently pinned to the far wall from the sheer force of the throw. The other two iron sentinels charged and were met by the golden protector. These iron copies tried and failed to skewer the Sentinel, but the Sentinel was able to wrestle the halberds into the ground by quickly shifting the automaton¡¯s own momentum against them. The two remaining threats responded quickly, moving to abandon their weapons and brawl with the Sentinel. Yet the Sentinel was still faster, the three of them wrestled in place as the Sentinel struggled to fend off the attackers with one arm each. The Sentinel did its job to stall them because Mevi and Hellion reached the open doors to pass into the spire itself. Hellion began pulling one of the large metal doors closed, and made decent progress despite the massive metal door. Mevi moved to help while she watched the brawl, but then she noticed the horde of robotic monstrosities flooding up the main road and flying over the walls. Calling out to the Sentinel, Mevi got the golden protector¡¯s attention and he managed to throw both of the iron sentinels to the ground. In the moment they were staggered the Sentinel charged towards the entrance and easily pulled shut both of the large metal doors.

    Just as the doors shut tight, a loud bang thudded against the other side. Not wasting time, Hellion moved to grab the Sentinel¡¯s rifle. The Sentinel seemed to instinctively react, almost attacking Hellion, but the Sentinel was too preoccupied with holding the doors shut against their new enemies. Ripping the rifle from the Sentinel, Hellion held up the rifle towards the Sentinel and Mevi feared she had stumbled into another trap. But with an expertise Mevi hadn¡¯t expected, Hellion flipped a switch and adjusted the rifle to some strange setting. After finishing his tinkering the weapon fired, but it wasn¡¯t aimed at the Sentinel or Mevi. Aiming just above the Sentinel and trained on the astragal of the doors, the gap between the two doors where they met one another, a bright-hot stream of plasmatic particles began to rapidly melt and seal the metal of the doors. When Hellion¡¯s target approached the Sentinel, the guardian moved out of the way to let Hellion finish his work. In a few short moments the doors were sealed, and the three of them were protected from the cacophonous banging coming from the other side.

    The Sentinel retrieved its rifle, which Hellion gave to the golden figure with a wink. Hellion turned to look into the spire, which prompted Mevi to likewise stare. A massive base floor stretched before them, with two spiraling stairs on either side of the spire leading upwards to other levels of the tall structure. The floor and walls were bare on this base level, but a dreadful energy hung in the air that made Mevi¡¯s skin crawl. With their destination reached, Mevi looked upwards towards the only direction that might hold her companions. Hellion turned to Mevi and bowed, ¡°I promised you I could get us here, didn¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Yes, you did. I am almost surprised, I feared you might turn on us when you stole the Sentinel¡¯s weapon.¡± Mevi couldn¡¯t help but let a small smile lift the edges of her lips.

    ¡°You had nothing to fear, m¡¯lady. But since we are here, we should head upwards. I can only guess what treasures I¡¯ll find here!¡± Hellion exaggerated his reassurance with another over the top bow.

    ¡°I hope you have an idea for us to escape, but I agree.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry yourself little missy, I have most of this planned out.¡±

    With a sigh Mevi again looked upwards towards the staircase leading to the impossibly tall spire. Without much choice, and not knowing what to expect, Mevi began towards the tall stairs. Now, for the first time in a while, leading the group forward to find her captured companions. Wherever they were, Mevi was determined to save them, but they had a time limit. Mevi could only guess how long it might take such a horde of mechanical monsters to break through the door. It was almost strange to her that they hadn¡¯t already broken in, was there no other entrance or exit to this structure? If Modrak built this spire, this Tower of Pain as the rogues had called it, he surely built the robots that swarmed the place. Surely Modrak would have designed a way for their servants to enter and exit without the need for a door, or at least multiple doorways. The thoughts and questions that swarmed around her were almost as many as the horde of horrors outside the spire. Yet no answer was clearly obvious, nothing could be gained without ascending the spire.

    Reaching the base of the spiral stair, Mevi carefully began to ascend upwards to the unknown. Whatever might lay above she would face with courage to save herself and her companions. She would complete whatever task the Magi had given her here, and prove herself useful after all. If not for herself, she would never stop struggling for the sake of her comatose mentor; her only family in this metal alien world.

 Chapter 11: Tower of Pain, Part 2

    As Mevi continued up the stairs, returning her thoughts to the here and now, she couldn¡¯t help but still worry about the robotic hordes behind her. Hellion seemed confident and eager, almost jumping up every step and clearly hoping they would hasten their pace. The Sentinel was unfazed, as it normally was, but its stare seemed cemented on above them. The Sentinel seemed like it was thinking deeply about what might lay above them, but its true thoughts were a mystery to Mevi. After gathering herself from the previous moment¡¯s turmoil, Mevi increased her own pace to satisfy Hellion¡¯s eagerness.

    The three of them ascended the spiral staircase. It must have climbed twenty or thirty meters before the staircase entered into the wall of the spire itself, disappearing from the main lobby¡¯s sight, and further climbing in darkness within the thick metal walls. After another minute or two of speedy climbing the stair exited them onto the next platform. In contrast to the wide and open space the main floor showed, they exited onto a mostly closed-off narrow hallway. There was no ceiling here, and the walls of the hallway only stretched a few meters high before opening to a vast empty space above them. It was the strangest floor design Mevi had seen yet, what was the purpose of walls if they didn¡¯t reach the ceiling? Mevi soon found her answer.

    As the three of them ventured forward, the hallway stretched left and right at an intersection. Rooms without doors lined the new hallways, and within the rooms Mevi could see a terrible sight. Laying on crude medical tables were corpses. Or at least Mevi hoped they were corpses. From her vantage she was an unwilling witness to the contents of one of the open rooms. A mangled, shriveled, and hopefully dead corpse lay splayed on the crude medical table. As if drained of all of its vital essences and covered in jagged incisions, the corpse leaked dried blood and strange gelatinous oozes.

    Before Mevi could make a remark or recoil in disgust, the Sentinel pulled her backwards the way they had come, with enough force it was almost throwing her backwards into the arms of Hellion. Just then a large mechanical monstrosity, a many eyed and armed floating cylindrical robot charged forward and slammed into the Sentinel. Its appendages held various surgical implements and several dangling tubes dripping with unknown chemical liquids. The amalgamation of doctoring equipment tackled the Sentinel with a surprising amount of strength. As the Sentinel struggled to stay on its feet one of the mechanical monster¡¯s large eyes twisted in a socket to stare at Hellion and Mevi. Then all of the construct¡¯s eyes swiveled and twisted in a desperate search, some popped out on entirely new appendages and scanned the room, then all of its eyes focused on the two humanoids without armor; its newest subjects. It writhed against the Sentinel, who now instead of being forced to the ground was attempting to force the construct to the ground instead. It flailed towards Mevi and Hellion as if trying to grab them, the two quickly retreated back down the hallway they had come and watched as the Sentinel slowly regained superiority and forced the monster to the ground. As it struggled to get back up the Sentinel balled a fist and punched a single swift strike into the top of where the equivalent of its head was. The creature struggled and sputtered a few moments but then eventually stopped moving entirely.

    Rising from another new kill, the Sentinel returned to Mevi¡¯s side and looked her over briefly before determining she was unharmed. Mevi watched in horror as the body of the mechanical construct continued to occasionally twitch and spit out electrical power. Turning to Hellion, Mevi couldn¡¯t even fathom what she wanted to ask but knew she had to say something about this horrible place. Before Mevi could pull her thoughts together Hellion spoke in a grim tone, ¡°I¡¯ve heard of this place once before. Why we call this place the ¡®Tower of Pain¡¯. A guy, he never told us his name, showed up one day. This was maybe a year ago, the Castle was smaller then. A lot smaller. Anyway, this guy showed up and told us all kinds of horrible stuff goin on in here. Bots sucking people dry, openin em up like they were experimenting on em¡­ We started calling this place that after we heard the stories. A few others showed up occasionally, never told us their names¡­ Never lasted long.¡±

    ¡°Why would anyone do this? I don¡¯t understand this level of cruelty, what purpose does it serve?¡± Mevi asked, almost becoming infuriated at the grizzly scene still partially visible through the open door.

    ¡°How¡¯d I know? I got here with a group of idiots who all thought this place would be an easy raid. Suppose a lot of people trapped here got caught doin the same¡­ Can¡¯t do nothin about it so we should keep moving.¡±

    Mevi almost wanted to continue questioning Hellion, despite the futility, but a loud bang from far below them echoed upwards to reach them. The constructs outside were doing something, and they could still breach the door at any moment. Holding back her empathy and fighting off the pain that rose in her heart at the sight beheld here, Mevi continued forward. It only took a few short moments to have the three of them go to either end of the hallways, both looking for another way upwards and to confirm Mevi didn¡¯t recognize any of the bodies within the cruel chambers. Down the right hallway, at the end of its stretch, embedded into the wall was another door. Hopefully another passage upwards, and a path swiftly out of this scene of horror.

    The Sentinel easily forced the new door open, revealing a small square room reminiscent of the various platforms and stationary transportation that frequented buildings on the surface. Entering within there was no clear way to activate the room¡¯s functions. As the Sentinel walked past the threshold and the three of them were fully within the room, the door that was pried open attempted to bend itself back into place and shut. Before they could attempt to force their way back out, the platform started moving upwards, and they were ferried quickly beyond the point of no return.

    Holding close to the Sentinel, Mevi tried to keep herself stable as the transportation slowed, sped up, turned, stopped, and changed directions many times. The helplessness of being trapped within the small room, unknowing where they were headed, terrified Mevi. Yet the Sentinel held one hand out to stabilize her and another firmly on its rifle while it stared intently at where the door¡¯s opening once was. Hellion was grinning like a madman, seeming to enjoy every second of the thrill-ride this situation had turned into.

    As the room came to a slowed stop, for good this time, a light slowly flickered on weakly above them. Until this point there had been such minimal light, barely even dim illumination, the weak source of light suddenly activating seemed blinding. After blinking and squinting through the sudden source of light, the doors to the jostling transportation slid open without a sound.

    A room opened up as the doors slid away. Similar lights like the one within the transport started flickering overhead, illuminating the wide space slowly but fully. A lab, or some kind of workshop, was revealed before them. Strange equipment was attached to the walls, tubes hung down from the ceiling eerily, and many different work stations stood here and there with unknown implements laid atop them. The room was rather small compared to the lower floors, at least if the three of them had indeed gone upwards. The walls seemed to curve inwards at a noticeable angle, like they had ascended far to the top of the spire.

    Without any other choice, Mevi slowly stepped out and onto the lab floor. The Sentinel and Hellion followed closely behind. Hellion¡¯s eyes flared with greed and excitement, obviously entranced by the strange equipment. He darted past Mevi towards the nearest table and mumbled excitedly to himself about value and rarity. Hellion began rifling through a crate near to one of the tables and excitedly picked something out to show Mevi. ¡°This! This right here!¡± Hellion said loudly, holding what looked like a bulky projectile weapon. The device was almost a half a meter wide and thrice that long, Hellion wielded the device precariously like it weighed too much for him to carry properly. ¡°This is a matter disrupter! I¡¯ve only ever seen them mounted on gunships in the Legion! With this, and your friend, we could easily melt through just about anything! Swarm of bots be damned, we could carve a new gateway through the walls with this thing!¡±

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    ¡°Is it safe, if it is that powerful?¡± Mevi asked, now worried as Hellion fumbled to grip the large weapon.

    ¡°Safe? Of course not! These things pack a punch big enough to wipe out a whole building if you aim it right. But your friend could use it for sure!¡±

    Before Mevi could object Hellion set the device down and raced towards a new table with a delicate-looking rifle sitting atop it. Studying it closely, and completely ignoring Mevi, Hellion muttered in amazement to himself. The rogue continued to investigate the room, completely enthralled by the devices. Mevi couldn¡¯t risk waiting any longer for Hellion and attempted to persuade him back to his senses. Yet regardless of anything said, done, or even if she tried to physically stop him Hellion ignored her and continued to frantically collect various devices. Mevi was forced to continue without him, hoping whatever he was looking for or getting ready would help their escape.

    Continuing past the tables of strange equipment, Mevi and the Sentinel found a short staircase leading upwards to the next level. The stair opened into a rough, scar and scorch-riddled, room. Along the edges of the room were various melee weapons made from crude iron in similar fashion to the halberds the iron sentinels used, which in turn were crudely made to resemble the Sentinel¡¯s own weaponry. This place seemed to be where the finished products below were stored and sorted. Pieces of unfinished hollow suits and armor were displayed occasionally next to the weapons, also in a mockery of the Sentinel¡¯s own equipment.

    Mevi and the Sentinel carefully walked into the open storage space, cautious of the shadows that jumped as the flickering lights attempted to illuminate the room. On the far side was a door, left slightly ajar and allowing a pale blue light to sneak through the cracks. As the two cautiously approached the door mechanical grinding started to echo out of the walls and floor. Panels in the walls and floor revealed themselves and opened, out from the now open panels stepped more iron sentinels. Five of the constructs were shunted out of the ceiling and blocked the way the two of them had entered, and easily twenty more were slowly removing themselves from panels in the ground and walls. The Sentinel¡¯s head darted quickly, looking for some kind of safe place to put Mevi, but the iron sentinels didn¡¯t give any time to think.

    Rushing forward, the quickest of the iron sentinel constructs charged the Sentinel. The five that were placed by the entrance remained as if to guard any attempt at escape. Four of the constructs charged and engaged the Sentinel, who fought them off with swift strikes from fist and foot. The Sentinel¡¯s agility was obviously heightened without the bulky armor it normally wore, and the four attackers were thrown off. Scanning the room, there was only one possible spot for escape. The open door on the far side of the room. Grabbing Mevi with one arm, the Sentinel bounded forward towards what might be safety. In the same movement as its powerful leaps, the Sentinel dodged two other iron sentinel¡¯s attacks. Clearing the room in only a few seconds, the Sentinel thrust Mevi into the new room.

    Within was another strange sort of small experimental lab. Without any clear signs of danger, and being such small confines it was barely three by five meters in size, the Sentinel pushed Mevi within. Mevi¡¯s golden protector attempted to enter the room itself, but its legs were grabbed by three new attackers and pulled its mighty form down to one knee. Reaching down with one hand, and crushing the grip the constructs had on one of its legs with a hard strike, the Sentinel raised its now free leg to kick the door closed. The last thing Mevi saw as she lay on the ground was the Sentinel raising its energetic rifle in the direction of the door, at least five other iron sentinels descending upon it. As the door shut tight, the metal frame became inflamed with white-hot energy that threatened to push through and explode on Mevi¡¯s side. The door was sealed, the energetic rifle melting the hard metal in an instant to transform the door into a solid piece of metal wall.

    Mevi ran towards the door, but as she approached the heat still emanating from the white-hot metal she was pushed backwards. Mevi yelled for her companion, forcing her into some strange laboratory closet. Clattering battle echoed muffled thumping out from the doorway. Metallic clanging and another blast of some energetic weapon which reinforced an amount of heat through the door for a brief moment. The sounds of battle would begin to fade and move away, as if being carried to the farther end of the room or ending entirely. After several moments of waiting, watching the hot metal slowly cool, Mevi approached close to the doorway to carefully listen. Barely audible echoes of combat occasionally made their way through the thick metal, but even as Mevi moved as close as she might dare to the hot surface, the sounds eventually completely faded.

    Mevi was left within a small lab. A single table on one side of the room, with various tinker¡¯s equipment without any subject to be used on. The pale glow came from strange tube-linings that pumped the pale blue glow¡¯s source; a slow-streaming liquid similar to the green-blue essence being pumped from the stasis pods within Hellion¡¯s base. This version seemed refined, almost perfect, in comparison to what was seen before. Mevi couldn¡¯t understand why she felt the liquid was so perfect, she was almost tempted to reach out and touch the tubing. Shaking her head to clear the intrusive thoughts, Mevi reminded herself what just happened. She needed to open the door, she wanted to help, she couldn¡¯t stand being left behind to be protected yet again. Yet as Mevi looked around the small room, which was obviously a nearly empty storage space for broken or useless equipment, nothing was available for use.

    Just as Mevi began to become frustrated, a sound like steam being released slowly hissed. At the far end of the small room, the normally bare wall¡¯s edges leaked light steam and mist. The wall itself retracted as if it were a sliding doorway. It slowly opened to reveal a new, and even more terrifying sight than the experiments on corpses far below.

    Revealed past the new opening was a massive vat of the pale blue liquid, within were countless bodies of people suspended within by tubes connecting to their faces and inserted into various parts of their bodies. Mevi approached unconsciously, aghast at the sight, and passed into the new room. As she did, the door closed behind her, she turned to go back but the door was sealed tight and fast. As Mevi leaned against the now closed doorway, she beheld the massive vat of liquid once again and felt dread. With the many other bodies suspended in the liquid were two she could recognize. Saerin and Ouapi¡¯s bodies were floating gently in the liquid, wearing little beyond their small clothes and showing no signs of consciousness.

    Mevi rushed forward into the room, and slammed against the vat of liquid. Banging her hand against the hard glass, Mevi called out to her two companions, but they didn¡¯t answer. They couldn''t answer. As Mevi rested her head in defeat on the glass, she could hear a strange slurping sound from her left. Darting her head towards the sound, a massive form of floating blue liquid hovered over her. Eyes wide in surprise and fear, the liquid held its form stretching from the ground up above her as if to subsume her.

    Mevi held her breath, the liquid shifted and moved as if animated by some intelligence. It moved around her as if looking at her intently, showing no signs of ability nor desire to communicate. As the liquid reached close to her chest it suddenly recoiled backwards, as if injured, and the entire form of the blue liquid shook like a great rage boiled it. Suddenly a piercing screech exploded from the liquid, making Mevi¡¯s ears feel on the verge of explosion. Despite the pain from Mevi¡¯s ears her heart felt the brunt of the pain. She reached to her chest and fell to the ground in wracking pain. She almost felt as if something was desperately attempting to flee her chest and body, trying to push and dig its way free of her heart and escape in a violent breach. Mevi felt herself becoming overwhelmed by the feeling, no air was passing into her lungs, she couldn¡¯t breathe or move beyond violent shaking and clutching at herself. Just as suddenly as the screeching began, it suddenly stopped. Mevi could breathe again, but the first gulp of air she took in sent shivers through her body and a retching blackness came spewing out of her in a violent heave.

    Mevi lay on the ground in the fetal position as a dark black tar escaped her mouth onto the ground, a sickness that fought to escape her. The trail of tar was gone after four or five heavy heaves, and it almost slid against the ground like it wished to escape. Mevi recoiled at the disgust that had just violently exited her, the dark tar slopped in blood and spit attempted to almost crawl back towards Mevi. A dark presence pushing it towards her. A thin tendril reached out from the clump of disgust, but before it could touch Mevi a pale-blue glowing arm reached down with a glass jar to scoop up the sickness.

    Beside Mevi was a¡­ creature. A thing that mocked humanoid form with its own attempt, but was made completely out of the pale blue liquid, held into a semi-solid shape like a person. It held the sickness in the jar and sealed it in a simple glass containment vessel like a chemist might use for a dangerous acid. Sealed with a metal cap, the sickness writhed towards Mevi weakly. A voice then emanated from the liquid humanoid, great and powerful but at the same time muffled like a distant echo, ¡°Who dares bring such vile sickness into my realm? What fiend thought to poison my experiments with an assassin sent to foil me? Who enters the workshop of Modrak, Lord Over Form and Body?¡±

 Chapter 12: Modrak

    Mevi lay on the ground, beholding the alien form that was certainly the source of the commanding voice. A glowing pale-blue light emanated from the form of the alien, which seemed like it was made of a gelatinous liquid that shifted and changed shape like it couldn¡¯t properly maintain a humanoid form. Her voice escaped her, the coughing fit had torn at her throat and only sputtering groans came out as she panicked. The liquid creature held the glass vessel that contained whatever had just been inside her. A dark sickly tar that writhed in the small container, bashing itself against the walls of its new prison towards Mevi, like it still tried to fight to reach her. The liquid creature changed its attention from Mevi back to the captured sickness. The arm that held the glass vessel elongated far beyond what should be possible for a humanoid, stretching almost like rubber five or six meters away to set the glass vessel on a nearby table. Then the creature turned once again to look at Mevi, still laying on the ground with a small puddle of sickness and blood next to her. The liquid creature reached a hand down towards Mevi, and its hand wrapped gently around her throat.

    Slimy, sticky, and smelling vaguely foul. Mevi had an alien made of gelatinous pale-blue liquid gently squeezing her throat. She held still, terrified at the unknown creature¡¯s intention. It claimed to be Modrak, but could he be such a strange anomaly as a man made of liquid? Mevi submitted to its authority, she felt weak after the violent retching from before and couldn¡¯t even attempt to fight back against whatever the figure might try. Yet as she flinched when the ooze moved to fully engulf her neck, the soreness and bloody pain in her throat began to vanish. She felt her throat somehow healing in moments. The creature, who claimed to be Modrak, withdrew its appendage and commanded once more, ¡°Speak. Who are you to invade my workshop? So insignificant you are, not even realizing your own infection.¡±

    Mevi hesitated only for a few moments, not daring to insult Modrak further, ¡°My name is Mevare Bensari¡­ I was sent here, by Lords Magi Odion and Maphet. They told me to seek you out¡­¡±

    ¡°An errand girl?¡± the liquid form shifted instead of walking, and it moved away towards the table where the sickness now sat, ¡°Pathetic. To send one to me so defenseless.¡± Modrak began gathering devices of strange types, seemingly preparing an experiment with the contents in the glass vessel.

    ¡°Yes, I admit my powerlessness¡­ But I was still sent here, my lord. Please, I need your help. My friends¡­¡±

    Modrak cut her off sharply, ¡°Your friends? Those fools who were caught by my extensions? Your Sentinel sent here to mock my defenses? Or perhaps the fools who were convinced out of their hiding only to be captured by me at last?¡±

    Mevi stopped speaking, feeling her spirits fall and her face flush after Modrak¡¯s descriptions.

    ¡°No response? Again, pathetic. The Magi should¡¯ve sent me one more sure of themselves. Alestair maybe. Speak what you want clearly, errand girl. Or I will throw you out alone.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t understand Modrak, but spoke with confidence after gathering her wits for a few moments, ¡°I need my companions, all of them, returned to me. I also must complete whatever mission the Magi set for me here.¡±

    Modrak ¡®turned¡¯ to face Mevi, but it was little more than a gesture as its arms continued working behind it on the table, ¡°Finally. I detest pleasantries. But why would I ever comply with anything you demand? You assaulted my laboratory, destroyed my prized creations, and your friend attempted to pilfer from my collection.¡±

    ¡°The Lords Magi demand my obedience and for this I need my companions. I beseech you, Lord Modrak. Please give them back to me and help me.¡±

    The liquid form of Modrak paused whatever it was experimenting on. The sickly tar had been removed from the jar and thoroughly killed, somehow. It was being dissected on the table, it seemed to outwardly be a rubbery sickness but as Modrak had been terrorizing it the entity proved to have internals. Blackened red flesh was torn open and pieces of organ displayed alongside the strange corpse. Modrak fully turned its attention to Mevi. She couldn¡¯t help but quietly seethe. Being forced to essentially beg, her companions being captured for seemingly no reason, and its near refusal to entreat with her despite her Magi-given quest. A single bubble appeared in Modrak¡¯s chest and slowly floated upwards until it escaped from the liquid form¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You hate me, or an emotion similar to hate. Such a strong emotion for something as weak as you.¡± Modrak said suddenly.

    ¡°I apologize if I seemed that way, my Lord. I do not, I just need to complete my task so I can begin my next. So I can properly serve the Magi.¡± Mevi replied, terrified that she had been displaying her emotions so clearly, but she was sure she had been careful.

    ¡°You cannot hide your thoughts from me. I possess more power, knowledge, and influence than you can even imagine. I obey the Magi, only because it suits me. But their thoughts, and most of their minion¡¯s, are shielded from me. You have no such talent. I can hear you, and I feel your anger.¡± Modrak shifted its form to stand next to Mevi, staring into the vat filled with humanoid subjects, ¡°Oh you hate me a great deal for things you aren¡¯t even fully aware of. Within you, you know what I am doing and you hate me for it. But even still, you aren¡¯t fully aware of yourself. It is a curious thing. And a glaring weakness.¡±

    Mevi¡¯s frustrations were being stroked by Modrak¡¯s simplest words, but she attempted to maintain civility, ¡°There are many things I have seen that I disagree with¡­ But I cannot see a way I can disagree with you, I can only try to save my companions and hope.¡±

    Turning again to ¡®face¡¯ Mevi, ¡°And that is your flaw. You wish for more than you can grasp. You are too weak to achieve anything. Yet you want and want. Meekness will give you no benefit. If you hate me, stop me. Take what you want, or are you content to beg for scraps as you always have? I see you, and you are a footnote in history. Your family threw you aside, your friends are dying, and you are powerless. Pathetic.¡±

    Mevi felt herself building an internal rage she hadn¡¯t felt for a long while. Not since her Daemon possessed her body to take revenge for Kalesi. Mevi¡¯s emotions felt raw, powerful, and irresistible as this mockery of a humanoid mimic taunted her. She felt her heart boil with anger, and what felt like an ancient power slowly rose from its slumber. Mevi struggled against herself to contain the anger that had laid dormant for so long. Anger at the world she was forced into, anger at her family who abandoned her, anger at the near loss of her new family, anger at this creature that committed unspeakable acts against humanity, and anger at her own powerlessness. Modrak leaned in, closing the distance to almost nothing between them, ¡°Your ¡®Kalesi¡¯ will die. And it will be your fault, because you can do nothing to stop me or anyone from taking from you.¡±

    At the mention of Kalesi¡¯s name, Mevi¡¯s most dear treasure since her being given to the Magi, Mevi exploded. The ancient power that Mevi had felt growing inside her rose to the surface fully, she recognized its presence. Mevi¡¯s Daemon, the entity that stalked her nights when she was young, and always fought to possess her with infernal anger. Mevi reached out in union with the Daemon, and an orange fire exploded from Mevi¡¯s hand to strike Modrak. The liquid entity dodged and engaged Mevi.

    The alien creature pulled back but quickly grew an appendage behind Mevi, striking at her from behind. But Mevi could almost see behind her even as she stared forward at Modrak¡¯s humanoid form. A glowing stream of power erupted from Mevi¡¯s heart and intercepted the gelatinous appendage behind her, the two powers strangling each other in a mixture of fiery aura and pale-blue power. Mevi strode forward, propelled by her Daemon¡¯s anger but controlled by her own intent. Mevi reached out her hand again, demanding Modrak return to her, and a faint aura emanated out of her to grapple the liquid humanoid body. Modrak dropped to the floor, splashing into seemingly true water, the faint orange aura grasping at nothing but air. Manic laughter echoed from around the laboratory, emanating almost from the vat of glowing liquid. Mevi glared at the vat of liquid, it contained her friends and countless people undeserving of such unusual imprisonment. With her anger and determination manifest, Mevi reached up with both her hands to squeeze the vat of liquid.

    As Mevi began to attack the vat itself, more appendages of Modrak¡¯s body spiked upwards from around her and began whipping at her. Mevi¡¯s Daemon focused on protecting her, deflecting and blocking the attacks even as it countered with its own attacks against the entities that continued to crop up. Mevi ignored the assaults and focused harder on crushing the massive prison. Modrak¡¯s laughter echoed louder as if to taunt her more. Mevi had had enough, she would free those captured here and tear down this monument of terror.

    Mevi reached out one last time, her spirit flowing forward to follow her intent. Then, as she fully embraced her decision to tear down the very foundations of this ¡®Tower of Pain¡¯ the vat of liquid cracked and exploded. Watery ooze flowed like a wave from the vat of glowing substance. The liquid flowed past and around her, but completely ignored her otherwise as if there was some wall between her and it¡¯s flow. The bodies within the vat remained carefully suspended, barely moving as the rushing ooze began to rapidly rail against the walls of the lab. Modrak¡¯s manic cackling only grew more powerful. The watery substance almost formed into a vaguely humanoid shape around Mevi, splashing waves cascading over some invisible wall around her. The massive form loomed tall, and Mevi realized just how small she was compared to the oppressive power that Modrak possessed. The muffled echo of Modrak¡¯s voice was gone now, instead it was a powerful boom that seemed to shake the entire spire, ¡°There, I have done your will, insufferable Magi. Errand girl, you know not what powers you trifle with, but I have released yours without even your notice. Behold me now, in my terrible might, and cower.¡±

    Mevi, still filled with defiance, stood her ground, ¡°I won¡¯t. I refuse to cower any longer if my friends are in danger.¡±

    The cascading waves of pale-blue liquid crashed and rammed against the walls of the laboratory and against the invisible wall protecting Mevi. The towering form of Modrak loomed above her, leaning in to make her feel even more insignificant than she already did. As Modrak came close to her, with what Mevi thought was its head coming close enough to touch, the malevolent creature boomed again, ¡°Fair choice of words, but entirely too foolish.¡±

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    A tall hand reached down and pushed itself against what protective barrier apparently surrounded Mevi, and then a sound like shattering glass as the glowing liquid rushed past her defenses. Washed away by the rushing liquid, Mevi was jostled and thrown like a ragdoll through the flowing power. Her defiance neary beaten out of her completely as she was ferried around the room in violent currents. In only a few seconds the wind was knocked out of her lungs and forced her to curl into a ball so as to not be badly wounded against the hard metal surfaces she careened into. After those few seconds of torment, Mevi felt herself be placed on the cold hard metal floor once again. The pale-blue glowing ooze retreating back towards the vat it was once held within.

    Mevi looked up, still partially dazed by the ordeal, and saw as the destruction she had caused was almost entirely erased. Modrak was binding the glass and metal back together somehow, bending what was broken back into shape. In only a few short moments the damage was entirely reversed like nothing had even happened. The flowing liquid returned to its container, and the laboratory looked no different than when Mevi had first entered. There wasn¡¯t even any sign of residue on her or the floors. Utter defeat, it seemed. Mevi tried to manifest the orange energy she had channeled only moments before, but only saw sparks and sputtering attempts like something was snuffing it out. Modrak appeared again beside her, ¡°You cannot manifest within my presence unless I allow it. It is why the Magi fear me, as I know they do. I have a mastery over form and body that they might only dream of. My power was achieved naturally, while their ¡®gifts¡¯ were from this wretched Barge.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? Why do you torment me?¡± Mevi fished for answers.

    ¡°I do not owe you an explanation, and it would take too long for me to formulate one you could understand. I have done my duty, and will return your companions. Then you will leave.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t even know what you think you did, I barely even know what I myself did.¡±

    ¡°And that is your fatal flaw, your potential is outshined by your overwhelming ignorance. I will give you this; I removed that sickness from you.¡± A thin arm outstretched pointing at the pristine workspace containing the sickening tar creature. ¡°Planted for a Magi¡¯s foul plot no doubt. You are free of its influence, and so to is your ability to channel Mana. Now you will take your companions and leave.¡±

    As Modrak commanded her, a door somewhere further in the lab hissed open and let streaming light flow in. Clunking heavy footsteps clamored in, and Mevi rushed to see what its source was. Modrak disappeared, dissolving into the floor to leave nothing behind as Mevi searched for the noise. As Mevi rounded the vat of prisoners, she saw the open door with several iron sentinels streaming in. Carried by eight iron sentinels at any one time, and still putting up a powerful resistance, was her Sentinel. Scar, melt, and broken metal covered the thin armor that acted as its exoskeleton in harsh blemishes. When its helmeted face passed over Mevi its struggling stopped for a moment, then in a whirlwind of resistance the Sentinel threw off most of its escorts. Twisting in place with the sheer force of their body, several iron sentinels were funneled under the Sentinel while others toppled over themselves in an attempt to maintain their grip. The Sentinel used the confusion to rip itself from the remaining escorts and bounded towards Mevi, but the golden protector was noticeably slowed and almost limping as it reached Mevi¡¯s side. What weapons or remaining heavy armor seemed to have been removed from the Sentinel, leaving it wearing only the thin exoskeleton metal plating with a dark bodysuit occasionally escaping to be seen where holes and breaches in the armor were obvious. The iron copies attempted to pursue, but Modrak reappeared from the floor once again and the unsaid command was heeded. The iron sentinels gave up pursuit and continued their original tasks, the Sentinel almost seemed confused for a moment but continued to maintain its guard of Mevi in careful watch of all the new threats. Hellion was produced soon after the iron sentinels resumed their duties, his unconscious body being dropped onto the metal floor in front of Mevi. The bulky robots then also began to work towards a nearby access panel in the massive vat itself. Saerin and Ouapi were being retrieved and disconnected from the wires and tubes. Finally, wheeled in on an examination table, the unmolested body of Zelkan. Still wearing all the same clothes and mask he wore when he was captured, in a peaceful sleep.

    Mevi¡¯s companions were returned to her, in varying states of damage and disorder. Yet her curiosity of Modrak was piqued with Zelkan¡¯s pristine state. She could almost swear Modrak¡¯s liquid body looked towards him, the thing¡¯s head pointed in Zelkan¡¯s direction like it had eyes to watch. Mevi decided not to broach the subject, and hoped she could escape this pit of horror without her companions being wise to what had really happened. As her companions were reclothed in basic garb, and loaded onto a large gurney, Mevi could not resist her need for answers. ¡°Modrak, what about the rest of the people? You torture them, for what? Experiments?¡± Mevi asked suddenly.

    ¡°Torture? I give them pleasure and purpose beyond what they could imagine. In their otherwise pathetic lives.¡± Modrak seemed genuinely offended, at least by his tone.

    ¡°But you keep them here, force them into pods within the buildings outside, you suck dry any vital essences on the floors below. If not torture, then you run a cruel prison.¡±

    ¡°Foolish. Each and every creature within my control submitted willingly. Even your two companions couldn¡¯t resist the promises I offered. Any you saw below had expired naturally, from their own mistakes or diseases in their life before. Do not presume to have some moral high ground here, dog of the Magi. Your masters do more, and worse.¡± Modrak let that statement sink in before readjusting his tone to one of stiff nobility, ¡°Leave before my hospitality runs dry.¡±

    So she did. Mevi knew she couldn¡¯t very well break free every person within Modrak¡¯s influence. Even if she did, what would she do? How could she take care of them? If she released them back into the cavern, most would almost certainly die even just of the elements, how would she be better than Modrak then? Her fury built, but subsided. She would not abandon them, she would remember the people here and return for them when she could make a better life than this. But she had to admit her own limits, for she didn¡¯t even know what her limits were.

    Mevi was escorted by a host of iron sentinels, who each carried heavy weapons of various sorts. The robotic creatures watched the Sentinel cautiously as they passed through the various levels of the spire. Mevi was escorted down to a larger transport of some kind, it physically exited the spire and twisted around until it reached the bottom doors. The large doors had been broken open, and drones were already constructing new braces and structure to fix them. When they reached the bottom Hellion awoke with a start. Trying to jump out of the gurney, but being caught and forced down by the iron sentinels. Panic raced across his face, but when his eyes fell on Mevi he assumed a false confidence. Still tied down, Hellion¡¯s trademark grin came over him as he asked, ¡°So, I¡¯ll assume negotiations succeeded? Seems we¡¯re gettin the royal treatment after all.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t help giving Hellion a reassuring smile in return, she could sense his unease and stifled fear, ¡°We are leaving. But there will be no ¡®loot¡¯ for you.¡± She said softly.

    ¡°Ah¡­ Well, we tried. Least we didn¡¯t get hurt.¡± His eyes shifted to the beaten and ragged form of the Sentinel, ¡°Well, most of us at least. Your bot¡¯s seen better.¡±

    The transport landed on the ground rather quickly despite the immense height of the tower. As they descended to the bottom a group of mechanical escorts arrived through the main gateway of the wall. They carried, dragged, and escorted the band of rogues that had left to do Hellion¡¯s tasks. As the transport fully stopped Mevi disembarked with her unconscious companions and Hellion. Most of Hellion¡¯s rogues were being carried by the robots and had strange devices rigged to their faces like masks. They lay limp like they were dead, but faint breathing could be observed. Only two walked on their own, and they limped slowly behind the group. Hellion, still relaxing on the gurney, twisted to lay on his side, which nearly prompted the robotic escorts to pin him again. Yet as Hellion looked to observe his crew, his face fell and the two who walked didn¡¯t meet his gaze. They almost seemed ashamed, but were mostly uninjured. Hellion called out to his two remaining crew, ¡°You just couldn¡¯t say no could you? Damn you all, don¡¯t have a single thought between your heads that you think this is alright?¡±

    The two conscious rogues mumbled in response but avoided meeting Hellion¡¯s eyes. Mevi moved towards them, but a strong metal arm stretched out from one of the iron sentinels to stop her. Mevi¡¯s Sentinel almost struck the automaton after it obstructed her, but a single look was all her protector needed to know that Mevi was fine and to calm down. The group of them were escorted to the bottom of the road out of the Castle, placed at the entrance with three unconscious and the rest feeling defeated.

    Hellion finally got up, no longer being forced to stay laying down, and Mevi realized he had several easily visible bruises. The rogue stood, but clearly leaned heavily on one leg over the other, his charisma and confidence almost depleted. But still that overconfident smile pushed through as he turned to Mevi, ¡°Well, that¡¯s that. Im outta the job, it was fun while it lasted!¡±

    ¡°What happened to them? Why did your friends go with them?¡± Mevi asked, still confused.

    ¡°Friends? Hahaha! That¡¯s precious! We only used each other. I knew those layabouts would give up eventually, the promise of treasure can only take you so long after all.¡±

    ¡°But why did they go with the robots?¡±

    ¡°You saw those things on their heads? I think they¡¯re like small computers or something. They make you feel good, and those pods feed you too I guess. We lost more people to bot¡¯s by them just giving up rather than any of us actually dying. I always tried to say it was too good to be true, not to try and connect with em or something. Looks like they got caught, and they couldn¡¯t resist the bots¡¯ offer. Idiots¡­¡±

    A somber moment passed. Mevi wondered exactly what the people went through, what it felt like to be so unburdened and flooded with apparent pleasure. If that truly was what the pods and strange devices did. Even more she wondered why someone would want to sell themselves for some fake pleasure, or if she would have a strong enough will to refuse something like that. Her mind was taken away from those thoughts when her sleeping companions began to stir.

    Mevi moved to Saerin¡¯s side, she stirred the most and first, but Zelkan remained quiet. As she rushed to her companion, she felt something heavy in her robe clunk against her thigh in one of the inner pockets. She didn¡¯t carry many things with her, and didn¡¯t remember storing anything there. Mevi fished into the hidden pockets and pulled out a small clear tube with a metallic cap. Within was a faintly glowing pale-blue liquid. Within was part of Modrak¡¯s body. Anger and frustration filled her, that thing had snuck this container with part of it into her clothes. She was left with more questions than ever, and her emotions flooded through her like a dam had opened after years of being barred shut.

    Balling her hand into a fist, squeezing the tube tightly with some small hope to crush it in her hand. Mevi couldn¡¯t bear destroying the thing, she still wasn¡¯t sure what she was actually sent here for, for all she knew the Magi wanted this tube of strange liquid. She wanted to throw the container and smash it against the ground, but instead collapsed to her knees. Mevi was exhausted, completely drained physically and mentally. Resting her head on the gurney Saerin lay atop nearest to the edge, she let the powerful emotions drain away and disappear. Instead a slow sadness, a sadness product from such overwhelming exhaustion and confusion, took its place. Small tears once again dripped down her face, but she kept herself from sobbing.

    As Mevi¡¯s emotions swirled with a new force not felt in a long while, a hand brushed against her head. A soft, gentle, hand placed itself weakly on her head, faintly attempting to run through her messy hair to clean up her friz. Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed how mangled her hair and clothes had become, and as she looked up to see who attempted to weakly groom her she almost saw a moment where Kalesi was laying on the gurney. But instead the vision faded as the bubbled tears fell away to reveal Saerin¡¯s bewildered and concerned face. ¡°You got us back¡­¡± Saerin said softly.

    Mevi nearly jumped into Saerin¡¯s arms, it had felt like days worth of stress filled the hours between their departure. Mevi held back the fountain of emotions, and was content to have her companions back. She didn¡¯t realize until now that she cared for Saerin and Zelkan so much. With her abilities unblocked, she would train doubly hard to protect them, and ensure nothing would steal them away from her again.

 Chapter 12.5: Zelkan

    Zelkan watched as Mevare, his ward and leader, was whisked away by her loyal golden Sentinel. For a moment he was glad, despite her anguished surprise and already flowing tears. Yet even as he turned back to face the oncoming horde, he knew there was no escape or victory against such overwhelming odds. Regardless, Zelkan took a stand hoping he might buy time for Saerin and Ouapi, but despite his attempt he saw the other two hold the same glint of resistance in their eyes.

    In an instant they stopped to face the attackers, with their only hope to stall or distract them so Mevare could be taken away to safety. It was a small, and mostly pointless hope. The wave of metal crashed into the three of them, barely able to turn fast enough to face them. Zelkan met the mechanical horrors with whatever strength he could muster, which wasn¡¯t much compared to the overwhelming mass of constructs flowing out of the city.

    Careening projectiles of fire, plasma, and bullets flew from the road towards the golden Sentinel. But as it was designed, the Sentinel avoided and escaped the oncoming ambush. Zelkan and the others were not as lucky or skilled.

    As the swarm of constructs fell upon the three of them, they were battered and restrained. Zelkan saw a larger construct, with many eyes and dangling appendages wielding surgical implements, and it restrained Saerin just before it injected a thin needle into her skin. Almost at the same moment the needle touched her flesh, the woman fell limp. A metallic mask was affixed to her face, with a tube running from it into the larger construct. It quickly fell upon Ouapi with a similar result, and finally moved towards Zelkan.

    Zelkan struggled against his attackers, and when the large construct attempted to inject him as well he fought even harder. He refused to succumb to whatever was planned for them. Yet as he fought and resisted he continued to scream curses in his head, what had happened to Modrak¡¯s lab? These robotic horrors were not here before, and there was no city here either. He had last seen Modrak only fifteen years ago, such a monumental creation such as this city and an army of robots would¡¯ve been impossible with the few resources Modrak had at his disposal.

    Regardless of how strange and impossible the situation seemed, Zelkan was overpowered by the ocean of metal he was thrown into. The large construct restrained him, and a needle pressed into his flesh. The world when white and a ringing noise deafened his ears. Yet all his pain began to wash away. His duties, troubles, sores, and even his difficult memories all ebbed and flowed in the current of white noise and blindness. Something wanted to take them away, remove the pain and suffering. Zelkan wanted it to, he wanted the anguish and horrid memories he kept inside to erase themselves. Yet even as he wished for a promised release, he remembered. He had an oath, a duty declared and loyalties given. He was a loyal servant of the Magi and their vision. He would not abandon his loyalty so easily to some fake release.

    As Zelkan was swept away by the substance injected into his bloodstream, the white noise tried to take away his pain, suffering, and memories. Yet within those memories and experiences was his loyalty to his Lords Magi, who despite his failings accepted and protected him from a life he knew was worse. He refused the release, forcing himself to remember his painful past and reinforcing his gratitude for being rescued. But with his gratitude came his memory of his mentor, the one who gave him the chance to serve the Magi better. Modrak.

    Zelkan could suddenly feel again, it was a numb sensation but he could feel regardless. His vision was still gone, but he could feel the rough jostling of his numb body against cold metal. How long had he been unaware of his senses? Where had he been taken? He tried to feel what little he could to help understand what was happening, it had been only moments since he was captured, at least thats what he thought.

    A portion of Zelkan¡¯s vision began to return. At first small pinpricks of dark in the white noise blocking his senses. Then the pinpricks turned into blotches, and from that into misshapen images. Zelkan had been brought to a pristine lab. A tidy and clean space, with very little in the form of real implements. He was laying atop a metal examination table, on the wall in front of him there were collections of chemist¡¯s tools and glass vessels. He checked his surroundings, but the room was shrouded in a strange dark cloud, one that suspiciously concealed a greater part of the lab he was in.

    Sitting up, Zelkan was almost surprised he wasn¡¯t restrained, but even without restraints his body was exhausted and sore. He didn¡¯t know why, but even moving to sit up took almost all his remaining strength. As he did, a faint voice calmly spoke out of the darkness, ¡°So you return. Here to plague me once again¡­¡±

    Zelkan was still, calmly taking in his surroundings, ¡°Who are you? Are you the one I met years ago..?¡± He questioned, hoping the voice wasn¡¯t who he feared it was.

    ¡°To forget my name¡­ Disappointing. Yes. We have met.¡± The voice eventually replied.

    ¡°I did not forget, but that name no longer belongs to you. Not after what you became.¡±

    ¡°What I became?¡± The voice laughed, ¡°I evolved, I became more. I am power.¡±

    ¡°Then why capture me? You have clearly built an army for your designs, I hold no use to you.¡±

    ¡°I wished to learn from you, and I have business with another. After I am done I will debate your release or execution.¡±

    ¡°Kill me or release me, but don¡¯t waste my time with poisoned talk.¡± Zelkan said bitterly.

    ¡°In due time.¡±

    ¡°Modrak!¡± Zelkan shouted, his anger bubbling.

    ¡°Ah! So you do remember¡­ Good. Now sleep, there is much I wish to learn.¡±

    Against Zelkan¡¯s will and despite his brain telling him to stay awake, Zelkan¡¯s body began to droop and fall to the table he lay upon. A heavy blanket of sleep draped over him, and he was quickly asleep. Yet his conscious mind almost felt awake and lucid.

    Zelkan knew his body had fallen into a slumber, yet his mind was aware and awake as if his eyes were simply closed shut. His body refused to listen to his orders and instead began to enter a deep state of sleep, and dreams began to manifest in a lucid detail before his unconscious mind¡¯s eye.

    The dream slowly wound itself together like gathering strands of yarn before Zelkan¡¯s sight. The wisps of memories and images began to gather together in such mass that a scene was born. It was one that he held dear, as it was the day he began his true devotion to his Magi lords.

    A dark room with cramped hallways. ¡®Bunks¡¯ embedded into the walls with a sort of standing bed where volunteers lay. Upon the beds lay people of all ages and sizes. The dredges of society who sold themselves to the Magi as willing tribute. Injected tubing connected directly to the volunteer¡¯s arms and legs, cycling their blood out of their body and ¡®cleaning¡¯ it through a machine next to their bunk. Their small space was a private one, which was rare for most other tributaries under a different Magi, but the bunk was filled with monitoring equipment of all kinds and sounds. A dim hum echoed from all places in this facility, occasional loud beeping silenced by a quick moving caretaker. Within one of these bunks Zelkan could see¡­ himself.

    Zelkan could see himself laying against the vertical bed, in a state of weariness that confounded his senses into a daze-like state. Approaching into the bunk¡¯s quarters, Zelkan unwillingly looked close to his own body. So neatly wrapped in bandages, with faint puddles of dried blood under the wrappings, Zelkan¡¯s much younger form was nearly a corpse in the state he was in. The dark room hid his features from Zelkan¡¯s true mind¡¯s perspective, but as he watched himself in a grim memory the body Zelkan inhabited began to unlink and detach the devices connected to his younger body. As Zelkan watched the thick bandages be removed, and sharp needles and tubes detached, the wrapping around Zelkan¡¯s younger form¡¯s eyes were removed. In the same moment the faint illumination, from the nearby buttons and gauges, touched his younger self¡¯s eyes, Zelkan¡¯s perspective switched to his younger form. Suddenly illuminated was his old mentor, Modrak.

    Zelkan saw his old mentor standing before him. The man who changed his life¡¯s course forever had returned in the spitting image of his youthful memory. A seemingly golden colored skin with freckles that glinted like silver. His friendly and caring expression of calm as he continued to unwrap Zelkan from his bandages. Only a single utterance, ¡°Don¡¯t worry¡­¡± Modrak had said, ¡°I am here now¡­¡±

    Just as the nostalgia began to flood sad memories back into Zelkan¡¯s thoughts, the dream went askew. The dark hallway and machinery cracked and twisted. The dim lights from the measuring equipment pulsed a rainbow of colors. Then, a voice returned from some depth below to echo its thoughts, ¡°So¡­ This is your first memory of ¡®Modrak¡¯ as you knew him. Interesting.¡±

    Zelkan had no control over his dream body, but screamed in his own mind a reply, ¡°Damn you, how dare you defile his name and memory? Release me already!¡±

    Rather than a response, the voice¡¯s source simply chuckled. The dream continued to skew until even Modrak¡¯s original form shifted and cracked. Then the dream shattered and the pieces melted together to begin forming a new memory. Zelkan fought against the process, but had no power whatsoever and was a forced observer of the dream.

    A new memory began to formulate. Zelkan was in one of the training facilities. Marbled white walls and floor, with a thin layer of dust covering most places. Zelkan sat in a cafeteria alone, eating a large pile of synthetic rations. The pink slop was sitting idly on a plastic spoon, but Zelkan wasn¡¯t eating like he should be. Instead he was staring into the distance, his focus on the white-gray patterns in the walls.

    As Zelkan stared into the distance, his mind and awareness was fading in and out, his ability to act and think independently ebbing slowly away. Then, as his attention and focus began to waver, a new figure entered the room. Turning his head, Zelkan saw his mentor again. It was his daily visit, to check in on Zelkan¡¯s progress in his studies. Modrak entered the room, an elegant flowing white robe with silver runes covering most of the area in old language scrawl. Modrak held a quiet cadence, a kind and modest man with elder¡¯s lines developing on his face. His skin was made up of almost shining golden tint, his face and arms speckled with points of silver tint like freckles and beautiful blemishes. Yet despite his striking appearance, he carried himself modestly even though he would easily be one of the most handsome men of his great age.

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    Modrak fully entered the room, approaching Zelkan¡¯s seat swiftly enough to appear to be floating under his flowing robes. A kind and eager expression appeared on Modrak¡¯s face, happy to see his student. Zelkan could feel his internal conflict growing, he wished to speak to and be with Modrak again but he knew this vision had to be a lie. When Modrak stopped next to Zelkan he spoke eagerly, ¡°Zel, I have exciting news!¡±

    Zelkan almost flinched when he heard the name his mentor always used with him, but his body wasn¡¯t fully under his control and continued the memory without his choice, ¡°What is it, my lord?¡± Zelkan asked.

    ¡°You will officially be promoted to Acolyte soon! And alongside that, I am being made Lady Ress¡¯kasa¡¯s assistant!¡±

    ¡°That is... Incredible! I don¡¯t know what to say¡­¡±

    ¡°You need¡¯nt say anything, young Zel. But with both of our advancements we must find a way to celebrate! I heard that the last world we collected tithe from paid in a large collection of a strange fermented beverage, I hear many request it on the higher facility campuses. We should retrieve some for ourselves, who knows when we will have free time again to do something like this!¡±

    Modrak wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer, and before long they were heading to the higher facilities to ¡®celebrate¡¯. Zelkan remembered this as well, it was a joyous time for both of them but also the beginning of when they would slowly drift apart. They celebrated together happily, despite the residents of the higher facilities becoming annoyed by the rambunctiousness they spread to onlookers. Several higher ranked servants of both the Lords Magi Odion and Maphet came to calm and stop their celebration, but Modrak¡¯s personality and persistence was so much that even they would join the celebrations. He was always one to try and bring people together, refusing to allow any person to stay annoyed or sad for long. He had a talent for working with anyone and everyone.

    Zelkan watched the happy memory in silence. Reveling in the nostalgia despite the illusory nature of the vision. When the memory began to fade, after Zelkan and Modrak gave each other a final hug before they left to their new lives and responsibilities, the memory collapsed and disappeared like the last. Zelkan, despite the goodness of the celebration, felt a deeper sadness than he had ever experienced. Zelkan tried as often as he could to forget and ignore his old memories of his mentor, being reminded of him like this was a cruel form of torture. The deep voice echoed its presence again, ¡°This Modrak was quite the man it seems. You are¡­ hurt, despite this being one of your best memories. Remarkable, how easily influenced your kind are.¡±

    ¡°Why do you torment me? What do you gain from this¡­¡± Zelkan¡¯s spirit was drained and his defiance was empty.

    ¡°You are a means to acquire knowledge, be proud of your usefulness.¡±

    The echoing voice dissipated. Zelkan was left again to see the scraps of memory fade into darkness again. The presence behind the voice sifted through Zelkan¡¯s other memories. Barely bringing them fully to view before moving onto another. They were searching for something, something that seemingly wasn¡¯t there. Then the presence lingered on a vision, and allowed the memory to form around Zelkan like the others.

    Zelkan was placed into a pristine marble hallway, already walking as if his feet knew his destination before he did. He walked a ways, a seemingly ordinary memory of some time he was within one of the higher facilities. As he turned a corner, time almost slowed. Zelkan entered onto an open courtyard where plants and decorative geology dotted the mossy ground, servants of both Lords Magi Odion and Maphet roaming the grounds. In the corner of his eye, Zelkan spotted Modrak talking to a figure hidden behind a cluster of moss-covered trees.

    Zelkan¡¯s perspective changed again for the briefest of moments. He was looking from Modrak¡¯s eyes again, but time began to slow and came to a crawl, and as he tried to look at the face before him there was only a black stain where a face should be. A grumbling echo like building thunder could be heard for only a moment before Zelkan¡¯s perspective was returned to his own body and the memory played out like normal.

    Zelkan¡¯s legs continued to carry him forward while time was slowed around him, more of the serene courtyard opening up for him as the slowed time passed. Zelkan¡¯s head turned to stare towards his old mentor, and saw the striking form of his mentor¡¯s counterpart, Ress¡¯kasa. The striking feminine form of Ress¡¯kasa stood in idle chatter with Modrak. Her body was covered in sparkling green scales and she bore a reptilian head, but she still held a feminine figure despite. Her sleek sparkling scales clung tightly to her chiseled features. She held a beauty that embraced her more alien appearance, but nevertheless stood as if a master sculpture hand carved every feature and blemish to perfection. She was the envy of many, her strange appearance only enhanced the mystique.

    Time slowed to a standstill, and Zelkan found himself half staring at Ress¡¯kasa. His attention was entirely pointed at her despite his body¡¯s instinct telling him to keep walking forward as if he still had further to go. Yet he stood still, the two were barely within the edge of Zelkan¡¯s vision as he only gave a passing glance in the direction of where Ress¡¯kasa and Modrak stood. A grim hum echoed out of some deep and faraway place within the dream. Then the vision shattered again, quickly pulling Zelkan from one memory to another.

    Zelkan was forced again to view another strange memory. One where he barely passed by a brief image of Ress¡¯kasa and Modrak, another where Zelkan waved to his old mentor and saw a glimpse of Ress¡¯kasa peeking around a corner to return a curt nod to Zelkan. Other glimpses and short scenes of Ress¡¯kasa and Modrak, so few times Zelkan had seen them together than Zelkan rewatched several memories repeat themselves. Zelkan realized what the entity might be searching for¡­ It was looking for Ress¡¯kasa. The woman who Zelkan almost never even spoke to, only hearing hints and stories by Modrak or others higher ranked than himself.

    An irritated hum echoed again through the dream as Zelkan was plunged once again into the dark. Whatever this creature was, and if it was the one that claimed the name ¡®Modrak¡¯, it was becoming angry without finding what it searched for. Zelkan had been drained of energy and willpower, but mustered himself to speak again, ¡°Whatever you look for¡­ You will not find it in me. I never even truly got close to the apprentice-in-training until her last day¡­ I never got the chance to see my mentor and she work together, or get the chance to beg him to be more careful¡­¡±

    ¡°If you say you never met until her end, then we will have to witness it.¡± The deep voice grumbled and crackled like distant thunder.

    Zelkan almost regretted speaking, as he felt himself being pulled once again into an old memory. His worst memory and one he had silently hoped would never be found. Zelkan was walking the golden-etched halls of a familiar place. The inner halls of the high facilities, where the greatest representatives of the Magi work and study. Miraculous experiments and reality-tearing research was conducted in the laboratories of these sacred halls. Zelkan never truly got the chance to witness any of the greatest works done here, but his mentor lived and breathed innovation and as such was brought to assist Ress¡¯kasa in a holy mission given directly by the Magi.

    Zelkan tried to ignore, repulse, and escape the memory before it fully began. He knew the end, and refused to remember any part of it. Yet even as he silently fought against himself, he was only a powerless witness to what had already transpired. His legs were his captives that dragged him to a doom he knew was unavoidable. He was brought before elegant doors, etched in indecipherable glyph and rune which glowed with a blue arcana.

    Before the doors, Zelkan stopped. The imposing wall was all that separated him from the turning point in his own history. If only Zelkan had been more rushed, raced faster to these terrible doors and burst through them in his great purpose. Yet he had walked. Alestair himself, Magi Apprentice to the Lord Magi Odion, had given him a mission to seek out and assist his old mentor. Zelkan couldn¡¯t have known the urgency, nor the importance of his timing. If he did, maybe things would¡¯ve been different.

    Zelkan approached the doors, which began to open even before he fully stopped. An immense heat could be felt before anything was seen, it flooded out of the smallest crack and engulfed Zelkan like he was on fire. Panic raced through him, unsure what was happening or what to do before he could even see what was really happening. Zelkan had still been young and coddled by this point. Emergencies didn¡¯t happen in the Magi¡¯s service, at least not within any of the houses of research and study. Yet some part of Zelkan must¡¯ve been related to someone incredibly heroic, because despite his panic and the pain from the heat, Zelkan didn¡¯t run.

    The doors opened, revealing a chaotic miasma of changing color and shifting elements. Electricity exploded through clouds of multicolored smoke that spiraled in gusts. Plasma exploded from the concentrated energy, creating incredible energy bursts that sent out waves of progressively hotter air and smoke. Through the spiraling smoke and arcing electricity, two figures could be seen silhouetted by an incredible light. One stood tall, their hands around the source of the light like they meant to grasp it, the other on its knees and unmoving.

    As Zelkan watched, a significantly more powerful burst of energy exploded a wave of power from the source of the light. The smoke and miasma was pushed suddenly away, in its place Zelkan saw Modrak and Ress¡¯kasa. Modrak stood around a strange orb, which seemed to be the source of the chaos, and Ress¡¯kasa knelt unmoving and badly burnt. The smoke and electricity seemed to have subsided, or was held back by the rapid pulses of power from the orb, and in some moronic attempt to be a hero Zelkan raced in. He thought, somehow, he would be able to stop this and save them both from whatever was happening, he always wondered how things would have turned out if he had simply played the coward and stood aside.

    Zelkan raced into the destroyed laboratory, almost being knocked onto his back several times as pulses of invisible energy pushed against him with a force like being hit by a blunt weapon. Somehow, Zelkan managed to reach where Ress¡¯kasa sat, only an arm¡¯s reach from Modrak. Zelkan shouted, but nobody could hear him, not even he could hear or remember what he yelled. Yet Modrak still turned to look at him with a single, terrible, eye. His eye glowed with swirling electrical current, veins bulging out like they would burst from his skin, and his arms were charred from the closeness of the orb. Zelkan only got a few moments to look properly at Ress¡¯kasa, and she would¡¯ve been dead to anyone¡¯s eyes. Her normally beautiful scales were charred to pitch, her face unrecognizable, and she sat atop a blacked mark on the ground that seemed to indicate a powerful electrical strike had hit her.

    Zelkan had reached the two figures, and Modrak was still somehow alive despite the situation. Zelkan had to figure out a way to save his mentor, and stop the chaos, but after getting so far he was stunned by the sight of a death this gruesome. The heat of the orb radiated more powerful every second, even in that moment of confused contemplation Zelkan¡¯s skin was being boiled and burnt by the close proximity to the source of the chaos. Through the pain, he pushed himself to save Modrak, and as he searched the lab for anything that might stop the carnage he saw many pipes and insulated tubes snaking along the ground to the pedestal the orb sat on. Zelkan moved to attack the tubing, hoping it was powering the reactions the orbs created.

    Zelkan found a piece of metal shard wedged into the ground from some previous explosion, and began cutting and slashing at the nearest tubing. He could hear a sputtering coming out of the tube, electrical arcs spitting out sparks and flares. Yet as he began his attempt, Modrak let out a yell so great that it echoed over the chaos around them and felt like it would shatter Zelkan¡¯s eardrums.

    Still cutting away at the tubing, something grabbed Zelkan¡¯s shoulder. Being turned violently, Zelkan was face to face with an enraged and burning Modrak. The man who was once his mentor had electricity coursing out of him, and he was on fire with white hot flames. Wherever Modrak touched was singed and burnt to a crisp. Zelkan¡¯s shoulder was touched when he was turned around, and when he pulled back from the pain Modrak only moved quicker to grab him again. Seizing his throat and grabbing at his face, Modrak clawed at his apprentice and adoptive son. The only man Zelkan had ever been able to even pretend was his father, grabbed and attacked his face and neck in a violent attempt to stop him. So overcome with fear, emotion, and pain Zelkan flailed back at his mentor. Before Modrak could kill him, for that was surely his intent, Zelkan pushed the crazed man away. Seeing that almost nothing had changed after Zelkan¡¯s attempts to attack the tubing powering the chaos, Zelkan used the last of his strength and adrenaline to do the only remaining thing he could think of; he threw himself at the orb which sat atop a delicate pedestal.

    Zelkan¡¯s memory became white and hazy after this moment. He could feel and sense an incredible heat and power that coursed through him, but it exploded out in a violent way. His veins felt like they burst and his pores spat fire, but he dislodged the orb and collapsed onto the pedestal. The chaos ended almost instantly as whatever remained was absorbed by the safety mechanisms designed into the laboratory, which until this point had been struggling to contain the chaos to just this reinforced room. Zelkan remembered nothing else beyond this point in the memory, and its replay stopped here. If it were to continue, Zelkan would next awaken submerged in a gooey liquid within one of the medical facilities like the one his Lady Mevare studies within.

    As the memory came to a stop, and Zelkan felt the blackness absorb him once again, he waited for the distant voice to speak ridicule once again. It never came. Zelkan faded into black, whatever the voice searched for it had either found or given up. Leaving Zelkan with the raw emotion and terror of reliving that nightmare. As the dark consumed him, a new sensation approached. His eyes began to open, a dim light tried to penetrate through his partially closed eyelids, and a soft soothing voice echoed into his mind. ¡°Zel¡­ Zelkan¡­ Zelkan..?¡± A gentle hand placed on his chest and shoulder, barely noticeable because of the thick robes he still wore. As proper consciousness began to return to him, Zelkan forced his eyes open and saw his Lady Mevare leaning over him in a dark metal cavern.

 Chapter 13: Rest in Warmths Glow

    Mevi¡¯s other two companions, Zelkan and Ouapi, awoke soon after Saerin. In turns of silent confusion, Saerin and Ouapi awoke confused and wondering what had happened. Mevi was silently grateful for their bewilderment, hoping they wouldn¡¯t ever recall the horrid experiences they certainly experienced. Yet Zelkan was a different kind of quiet, a somber brooding as if in deep and dreadful thought. Mevi could only assume he had some terrible notion of what had happened, or some other thing was recalled to him that Mevi couldn¡¯t guess. Yet with her companions gathered and awoken, they had to begin their trek to return to the surface.

    Saerin was curious on the way back into the dark, once again holding Mevi¡¯s hand so as to not get lost. Mevi was reluctant to share the gruesome details, but told them briefly what had happened. It gave her the chance to introduce Hellion along with her story, who had become content to follow and listen to Mevi¡¯s version of the events. Everyone seemed to quietly accept Hellion into their group, and Mevi left out the portion regarding him being the leader of the gang that attacked the Sentinel. Hellion stayed in a somber quiet, similar to Zelkan, and his described personality was yet to show itself on the walk. The mood of their travel seemed to have only gotten worse after their escape. When Mevi¡¯s story was done they traveled again in dark silence, their only direction the far distant twinkling lights of the populated Undercity terraces.

    While the group followed Mevi, who had begun properly leading her retinue to guide them as far from the Castle as possible, the Sentinel seemed to keep a diligent gaze across the surroundings. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but notice the Sentinel¡¯s well-hidden limp. The others seemed not to notice, either because of the dark or their own preoccupied thoughts, but Mevi kept their pace manageable for her noble protector¡¯s sake.

    Mevi assumed something terrible would ambush them or some additional catastrophe would occur just to add to their bad luck, but the journey from the Castle was quiet and uneventful. By the time they stopped, only a couple hours walk, they had once again reached the edges of the ruined Undercity outskirts. The desolate and abandoned structures were a strangely welcome sight compared to the tall alien towers.

    Hellion quickly proved useful, before anyone even began scanning the area for shelter Hellion approached Mevi. The man, having been quiet up until now, drew everyone¡¯s attention, ¡°Little lady, if you don¡¯t mind me sayin, I know a place nearby my crew used to hide in. Prolly still there, if ya want to check it out.¡±

    ¡°Of course, anything is better than staying out in the open.¡± Mevi replied quickly, trying to maintain her assumed confidence.

    ¡°Course, I¡¯ll take us there quick!¡± Hellion smirked.

    Hellion took the lead, and they traveled for another thirty minutes deeper into the ruins. After a time of navigating through old crumbling back alleys and decrepit streets, Hellion found them a small square building missing most of its walls and without a ceiling. If this was the place he hid in, it had fallen into complete disrepair. Yet Hellion approached confidently, moved some plastcrete aside from a pile of rubble, and revealed a trap door. Crawling inside quietly, Hellion descended on a short ladder that was revealed beneath the door. After a few moments he called up, ¡°We¡¯re good! Nobody¡¯s home!¡± and then the rest of the retinue followed after. The door was just big enough to fit the Sentinel¡¯s bulk, and likely would¡¯ve been too cramped if the Sentinel still had their full suit of armor.

    Inside was a meager living space without any furniture. Cool metal floor, mostly clear of rubble and trash, with indents in the walls like large equipment was once embedded there and left a vacant space behind. Everyone filed into the small space, which was surprisingly able to fit everyone without too much cramping. The area was large enough, but with a short ceiling, that everyone could find a space to lay down without touching one another, though they would not be far from accidentally rolling into each other¡¯s space.

    Mevi and her companions each found places to sit, the Sentinel forced to sit because of his incredible height and the low ceiling. When everyone collapsed into their respective spots, Hellion spoke again, ¡°So! Now that we¡¯re out of the open, I¡¯d like to meet y¡¯all proper.¡±

    ¡°I heartily agree!¡± Searin joined in.

    ¡°Well, darlin, you go ahead first!¡± Hellion grinned.

    ¡°My name is Saerin, and despite not being able to see you, you seem a wonderful person! I thank you on behalf of the others for helping our Lady, Mevare.¡±

    Mevi couldn¡¯t help but giggle as Saerin talked directly at the wall, but even Hellion and Ouapi seemed to struggle to see in the dark basement. When the others heard her quiet amusement, Searin and Hellion smiled wider, their goals both seeming to align. Ouapi followed Searin¡¯s lead, ¡°I am Stewardess, Ouapi. O-e-pi.¡± She emphasized, ¡°A pleasure.¡± Ouapi said, almost regally. Mevi hadn¡¯t known what rank Ouapi was, she hadn¡¯t mentioned it before, but if Mevi recalled a Steward was a quite high rank.

    Everyone seemed to wait for Zelkan expectantly, but in the dark with his mask¡¯s lumens deactivated, Zelkan didn¡¯t seem to notice or care. The quiet crept back into their mood, somber silence infecting the almost jovial air Hellion and Saerin created. Before it could properly take hold, Hellion spoke again, ¡°Well I¡¯ll introduce myself proper now. Our little lady already told you ¡®bout me, but I am Hellion. Leader of rogues. Slayer of monsters! And recently, escapee of a pretty bad spot.¡± Hellion spoke confidently.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡°What kind of monsters could someone like you ¡®slay¡¯?¡± Saerin retorted.

    ¡°Oh, my pride!¡± Hellion grasped at his heart, ¡°¡®Someone like you¡¯, oh you wound me!¡± The man grinned wide, resting his arms on his knees as he pulled them close, ¡°The kind you¡¯d do well never to see.¡± A tint of bad memory escaped past his fake confidence and overdone amusement.

    ¡°Well, if you¡¯re such a wonderful man, why don¡¯t you tell us of one of your many adventures?¡± Saerin requested, eager to taunt the man with little jabs.

    ¡°Well maybe I will.¡±

    The time passed by with some small laughter, grins of amusement, and boastful stories that Hellion almost certainly made up on the spot. The attempt to distract from the dreadful situation they had survived was appreciated, but soon everyone was becoming tired as exhaustion quickly caught up to them as they rested in the dark. With weak laughter and a lowered tension, Saerin admitted to feeling tired which allowed the rest in the group to follow with their own admissions. Feeling strangely safe in the underground hideaway, the group one by one layed on the bare floor and pursued real sleep after the exhaustion the last many hours caused.

    Mevi seemed to be one of the last to remain awake, her Sentinel showing no sign of exhaustion and instead watching the trap door closely. Zelkan had moved so little the entire time since they¡¯d entered the basement, Mevi wondered if he had fallen asleep almost immediately. The others fell asleep, or seemed to be asleep, quite quickly. Leaving Mevi alone with her thoughts and the occasional creaking of metal when the Sentinel adjusted their head to listen to the above ground. Thoughts and memories of the last few hours continued to haunt her, and she didn¡¯t realize until now how cold she was. Zelkan had packed them traveling gear and had bought them heavy clothes from the Undercity, but Modrak and his minions had returned her companions with so little they only had what they wore during their trek to sleep in.

    Mevi¡¯s mind was a breeding ground for thoughts of a home that didn¡¯t exist and a want for a warm embrace. But she had made a promise to be stronger than she was, so she could focus on becoming a person that could save her friends from any danger if it were to ever appear again. Yet in the dark, in the cold embrace of a metal hovel carved in the ground, a spark of orange popped in front of her. Appearing for an instant then disappearing as soon as she noticed it, the amount of light so little it was almost unnoticeable. She was startled, and saw the Sentinel¡¯s head turn quickly as well. Mevi was stunned by its appearance, but she recognized that orange glow. It might¡¯ve been some fluke spark, a glint of gold fleck that fell off the Sentinel, but it could also have been Mevi¡¯s slumbering power manifest.

    Focusing hard, Mevi tried to remember what she had been thinking about only moments before. Power and strength? Nothing seemed to happen. Thoughts of the dreadful Castle and Modrak? No, it only fueled a deep anger but produced nothing physical¡­ Her friends, Kalesi, the warmth she felt remembering their kindness. To her astonishment, a tiny light of yellow-orange light blipped again into existence. The tiny spark glowed so weakly, it barely was noticeable, but when Mevi moved her hands to cup the small thing it felt warm and kind. A smile spread to Mevi at the warmth, it felt like a pleasant memory¡¯s nostalgia made manifest, and it warmed her to the core. She clung to the feeling, and as she held it close the tiny light grew slightly and spread it¡¯s warmth around her. The tiny spark¡¯s influence spread other tiny sparks around the room, like a swarm of soothing fireflies floating around the room, their warmth slowly conquering the small room. Zelkan¡¯s head lifted to behold the array of flitting lights. Mevi could see her other companions turn in their sleep, small smiles spreading to their sleeping faces as pleasant dreams of warmth and kindness came to them.

    Zelkan looked over to Mevi, and seemed to think before he tried to speak. Mevi looked encouragingly at her chief attendant, not wanting to rush him to speak. Zelkan looked again at the array of lights around them, ¡°My lady¡­ I have been a poor attendant, and a worse advisor.¡± Zelkan whispered.

    ¡°What?¡± Mevi was genuinely confused, ¡°Zelkan, you have been amazing to me. Patient, kind, and a vital help to me. Even when I wasn¡¯t kind to you¡­¡± Mevi struggled to find her words, so shaken by Zelkan¡¯s admission.

    ¡°Thank you, but you don¡¯t understand¡­ An attendant, a Magi¡¯s Apprentice¡¯s attendant, should be more than just kind. I should have prepared more for our expedition, used more influence to gather a proper escort. I should have foreseen dangers, for the Magi¡¯s sake we were going to the Undercity. How could I have assumed we would stand a chance against anything with a single sentinel and sidearms as our only defense?¡±

    Mevi got up and crawled to sit next to Zelkan, putting a hand on his shoulder as he turned away, ¡°You couldn¡¯t have known how powerful and¡­ hostile¡­ Modrak had become. You led us here flawlessly, and will continue to lead us just as well.¡±

    ¡°I should have known, I should have done better regardless. Forgive my insolence, my lady, but your knowledge of the Barge is a fraction of even the lowest acolyte. Things are dangerous here¡­ I became overconfident, I thought that your rank alone would provide power for us, but I couldn¡¯t even requisition Legionnaires. Our trip was poorly planned from the start, and as the one who was its architect I am at fault.¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t know what to say, her brow furrowed in thought.

    ¡°My lady, I ask that when we return, before your trip to the planet, you requisition a proper advisor from Lord Alestair. I do not think I am fit-¡±

    Mevi cut Zelkan off by jostling his arm in frustration, such a childish act catching his speech off-guard. Zelkan turned to look in confusion. Mevi¡¯s face was a crumpled mixture of frustration, sadness, and fear. Tears were gathering at the mere thought of losing one of her few friends. The idea of one of her close companions leaving her shook her to her core, her attachment to her friends had only deepend in response to the events regarding Modrak. As Mevi struggled to find words, the orange flecks of light saddened to a cold blue. All Mevi could manage, without bursting into tears and sobs, was a whimper ¡°No¡­!¡±

    The outline of Zelkan¡¯s face was almost visible from the soft blue light while his mask was deactivated, his face was full of bewilderment and shock, but he put a single arm around Mevi¡¯s shoulders and relented, ¡°I apologize, my lady¡­ I will not bring this up again.¡± Facing utter defeat at his mistress¡¯s tears, resisting her demands was impossible.

    The two of them sat there, Zelkan wrapping an arm around Mevi¡¯s quaking body as she forced breath into her lungs in sputters. The lights dwindled in number slightly, but soon returned to a weak orange glow. The Sentinel watched, and as Mevi looked up after calming down a bit, she saw the Sentinel¡¯s gaze seemingly glaring daggers into Zelkan. Mevi and Zelkan exchanged no other words after that, and both moved to find a spot to fall asleep.

 Chapter 14: Return to Battle

    Mevi awoke in a strange place, though not an unwelcome one. She found herself resting her head on the leg of her mighty Sentinel. The golden-shining armor remarkably smooth, and almost comforting to touch. The others were not to be seen, save for her Sentinel that stared up towards the trap door. Her companions must¡¯ve ascended the ladder, and were possibly readying for their continued journey.

    Removing herself from the embrace of the golden metal, Mevi lifted into a stretch before smiling at her Sentinel. The creature, as was usual, didn¡¯t seem to have any obvious reactions. Its full helm blocking any sign that it was anything more than a clever automaton, but Mevi continued to choose to believe it was more than that. After giving her protector a smile and a thankful nod, she ascended the ladder with the Sentinel following soon after.

    Mevi¡¯s companions, like she had assumed, were gathered in the small ramshackle remains of the hutt which concealed the trap door. Hellion and Saerin were quietly chatting about different things trying to prove who was more impressive, killing hordes of beasts versus unlocking medical mysteries it seemed. When Mevi emerged from the hideaway, the stress and tension of yesterday¡¯s events seemed to have fully evaporated for the most part. Hellion quickly approached demanding Mevi¡¯s intervention, ¡°Little lady! Tell Saer that me single-handedly wrestling a Grey-scaled Melvit is more impressive than her, ¡®science¡¯!¡±

    Saerin quickly retorted, ¡°Any meathead could wrestle a Melvit, you didn¡¯t even know what the word ¡®pathogen¡¯ was a few minutes ago!¡±

    ¡°S¡¯cuse, its a ¡®Grey-scaled Melvit¡¯, they¡¯re bigger and tougher than any Melvit you seen!¡±

    Mevi tried to back out of the conversation, the two of them resuming their spirited debate without any of her input. Ouapi watched with curiosity, but Zelkan was nowhere to be seen. Mevi tried to search the perimeter for her attendant, but there was no obvious trace. Ouapi took notice of Mevi¡¯s search, assuming correct what she was looking for, ¡°Your chief attendant went ahead to ensure there were no obstacles between us and our return trip. He left some time ago, promising to return around this time in fact.¡±

    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± Mevi replied, worry returning after recalling last night¡¯s conversation.

    Whatever worries Mevi had were soon proven needless, as Zelkan returned in short order to find Saerin and Hellion already moving onto a new subject to be loud about. Entering from the dark shadows of the ruins around them, Zelkan stepped loudly to make his presence known. Though the Sentinel had been looking in his direction for a few minutes now already. With an exasperated sigh, Zelkan quickly reigned in the two, ¡°If the both of you were any louder, someone would be able to hear you all the way back to the Lord Magi¡¯s palace.¡±

    Hellion smiled mischievously, ¡°Welcome back kin!¡±

    Zelkan shot Hellion a glare, but Hellion returned it with a devious look. Mevi could tell something had happened or had been spoken between them, but couldn¡¯t guess what. Zelkan decided to ignore the man despite his small taunt. Looking to Mevi and giving her a bow, Zelkan reported, ¡°My lady. I am glad you seemed to sleep well. I spent the last few hours traveling ahead to ensure our path would be the most direct and safe route. I am prepared to guide you whenever you are ready.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Zelkan, I appreciate your expertise.¡± Mevi smiled, hoping her words came off earnestly.

    Hellion suddenly interjected, ¡°Little lady, if you need me I could lead just as well. I aint coddled from surface luxuries. And when we get to the city, I can introduce some good folk to help us along too.¡±

    Hesitantly Mevi replied, ¡°Thank you Hellion. When we get closer we might need your knowledge.¡±

    ¡°Unlikely¡­¡± Zelkan huffed.

    Mevi could almost feel the tension of the two¡¯s apparent rivalry like a foggy heat. At some point something happened between them, and as the retinue began their travel Hellion often tried to show his own expertise in whatever ways possible. Pointing out old history, showing remarkable knowledge of material and mineral formations, explaining sounds by what creature they belonged to, and a string of other information that occupied their walk. Mevi was quietly fascinated by the amount of detailed information Hellion possessed, and the ability to spin every piece into some story relating to how and when he learned it. While Zelkan was obviously annoyed, he didn¡¯t say much beyond showing his keen ability to navigate and avoid potential blockages and traverse over the rough terrain. The two tried to outdo each other, one used words while the other used quiet action. Mevi didn¡¯t understand why they seemed to fight for superiority, but it passed the time quickly as they traveled.

    It only took a few hours to slowly reach the first signs of living civilization again, and before long the retinue were positioning themselves protectively around Mevi as they walked through progressively denser crowds. As they traveled up the terraced streets and walkways through the Undercity, they brought much more attention to themselves this time around than they had before. Their local furs and clothes were gone, replaced by partially ragged white robes that stood out. Surprisingly people seemed to ignore the Sentinel, most of its armor having been removed and replaced by the mesh-like bodysuit with only singular large plates here and there that still gleamed with golden sheen. It almost fit in, looking like the armored and grizzled warriors and travelers that frequented the Undercity. Hellion, to no one¡¯s surprise, seemed in his element, leading the retinue around and past the Undercity with more expertise than Zelkan, which Zelkan begrudgingly conceded.

    It didn¡¯t take as long to ascend the terraced cityscape than it had taken them to descend it initially, even with eyes drawn to their white robes Hellion snuck or talked their way through the city flawlessly. With help from Zelkan, Hellion found the mouth of the opening that would bring them towards the Legion defense. When Hellion realized where they were headed he whistled, saying, ¡°Its¡¯a shame.¡± Without further explanation.

    ¡°What are you babbling about now?¡± Demanded Zelkan.

    ¡°This place is Mur scavenger territory. If your little Legion is ¡®ere, they prolly get raided a lot. Mur-folk aren¡¯t nice like us normal types. Crazy too.¡±

    ¡°The Captain did mention raids and attacks¡­¡± Mevi said.

    ¡°That¡¯ll be the Mur, crazy lot they are. Not ¡®fraid of death neither.¡±

    ¡°Regardless, we must press on. We must return to carry out our Lady¡¯s task to perfection.¡± Zelkan said confidently, an attempt to rouse spirits with his dedication.

    Hellion chuckled, ¡°Haha, sure, ¡®to perfection¡¯.¡±

    Zelkan ignored the jab, and the retinue continued forward. Mevi led the way into the dark metal mouth, spiked rocky formations producing an ominous appearance as they approached. Everyone was on their highest guard, unsure what to expect after recalling the strange creatures they barely managed to avoid when they first set out, and now anticipating some crazed scavenger to jump out and ambush them at any moment on top of that.

    The metal cavern was remarkably quiet. Where moisture would drip and echo the sounds of stillness, now there seemed to be less than nothing. Almost like a purposeful quiet had taken hold over the darkness. The travel through the cavern stretched extremely long, the quiet tension elongating every moment to a lifetime. To everyone¡¯s surprise, and relief, the strange creatures that had tried to ambush them from the ceiling were either gone or remarkably passive.

    As the group turned around the massive bend in the stretching cavern, an incredible explosive blast echoed in such power that it shook the ground. Around the bend were tall pillars holding the metal roof above, and each cast long shadows when blasts of light illuminated them and the surroundings with flashes like lightning strikes. Before them, in the open span, was the Legion barracks besieged by a horde of screaming scavengers.

    What were clearly humanoids, scavengers, and denizens of the Undercity swarmed outside the Legion barracks. The walls held, and barrages of multicolored fire illuminated the area coming from the ramparts. The scavenger attack encircled the defenders, firing their own crude weaponry in an attempt to hit the well-hidden defenders along the wall. Their jeers and yells echoed as far out as where Mevi and her companions stood as a thunderous choir. The Sentinel was already readying for a potential fight, but without its weapons the Sentinel assumed an almost feral stance as if ready to rip and tear enemies with its bare hands.

    Mevi¡¯s heart went out to the defenders, but at the same time she couldn¡¯t see a way to get safely into their defenses without letting a large number of scavengers in with them. Then she remembered the item the Legion captain had given her. Feeling around her hidden pockets, she found the small device, a metallic cylinder that fit snugly in her hand. She hadn¡¯t really thought what it was for, but turned to Zelkan and showed him the object, ¡°The captain gave me this before we left. He said to use it to call for him, do you know what it is?¡±

    Zelkan took the item, looking it over for only a moment, ¡°Ah yes, this is a Legion flare. A crude instrument to shed light as a projectile travels through the air, making an easy method to identify where someone was.¡±

    ¡°The captain said it would call him to us, should we use it? And how would we even activate it?¡±

    ¡°Its use is simple enough, the heat from your skin would be enough to activate it if you squeeze it tightly or give it a hard shake. If we should use it however, is up to you my lady. I don¡¯t know the captain¡¯s plan, but he must have something in mind.¡±

    Mevi stared at the flare when Zelkan returned it to her, the small device apparently capable of lighting up the area and signal the captain where she was. Yet then she thought, should she? The Legion defenses were besieged, even if she activated the flare how would the Legion retrieve them? The threat of a breach seemed too dangerous to provoke, to her perspective the horde of scavengers just needed a moment of weakness to overwhelm the wounded defenders with sheer numbers.

    As Mevi debated her course, she saw a behemoth of a humanoid charge from the shade of a nearby cavern pillar. The creature was easily as large as the Sentinel, and the Sentinel was more than twice Mevi¡¯s height. The thing charged forward, being shot at by the surprised defenders, but its thick hide and large body shrugged of the attempts to stop it. The creature rammed into the front gate, an array of blasts and small explosions going off as automated traps attempted to stop it further. Charred and bleeding, the large figure began wailing at the gates. The creature was so close to the gate, only a few positions were close enough to attempt to fire their weapons at it. When one legionnaire ran to intercept it, positioning their weapon square at the creature, the behemoth leapt up high enough to grasp the edge of the wall. With one hand holding its weight to the wall, the other arm reached up and quickly grabbed the rifle of the legionnaire. Pulling the brave defender from the wall and into the dugout trench around the wall. Mevi wanted to yell, the soldier hitting the ground hard and left to defend himself against the monstrous humanoid.

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    Mevi acted before she processed what the smart action would be. Holding the Legion flare tightly, she pointed it forward towards the behemoth humanoid. Hoping that whatever light it produced would be enough to distract the behemoth before it descended upon the fallen legionnaire. Mevi and her retinue were easily half a kilometer away, but the flare pointed towards the behemoth suddenly shot out with only a tight squeeze. A bright white glow flew out at an incredible speed parallel to the metal ground. Brightening the cavern, illuminating the entire area for the brief moments it flew, the light shot forward and suddenly crashed into the body of the behemoth with remarkable accuracy. The incredible light buried itself into the flesh of the behemoth humanoid, and it burst into flames as the overpowering light tried to illuminate through its flesh where it was embedded. The creature flailed and writhed as the sudden attack set it alight both inside and out.

    Mevi was startled by both the accuracy of her accidental attack, and the incredible heat that felt like it almost burnt her hand where she had held the flare. A call was yelled out from the scavenger¡¯s trenches, and a small group of their attackers turned to rush towards where Mevi and her retinue were. The Sentinel was already prepared to defend against them, the creatures having such a decent distance to charge. Yet neither would engage their prospective target.

    Suddenly the gates of the Legion barracks burst open. A booming yell echoed from the defenders, led by the tall captain Hez. His mighty armor burning bright with reflected fire from the still burning corpse of the behemoth. His soldiers raising weapons of all kinds high, and letting out a mighty shout, captain Hez charged forward with an escort following him into the fray.

    Twenty Legionnaires followed their captain, sallying forth to fend off and destroy the attacking scavengers. Their true potential as warriors was shown as they engaged foolish scavenger riffraff in melee combat. As the Legionnaires charged out to carve a path, and also to give a distraction, Mevi was surprised by her companion¡¯s initiative. Of all her companions, it was Hellion who grabbed her arm when the Legionnaires sallied forth, ¡°We need to use this chance! Everyone run if you still want to reach that gate!¡± Hellion called as he ushered everyone forward.

    Mevi¡¯s retinue of companions raced forward to meet the Legionnaires who bravely struck out to push any scavengers they could away from the gate. Captain Hez himself charged the farthest forward, making about half the distance before he was waylaid by a group of tougher than normal scavengers. Mevi and her companions raced to meet him and his escort, closing the distance as quickly as their legs could carry them. Mevi spotted Hellion¡¯s glare, as he pulled her forward, and realized he was watching the scavengers with an amount of hate she hadn¡¯t noticed from before.

    As Mevi ran to meet the brave escorts, a small group of crazed scavengers appeared almost out of nowhere. Yet the skilled perception and skills of Mevi¡¯s Sentinel had already moved to engage and waylay them. The massive protector quickly dispatched the first scavenger, and moved to brawl with five others. The Sentinel¡¯s hands were as much a deadly weapon as the rifle or halberd it once carried. Yet Mevi still worried with how unarmed her protector, and the rest of her retinue, were. Then she remembered something. Reaching into the lining of the white robe, and rifling through a hidden pocket, she produced the small sidearm that Zelkan had insisted she hold onto. Woefully unskilled in its usage, Mevi turned to the closest of her companions, and almost yelled to be heard over the din of loud combat, ¡°Hellion! Can you use this?¡±

    Turning, while still in mid run, Hellion grinned, ¡°¡®Course little lady!¡±

    Without hesitation Hellion snatched the small weapon, and pointed it behind where their group had already run. Aiming towards the Sentinel, and still skillfully sprinting forward without tripping, Mevi couldn¡¯t help but notice this was the second time Hellion had pointed a weapon at her protector. A burst of energetic fire exploded out of the small gun, the small darts of energy whizzing past and around Mevi¡¯s sprinting companions. The first collided with a brutish scavenger clinging to the Sentinel¡¯s waist, a second pierced the leg of one still running towards the fight, and a final dart impacted and tore apart the elbow of a scavenger raising a club to swing at the Sentinel. Two other darts flew past and disappeared, missing their targets. The confusion the shots caused in the attacking scavengers was enough for the Sentinel to rip through their small group, its movements noticeably slower and more sluggish than Mevi remembered in their encounter with the automatons. The Sentinel, despite whatever injuries it suffered, was easily able to catch up to the group just before they neared captain Hez.

    As the distance was fully closed, Mevi and her companions ran up to the fearsome captain Hez mid-combat with a pair of large scavengers. The Legionnaire captain wielded a yellow-glowing sword that vibrates the air around it, creating many afterimages, in one hand. In the other captain Hez used a heavy-looking blaster that channeled red plasma through the semi-exposed tubing. With a quick strike, the vibrating blade cleanly cleaved a scavenger in half, and in the same movement he strode forward through the haze of red mist and fired the powerful plasma gun to scorch the flesh of the scavenger behind his first victim. Turning to face Mevi, the captain looked alert and alive, the dread and quiet countenance was gone and Hez bellowed, ¡°My lady! We fight for you! Follow me through the fray!¡±

    A quick nod was all Mevi could manage as she breathed heavily from the fast running and excitement that exploded around her. Following the captain, who cleaved and barreled over scavengers that snuck through his escorts, the group pressed forward back to the Legionnaire defenses. As the group passed the escorting Legionnaires, they fell in line with their captain once they dispatched their foes. Like a collapsing mountain¡¯s rage, the wedge formation of the Legionnaires collapsed to regroup with the tip of their spear. Destroying their enemies with such efficiency and fury that the scavengers were already fleeing from their initial reactionary attack on the open gate. A bloody swath was cut back towards the Legionnaire gate, which all the while stood wide open, taunting the attacking scavengers who still couldn¡¯t pierce the Legion defenses despite the door being opened for them.

    When the last of the Legionnaires retreated back through the gate, the gate shut almost instantly. Mevi looked briefly around the courtyard and saw the soldier who had been pulled from the wall. The young man was safe, and was being tended to by another blood-splattered and exhausted looking Legionnaire. Mevi let out a sigh of relief, she hadn¡¯t anticipated the flare device launching out a projectile like it did and especially didn¡¯t think it would so badly wound the large attacker, but she was glad she had accidentally saved the Legionnaire from a potentially violent fate.

    As Mevi¡¯s retinue was finally able to rest, they each took moments to catch their breath. Everyone except Hellion at least. Hellion, wielding the small sidearm Mevi had given him, climbed up the walls and hid behind the lip. Staring over the side as if assessing the situation, he occasionally braved standing up partially to shoot back at the still attacking remnants of the scavenger horde. Hellion almost seemed¡­ happy. A sort of satisfied confidence in himself, a confidence that this time seemed entirely honest and real. Captain Hez let loose his own heavy breaths, turning to bow to Mevi, ¡°My lady, Apprentice. I am glad to see you returned so soon!¡± Looking up towards Hellion, as he naturally began coordinating with the other Legionnaires, Hez added, ¡°And I see you brought a new addition to your retinue back with you. They¡¯re a skilled fighter as well.¡±

    Mevi caught her breath and tried to smile, ¡°Yes! I am glad to have returned so soon. Our return trip was much expedited thanks to him.¡±

    An explosion outside suddenly shook the ground. Captain Hez moved to protect and stabilize Mevi, but the Sentinel was ever ready to assist and much more quick to respond. Captain Hez looked towards the wall, a cloud of dust and metal flakes scattering over the wall and gently floating down like snow. ¡°I must return to the fight, my lady!¡± Hez said, almost excited, ¡°Your Sentinel may avail itself of our weapons, I see its equipment has been misplaced. I would appreciate whatever help you could give in our defense!¡±

    Zelkan moved to support Mevi, and cover her from the drifting metal flakes as best he could, ¡°Go. We will attend to our lady.¡± Zelkan said, nodding to the Sentinel.

    The Sentinel seemed to think about whether it wanted to depart from Mevi, but another loud crash of exploding static from some electric weapon drew its attention to the wall. The mighty protector, Mevi¡¯s Sentinel, flew into action to assist the defense. Zelkan tried to usher Mevi into one of the nearby fortified buildings, but she refused. Instead, Mevi approached the sole Legionnaire that was attending to the wounded, ¡°Sir, I wish to assist you. Would you tell me what you need?¡±

    Surprised, but not hesitating, the Legionnaire medic replied, ¡°My lady! I could not ask you to help with such menial work!¡±

    ¡°I agree, my lady, we should return to the surface if anything.¡± Zelkan encouraged.

    ¡°We cannot leave the Legion to fight alone, Zelkan. I want to help.¡± Mevi replied, putting sternness in her words.

    ¡°My lady, I really must insist, this area is dangerous-¡±

    ¡°Zel, lets not be known as people who contradict a Magi¡¯s Apprentice.¡± Saerin suddenly interrupted, ¡°Besides, this is easy work compared to my lab experiments. I will show you how to help my Lady!¡± Saerin finished confidently.

    Despite Zelkan¡¯s complaints, and the Legionnaire medic¡¯s trepidation, Saerin took up the effort to treat the wounded with Mevi. Searin displayed her real skill as a medical technician, flawlessly using the basic materials available to treat wounds and mend spirits. Mevi assisted Saerin throughout, giving comforting words and promises of recovery to the wounded soldiers when she wasn¡¯t holding Saerin¡¯s tools. The battle didn¡¯t last much longer. The fury and zeal of the Legionnaires, supplemented by the unparalleled skill of the Sentinel, decimated the scavenger horde. Their initial charge out of the wall had already shaken the scavengers, who saw they couldn¡¯t even win the fight when the Legion abandoned their defensive strategies. A swift victory came, announced by a mighty victory cry given out by the Legionnaire defenders when the scavengers routed and ran away from their siege.

    Mevi and Saerin had spent the time helping the singular Legionnaire medic treat the wounded, mostly flesh wounds or the occasional broken bone. With the three of them working together, the wounded returned to the fight so quickly, bolstered in spirit and morale by their treatments, that by the last few minutes all their patients were patched and reentered into the fight. The Legion medic himself even departed to participate in the counterattack in the scavenger¡¯s final push.

    Yells and bellows of victory roared through the open cavern, echoing far and long. The Legionnaires celebrated their ¡°saviors¡±, as captain Hez called Mevi and her retinue. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure how to receive all the attention, but soon found herself being on the receiving end of proclamations of devotion, zealous declarations of loyalty, and a swarm of bright eyed adoration. Mevi didn¡¯t know how to react, she didn¡¯t feel like she did very much at all, but she smiled and personally accepted every soldier that wanted to thank her regardless. The Legion complex erupted into a prolonged celebration, taking out their finest stocks of synth-rations and giving free access to their singular food synthesizer to create drinks galore.

    Despite his initial insistence that they should leave, Zelkan seemed happy. The shadow following him was pushed away for a time, and he carried himself with a noble stride again while he stood tall and proud next to his liege. Yet they couldn¡¯t stay long with the Legion, Ouapi pointing out after about fifteen minutes after the victory, that they should return to prepare and rest for their departure for the planet. Mevi had almost forgotten her original task that this journey was a prerequisite for. While Mevi wanted to leave without disturbing the celebration, her departure was impossible to hide. Before they could escape back to the facility, captain Hez gathered all his Legionnaires that could stand and even some that were carried or propped up. Scarred, battered, but devout and proud of their service, they waited and watched for Mevi to do or say something. Mevi had unexpectedly found herself amidst some kind of ceremony, or that she was expected to give a speech before she left. Her companions stood by her, but offered no hint at what she should do or say, so she spoke honestly, ¡°I will be truthful. You all do not have an easy life here, and I am certain I don¡¯t even know half of what you go through. But the kindness and protection you have offered has made me realize something. It is my duty to use whatever power is granted to me to support those that need me, to give aid where otherwise there is no chance for any. I may only be a recent Apprentice to our Lords Magi, but I promise that you deserve better and I will secure whatever methods I can to ensure you receive the help you need. Just as you offered your aid to me, I will offer tenfold back to you.¡± Mevi stopped, not sure how to continue, but recalled the etiquette ingrained into her during her years of failure to meet standards on her homeworld, and Mevi bowed with as much sincerity and elegance as her rugged raiments and exhausted body could muster.

    Zelkan seemed to almost be used to Mevi¡¯s tendencies by now, letting out a sigh as Mevi bowed. Yet those on the receiving end, the Legionnaires and captain Hez, absorbed the scene with unparalleled pride, devotion, and slowly bubbling emotion. The weaker in the Legion quietly covered their faces, while the others stood taller and more proud than they had in months. Captain Hez initiated a salute, abruptly placing his right hand on the crest of his armor representing the word ¡°Maphet¡± and his left hand placed behind his back in stiff military elegance. Captain Hez¡¯s Legion followed the gesture in moments, the stomping of boots and banging of fist on metal echoing loud and reverberating for several moments. When Mevi looked up, to see the brave souls that had helped her more than she could have asked, she couldn¡¯t help but feel a strange sense of patriotism and pride. Captain Hez suddenly shouted out, ¡°Glory to the Magi! In the name of our Lords!¡± which the rest of the Legion echoed.

    After the Legion¡¯s response to Mevi¡¯s honest words, Mevi and her retinue returned through the sealed metal portal to ascend back to the surface. She didn¡¯t know if she could actually do anything to help them, but she swore to herself that she would return and use whatever power or influence she had to try.

 Chapter 15: An Oath Made

    Mevi passed through the fortified seal first, her companions close behind her. As the metal door shut the last glimpse of captain Hez and his Legion disappeared. The sealing process went by, and the metal wall opened like a sudden portal as the door seamlessly slid from the wall and opened to the Magi facility on the other side.

    Returned at last to what Zelkan would call ¡®civilized territory¡¯, Mevi was surprised to see something waiting for them on the other side. In the barren marble and old-metal clad hallway, was a mechanical minion, one similar to the mechanical servant of Odion from the spire those few days ago. The frame was small, with 3 legs, and a clear dark screen in place of a face. The automaton had gears, tubing, wires, and mechanical wizardry exposed with only a few pieces of protective chassis.

    The screen on the automaton¡¯s face suddenly lit up, glowing a warm green with wisps of white, ¡°Detection: Mevare Bensari.¡± Said the automaton in a crackling robotic-like voice. Buzzing and whirring sounds like its thinking process took a great deal of effort followed, ¡°Message /// delivering¡­.¡± After a few more sounds of its processing thoughts a voice that boomed like crackling rock echoing with an imperius might. A voice entirely unlike the automaton''s commanded such presence all of Mevi¡¯s retinue fell to a knee and began to sweat as they stared down at the ground avoiding looking towards the tri-pedal device. ¡°Apprentice, you have accomplished your task. By my will, I hereby order the adherence of your next. Retain what you received from the one who cannot be recorded, keep it with you always. Prepare. Ascend to your duty, complete your mission on the planet below.¡± A brief pause, and almost in a whisper in the back of her head she could feel, hear, and almost remember the sense of a cool breeze blowing away troubles and lifting her spirit. The last message, however the strangely pleasant sensation was sent to her, seemed imperceivable to her companions who, unlike her, remained rigid in prostration. A final declaration, once again in the automaton¡¯s crackly robotic voice, ¡°End of message /// Accomplished /// Returning¡­ Enact program: Departure Protocol. /// Message: Glory to the Lords Magi, blessed be their wisdom.¡± Then the automaton turned and left the moment its final message was delivered.

    The strange appearance and sudden proclamation of the automaton left Mevi and her companions in stunned silence. Hellion, despite what Mevi would have assumed, had taken a knee at Odion¡¯s booming voice the same as the others in Mevi¡¯s retinue. Hellion was also the first to rise back to his feet after the automaton disappeared around a turn in the hallway. Even with his confidence shaken, Hellion tried to lighten the mood, ¡°My first day back outside the Undercity, and we received the royal welcome? I must be lucky.¡±

    Zelkan muttered, ¡°How dare you¡­¡± as he also stood.

    Everyone rose to their feet, the tension left by the mechanical automaton lingered despite Hellion¡¯s attempt. Ouapi, surprising Mevi with her breaking of the silence, said, ¡°We should continue. I have just received a missive that our departure vessel is almost prepared. Before we leave, however, we should do something about your newest companion¡­¡± Ouapi gestured towards Hellion dismissively.

    ¡°What must we do? I suppose it would be strange to bring someone not within the Lords Magi¡¯s service with us¡­¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°It is a simple enough process. As a Magi¡¯s Apprentice, especially to our gracious patroness, the High Lord Counselor Maphet, you have certain privileges. When it was apparent we were bringing him with us, I took the liberty to contact Alestair ahead of time. Our archives compiled known and suspected information about the subject, and concluded he is no threat to us. If we proceed to the above facilities I will lead you to our lord¡¯s Chamber Devoti. Where we may bind into service your new¡­ companion¡­¡±

    ¡°A Chamber Devoti? Ugh, you¡¯re kill¡¯in me doll¡­¡± Hellion exclaimed with a heavy, and overly dramatic, sigh.

    ¡°What is a Chamber Devoti?¡± Mevi asked, as usual, the only one out of the loop.

    Ouapi gestured to have Mevi follow her. They began the trek back upwards to the above facilities, and a promise of another new adventure. As they walked up the hallway, the tall, elegant, and almost hypnotically alien woman slowly tried to explain to Mevi what a ¡®Chamber Devoti¡¯ was, ¡°The holy chamber is where new conscripts are taken to be inscribed with runes and oaths of loyalty to our beloved Lords Magi. In most cases, when a Tributary, Initiate, or a special recruit becomes a full Acolyte of a Magi, they are subjected to a blessed ritual to prove their loyalty towards their prospective master. In some cases, it is also a required practice to enforce some kind of order onto a more unruly subject.¡±

    ¡°Little lady, don¡¯t let the religion fool ya. Its a coller¡¯in factory. They put chips ¡®n tiny bots in ya that lets em zap ya if you ever do somethin¡¯ they don¡¯t like¡± Hellion interjected.

    ¡°A crude interpretation, but not entirely incorrect. The devices implanted during the ceremony within the chamber serve other purposes, like complex language translation and access to the Nerve Net.¡± Ouapi continued. ¡°The benefits outweigh any fear a lesser might feel at the implication of the ritual, especially if one remains loyal.¡±

    Ouapi gave Hellion a sort of knowing glance, and Hellion for the first time seemed almost worried or ashamed at whatever he saw in the woman¡¯s deep eyes. Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what to make of the description of the place, if Hellion really was telling the truth she didn¡¯t like the idea of anyone holding a remote that could hurt her companions. Then she realized, did she have such a device inside her as well? She must¡¯ve made a worried face because Zelkan noticed and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, ¡°My lady, do not fret. You received no such implant against your will. The ceremony our gracious Lord Magi Odion and Lord Counselor Maphet employ is remarkably different than most others. The main difference being that they have never, to my knowledge, implemented the implant without the consent of whoever would receive it.¡± Reassured Zelkan.

    ¡°Most Lords Magi don¡¯t care ¡®nough to make it a matter of ¡®consent¡¯.¡± Pointed out Hellion.

    Mevi looked hesitantly towards Hellion as they walked, ¡°Would you? Would you consent to this? We could still bring you back to the Undercity, after all it felt like you only followed us because we could protect each other until we escaped Modrak.¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°No worries, little lady. I decided I like you, that¡¯ll be your biggest compliment you¡¯ve ever gotten by the way. ¡®Sides, I got tired of the Under-Town anyway, too much back stabb¡¯in for too long. Anyway, I know a thing or two about gettin weird implants out on my own, if I need to.¡± He reassured.

    Then, as if on cue to have more tension added to their conversation, the Sentinel became stiff and rigid. Without a moment¡¯s notice the Sentinel began walking down the hallway without Mevi, and without any notice where it was going. Mevi tried to pursue, but Zelkan suddenly grabbed her shoulder, ¡°My lady, I just received a request for the repair of your Sentinel. When we reentered the facility the diagnostics it uploaded indicated injuries, and the loss of its weapons, so it needs to report to a repair depot.¡±

    ¡°The Sentinel isn¡¯t in trouble is it? Its not at fault for losing the weapons¡­¡± Mevi asked, worried where her constant protector was going without her.

    ¡°Of course not my lady. The diagnostic I just received only indicated a need for minor repairs and the replacement of weaponry. It will return to us before we leave for the surface, there would be no scenario where a Magi¡¯s Apprentice would travel to an unknown planetoid without an accompanying sentinel, or more often several more than that.¡±

    ¡°Then I suppose that is fine¡­¡± Mevi said, the mood souring even further.

    As Mevi walked silently through the hallway, following Ouapi lead the way to this strange ¡®Chamber Devoti¡¯, her thoughts became jumbled and mixed. Her protector was gone and this seemed to leave a hole in her heart where a constant confidant should have been. After silence had fully set in, Mevi was left with grim ideas and worried thoughts. Yet Hellion and Saerin didn¡¯t let a dour tension take hold if they could help it, and began their idle chatter to pass the time. Mostly talking again about stories that made one or the other more impressive, which led again to dramatic accusations and vying for Mevi¡¯s favor to cement their superiority. The entire walk through the old hallways, and then soon traveling between facilities via bridged connections between building and spires, Mevi couldn¡¯t help but worry. Every once in a while she noticed her hand reaching to the back of her neck, as if to scratch an itch that wasn¡¯t there, and the memory of the first day she had met Kalesi returned to her.

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    Awakening disoriented, submerged in strange gooey liquid that somehow didn¡¯t make her feel wet but held her in place regardless. As bright lights had shone down into her eyes, all she could make out was a shrouded figure. When the pod she had been kept in opened she had seen Kalesi for the first time, but she spoke some strange language of gibberish and twisting words rought with unknown meaning. Then suddenly Mevi began to understand the words, almost by magic. Kalesi had mentioned then, some kind of procedure or device had successfully activated and Mevi would be able to understand her. Mevi didn¡¯t pay much attention to the words given off-hand at the time, but had she been subject to some strange implant against her will by the Magi Falcier?

    Mevi¡¯s attention snapped back away from her daydreaming. They were crossing a short span on a suspended bridge as wide as the roads within the City of Light. A structure clearly meant to allow many people to walk to and from the buildings it connected, but no one but Mevi and her companions walked the bridge. The structure was partially revealed to the outside, large panes of thick glass-like coverings allowed a sense that it was open air, but in reality it was closed to whatever elements might prey on those outside.

    Mevi had been jostled by Saerin, who had mostly been quiet throughout the last few days preferring to be the mood lifter or quiet observer. Mevi tried to figure out what she wanted, but all Saerin did was point up. Mevi followed the direction she indicated and beheld a remarkable sight she might¡¯ve missed dwelling in distracted thoughts. The bridge they crossed didn¡¯t just connect them from one building to another, but to a mighty temple. The first real temple or religious structure Mevi had seen which was controlled by Maphet and Odion, two creatures Mevi had never seen as the religious icons other Magi seemed to try to become.

    The Chamber of Devoti, a gloriously massive structure of spiraling towers clustered together with long-arching pathways and connectors, built with an almost gleaming polished white marble that made the rest of the facilities seem dirty in comparison. The design pierced Mevi¡¯s memory, and she remembered the days spent looking through odd texts and data pads scrolling through pictures. Ancient castles, things of myth and legend that were built so large and powerful that their design had carried over from wherever her people originated to their apparent ¡®original colony¡¯ in the system of Baes. These mighty castles were built in the thousands across the supposed original colony, and what few tales Mevi could decipher told of their fight against monsters and wars that crashed against their tall stone and metal walls like harmless waves. This new place was like a thing pulled out of those legends from her people, a complex tower of marble and stone brick emblazoned with countless runes and designs depicting the Magi, the Barge, and other unknowns across almost every surface. It radiated a gleaming golden and silver light but had no source, like the place itself was so radiant and blessed it simply had to exude beautiful light. The collection of towers were closely held together, the amount of which was difficult to tell, but this castle of the Lords Magi was an awe-inspiring sight. One Mevi had almost missed.

    Crossing the rest of the bridge, after a brief moment for Mevi to take in the scene of mythically-styled architecture, Mevi and her companions had finally arrived at the Chamber Devoti. Within the tower was just as pristine as the outside suggested. Smooth marbled halls that shined with diligent polish, runes of power, knowledge, and history etched into the walls glowing with blue arcana. Golden inlays within the marble¡¯s natural blemishes caused the floors and walls to sparkle golden, and silver trim along where the walls meet floor and ceiling. An extravagant display of wealth and beautifully unknowable runic scripture.

    As Mevi followed Ouapi through the halls of the Chamber Devoti, still processing every new icon, rune, or lined scripture along the walls, their walk ended as they approached an ornate door. Decorated with so many lines of scripture etched into the surface, Mevi couldn¡¯t tell if the door was made of marble or from solid gold. Before she could touch the door, curious to even just inspect the masterwork detail, the door swung open inward into the chamber beyond.

    Opening to a wide circular room, one that would easily fit several dozen people comfortably, Mevi and her companions entered. The room was short compared to what she¡¯d come to expect, the ceiling only about eight or ten meters above her. There were also strange runes and a circular sigil etched into the marble floor in a contrasting black obsidian. The rest of the room was bare, even the walls were simple polished marble, but the space was still beautiful regardless of the sudden lack of decoration.

    When Mevi fully entered, her companions followed close behind. Ouapi went ahead and stopped in the center of the room. After waving a hand, a thin pedestal seemed to almost grow out of the ground to reach her waist. She placed her hand on the pedestal, which was topped with an orb-like obsidian stone, and the room began to move and change. The walls twisted to reveal hidden icons and racks with various elegant instruments clearly meant for surgery. As the room shifted and morphed its structure more, it felt like Ouapi was searching for something as she fiddled with the pedestal. The revealed secrets, strange implements, and new icons shifted in and out of the walls to appear briefly, only then to be put away again, until finally Ouapi came to a setting she seemed to like.

    The room had changed greatly, the black obsidian twists and circular patterns on the floor now stretched in wild directions and even crept up the walls to touch the ceiling. A single part of the wall showed various implements on small racks; the devices didn¡¯t seem intended for surgery or cutting, but instead had many items with display panels or round lenses. Ouapi finally turned to look towards Mevi, ¡°The room is prepared, we may begin when your companion is ready.¡±

    ¡°What exactly is going to happen?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°I will operate the procedure from this console, because we are lacking proper time, we will forgo the normal ritual and subsequent celebration.¡±

    Hellion interjected, ¡°Ah gee, ¡®ere I thought I¡¯d get a feast.¡±

    Ouapi ignored his comment and continued, ¡°The implant is small, and easy enough to insert with this room¡¯s devices. After the implant is secured, your companion will speak an oath. After which we will conclude the service and depart for the shuttle.

    Mevi turned to Hellion, still uncomfortable with the idea of implanting machines into people, ¡°Are you ok with this, Hellion? We could still bring you back to the Undercity if you wanted.¡±

    ¡°Oh you worry too much, little lady. ¡®Sides, like I already said. I know a thing or two about removing unwanted implants if worst comes to worst. It¡¯ll be fun to follow you around, at least thats what my gut tells me.¡± Hellion reassured.

    ¡°My lady, the procedure should be completely painless, if that comforts you at all.¡± Saerin added.

    After thinking for a few moments, her companions waiting for her answer, Mevi finally decided, ¡°Please proceed, Ouapi. If Hellion consents there is no reason to stop you.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± Was all Ouapi said in reply.

    What followed was a short and strange procedure. Hellion walked to the section of the wall that revealed the odd devices, and sat down in a chair that Ouapi had appear from the floor. The wall then opened up further, revealing two long and spindly manipulators that began probing for the devices held on the racks nearby. A quick investigation of Hellion¡¯s body, aided by the various odd devices, satisfied Ouapi. Then the devices twisted and turned to reveal sharp implements and needles hidden within the thin chassis. The operation was over in a flash; a quick insert of a needle that barely caused Hellion to wince, and then a cut into Hellion¡¯s left shoulder so small Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if there was even a wound. As the last part of the procedure a tendril-like mechanical arm stretched out that was barely the thickness of a piece of thick string, it snaked quickly into the tiny cut and just as quickly pulled itself free. After one of the manipulators used a sort of scanning device on Hellion, the procedure seemed to finish. The devices, manipulators, and even Hellion¡¯s chair each receded into the wall and floor once again. The deed was done.

    ¡°So just to check, no feast, right?¡± Hellion asked, rubbing his shoulder.

    ¡°Maybe we should have a feast after we return from the planet? We have a lot to celebrate recently, I think!¡± Saerin said, partly looking towards Mevi and Zelkan like she was asking for permission.

    Mevi smiled and looked at Zelkan, ¡°It could be fun! We haven¡¯t had a chance to relax together yet. Could we, Zelkan?¡±

    Suddenly being subject to begging and eager eyes, Zelkan folded his arms and seemed to think hard while trying to ignore the pressure from those around him, and he finally caved, ¡°Well¡­¡± he sighed heavily, ¡°I don¡¯t see why not¡­ When we return I will be sure to get something prepared.¡± He suddenly held up a hand to stop any early celebrations, ¡°But! We mustn''t get used to this kind of decadence. Serving the Lords Magi should be its own reward.¡±

    ¡°Of course, oh chief advisor Zelkan!¡± Saerin teased.

    Despite the strangeness of the procedure, Mevi felt confident somehow. Her companions were so willing to stay with her despite the trials thus far, it felt like nothing could dampen her mood as her friends teased each other and she was strangely looking forward to following the Magi¡¯s will so she could finally have a time to be some kind of happy with her people.

    Ouapi let the friends talk and tease for a couple minutes before reminding Mevi of their task. With Hellion¡¯s procedure finished he still had to make an oath. In a strange moment of seriousness the blue-skinned roguish man looked to Mevi, and without prompt or instruction bent to a knee and placed one hand on his heart. Closing his eyes and looking to the ground, Hellion spoke as if he had somehow had the time to practice this speech before, ¡°I pledge my blade and body to our lords Magi. To the endless knowledge of our Lord Magi, Maphet, and the peerless wisdom of our Lord Magi Odion. I pledge myself, I give my oath to you; Lady Apprentice, Mevare Bensari. Till my death, or until you have no need of me, I will be yours.¡± Hellion looked up, smiling his confident grin once again.

    ¡°Do you accept his oath, ¡®o Lady Magi¡¯s Apprentice?¡± Ouapi asked.

    Suddenly realizing she had to speak formally again, Mevi tried not to hesitate, ¡°Yes! I accept your oath.¡±

    Zelkan whispered, ¡°Until your death¡­ or until I have no need of you, I accept you as my retainer.¡±

    Mevi quickly repeated Zelkan¡¯s words, ¡°Until your death, or until I have no need of you. I accept you as my retainer, Hellion.¡±

    Hellion rose to his feet again, grinning with overconfidence as usual. Saerin seemed pleased, and despite her rigid and formal exterior even Ouapi seemed satisfied with the outcome. Mevi was simply happy she didn¡¯t mess anything up, thanks to the proud-standing Zelkan beside her.

    With the brief ceremony concluded, Ouapi led the group of them out of the Chamber Devoti. Their destination was a shuttle, which would ferry them to the great unknown. Yet despite the excitement of the task, and the promise of a celebration, what Mevi longed for most was for her new family to be put back together again and to see her Sentinel once more.

 Chapter 16: Ordered to Rest

    Mevi followed Ouapi through the twisting and winding halls of Maphet and Odion¡¯s vast facility. The tall and dutiful woman led them with a diligent purpose, ascending them higher and higher through the facility. The outside view climbed higher every time they crossed facility buildings via connecting bridges and access ways. Briefly Ouapi led Mevi and her companions into a long but short room lined with various cabinets, lockers, and discarded articles of clothing. Ouapi seemed to disapprove the strewn about clothing, but their purpose wouldn¡¯t hold them there long.

    Ouapi instructed Mevi and her retinue to change into new clothes, the tall woman personally attending to Mevi. In a flurry movement, mechanical clippers, and dexterous hands Ouapi had restored Mevi¡¯s raiments to a glittering cleanliness. She patched holes and moved fabric in a way to cover any imperfection, while also adding beautifully sewn segments to improve the regalness of Mevi¡¯s relatively meager study robes. While nothing compared to Mevi¡¯s inaugural dress, it held vaguely to the standard compared to how Mevi recalled Alestair and the other officials dressed to.

    When Mevi¡¯s clothes were repaired and adjusted, she was quickly disrobed and instructed to clean herself. Being pushed quickly into an attached room, Mevi was left confused but not alone. Saerin was already in the new room, investigating and tinkering with a panel in the nearby wall; she was noticeably also disrobed. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure if our warden would even allow us a moment of rest before shipping us off to a strange planet! I¡¯m glad she seems to have some kind of heart.¡± Saerin said, chuckling to herself as she activated the panel.

    After Saerin¡¯s tinkering the room came to life. The walls opened to reveal faucets and a port hole opened to reveal a sort of synthesizer, the synthesizer began leaking a mist that smells faintly of citrus; a scent Mevi had only ever caught faint trails of during the most extravagant of feasts on her homeworld. Satisfied, Saerin led Mevi by the hand into a short depression in the floor which revealed to be filled with water! There was an entire section of the floor that could easily fit ten or twelve people, depressed about three feet into the floor, and it was an entire pool filled with water. Mevi had never seen the valuable resource used in such an extravagant way, and it seemed Saerin meant for them to bathe in it. After shaking off some of her amazement, Mevi replied to Saerin, ¡°We can¡¯t judge Ouapi too harshly, Saerin. She has done a great deal for me despite only just meeting us, especially since she would probably be serving Alestair right now if not for my ineptitude.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t sell yourself short, my lady.¡± Searin quickly retorted, ¡°You are also a Magi¡¯s Apprentice, and to our glorious Lord Councilor Maphet no less! You technically out-rank Alestair you know.¡±

    Mevi contemplated her words for a moment, brooding slightly, ¡°I don''t feel like I do, and I probably shouldn¡¯t. I don¡¯t even really know why I was given this opportunity, it feels like I stole something that doesn¡¯t belong to me but everyone pretends it was mine the whole time. I don¡¯t even know the first thing about the Barge but I am given, and expected to fulfill, such an incredible role as a Magi¡¯s Apprentice?¡± Mevi let her voice trail off, realizing how pathetic her words were becoming.

    Saerin and Mevi were standing in the water, but Saerin moved to pull Mevi onto the step leading into the pool, lowered into the water enough where they could sit with the valuable liquid up to their shoulders. Saerin held Mevi close to her as they enjoyed the warm water and pleasant mist. Saerin spoke again after letting Mevi decompress for a moment, ¡°You know, I don¡¯t know all that much either. You and I are alike in that way.¡±

    ¡°You know so much, at only a mention of Modrak you knew where to go and what to do. You expertly cared for Kalesi up until I led us on a foolhardy and uninformed mission, you always seem to have the right words for everything¡­¡± Mevi stammered.

    Saerin¡¯s laugh interrupted Mevi, ¡°You know, when I first became an acolyte I didn¡¯t know anything about the barge either. I was just a scrappy kid from a faraway place, but someone saw me and told the Magi ¡®This kid has potential, we just need to put her in the right place!¡¯ and for the love of the Barge the Magi listened. I was made into a medical technician and researcher, I didn¡¯t know anything about it before I was suddenly handed a scalpel and told to start working. But look at me now, getting all these compliments from such an obviously special person like yourself. So someone must¡¯ve been right, so I¡¯ll bet the Magi are right about you too.¡±

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    Mevi let the compliment sink in, and she moved closer to Saerin wanting to disappear into the bliss of the warmth from the water and her friend¡¯s care. Suddenly the door shunted open, Ouapi breaching the gap with her bare blue-tinted skin. She sniffed at the air and grimaced as she squinted through the thick mist, then she looked down at the two of them. Entering into the watery bath herself, Ouapi said, ¡°My lady, I encourage you to enjoy this and clean yourself as best you can. Lord Alestair advised us to clean and repair our garments and give you a moment to rest. While I think you are fit to continue immediately, I obey. But we are due to leave in approximately thirty minutes. I have begun the cleaning cycle on everyone¡¯s robes and issued them formal masks to suit.¡±

    Mevi straightened in her seat, but still held Saerin¡¯s hand, ¡°Ouapi, would I need to wear a mask as well?¡±

    ¡°While it is tradition, and seen as proper, you are of high enough rank to forgo a mask. In many diplomatic missions, a Magi¡¯s followers equip masks as it is deemed necessary. The more alien and strange servants wear them, or if a newly encountered people has an alien appearance we wear them to not seem too different from them. It will be up to your own judgment, I have a mask prepared for you and you may adjust it to personal preference if you wish.¡±

    ¡°I think you look beautiful enough any society would crumble from just your smile, my lady!¡± Saerin poked at Mevi¡¯s shoulder as she teased her.

    ¡°That simply wouldn¡¯t do, Saerin. We cannot allow the society to crumble, or else they couldn¡¯t give proper tribute to our Lords Magi.¡± Ouapi refuted.

    Mevi and Searin quit their teasing and looked at Ouapi, and the normally strict and dutiful woman stared back with bewilderment. Searin laughed which caused Mevi to giggle slightly. Ouapi, even more confused, asked, ¡°What? What did I say?¡±

    ¡°That was almost a joke O¡¯pi!¡± Saerin said between giggles.

    ¡°O¡¯pi? My name is Ouapi, O-e-pi.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s too much to say! O¡¯pi is like a nickname!¡±

    The two bickered, but in an almost sisterly way. Mevi watched and swore she almost saw a brief smile peak out of Ouapi¡¯s stern expression. Mevi wondered if Alestair had meant for this kind of ¡®rest¡¯, but didn¡¯t think too long about it. Ouapi and Saerin showed Mevi how to use the strange bathing apparatus along the walls: a device to scrub yourself, a dispenser of strange goo which turned to suds and bubbles, and finally an omni-directional blower that dried each of them to a crisp. Saerin and mevi¡¯s hair became fuzzy and required grooming, but Ouapi was revealed to have short-cut and perfectly straight blue-ish hair that resisted the frizz. Mevi hadn¡¯t noticed in the heavy mist of the bathing room, and Ouapi had never taken down her hood until now, but it was remarkably sparkly and beautiful.

    Mevi and her two companions exited the bath followed by giggles, finding their clean clothes laid out diligently just in front of the bath door. After dressing and reentering the main room Hellion and Zelkan waited patiently in silence. They both stood awkwardly by themselves and the teasing from Saerin and accompanying giggling broke the silence. Hellion¡¯s face erupted to a grin and he began to speak, ¡°Lil¡¯ lady! You wouldn¡¯t believe, what-¡±

    He was suddenly cut off by Zelkan¡¯s stern voice, ¡°Silence! Not a word.¡±

    Backing off and holding his arms up in surrender, Hellion quieted, ¡°Not a word. Gotcha.¡± But his poorly suppressed smile still escaped.

    Mevi wondered what had happened between the two of them, but didn¡¯t want to pry. Yet now with the group of them cleaned and dressed in more formal attire, they all began down the hall again. Once more following Ouapi upwards. They climbed the spires of the facility until they exited onto a short platform. A hovering transport awaited them, and after Mevi¡¯s questions if this was what would take them to the surface, it was revealed they would first need to travel to a place called, ¡®The Royal Docks¡¯. After being transported there, they would board a shuttle outfitted to service all the needs of her task, but also was where her Sentinel awaited them. With that final piece of news Mevi was all the more eager to race to her task. Entering into the small transport, all of them flew at a remarkable speed through the City of Light. Their spirits and bodies ever so slightly recuperated and rejuvenated for the upcoming task.

 Chapter 17: The Royal Docks

    Flying swiftly through glimmering lights and unmeasurable heights, the small transport carrying Mevi and her retinue, flew through the City of Light. Mevi saw the blinding lights and complex structures of the Barge¡¯s inhabitants once again from a bird¡¯s perspective. Yet even as the transport carried them many thousands of feet above the nearest ground, spires and structures still climbed to meet them so high up. Their transport flew just above a sort of cloud cover that occasionally hung above the heights of the City of Light, yet still the spires and vain monoliths speared through the clouds and even further beyond, like they raced to meet the Barge¡¯s incomprehensibly tall ceiling.

    Mevi was able to calmly watch the surroundings outside the transport this time; the last time she fully beheld the unfiltered glory of the towering heights of the City of Light she fainted. This time, with a developed tolerance to light, she could view the cityscape with only a mild headache. The overwhelming colors and lights still pierced the clouds to shine strange shapes and outlines within the clouds. The tallest structures jutting out like spikes and mountains were laden with complex symbols and illumination emitters, but while Mevi flew above the clouds it seemed more bearable than the dense and feverish styles far below her.

    The small transport eventually began descending, after traveling for maybe thirty minutes at a high speed. Mevi and her retinue had arrived near to the edge of the Barge, where tall hallways and complicated systems intertwined within the golden hull. The transport circled several times as it descended, making Mevi dizzy for the brief moments it rapidly fell closer to the ground. Strangely, Mevi never felt the speed of the transport or the gravity of its fall, her mind got confused and dizzied when she beheld the incredible speed of the transport but she felt no momentum generated from their travel. Trying to understand how such speeds were even possible added to her growing sky-sickness.

    Mevi¡¯s transport landed close to the golden hull of the Barge, a platform high above what is considered the ¡®ground¡¯ was their target. The platform was partially covered, but Mevi could see many similar transports to hers already stopped and anchored to the metallic surface. Through the dizzying speed she could also see a white-metal rune etched large in the platform that Mevi thought she read as ¡®Maphet¡¯. Though the spinning descent of her transport made it difficult to view proper details of the wide dockyard.

    When the transport landed Mevi could hear and feel loud clicks as if the platform locked her transport into place. Then the sliding doors on either side of her slid open with a hiss. Even before she tried to exit, Mevi could hear whipping winds and screaming gales produced by the high altitude. Hellion and Zelkan disembarked first, and helped the rest out as heavy wind buffeted against them. The five of them left the transport and hurried further into the dockyard platform. A tall roof hung over half of the platform, and as they approached the threshold under the protective ceiling a faintly shimmering blue aura was almost perceptible. Suddenly, as Mevi noticed they fully crossed the shimmering barrier and went under the tall ceiling, the wind and sounds of wind halted completely. A little surprised, but thankful for the strange abilities of the Magi¡¯s constructs, Mevi followed her companions towards the wall of the platform.

    As Mevi could finally focus, without the wind trying to knock her over, Mevi could see a great many people in the dockyard. Nearly every figure was masked, each wearing either Maphet¡¯s whites, gold and blue or Odion¡¯s white and silver, while some wore a combination of the colors with runes embroidered into their robes. The people hurried back and forth performing tasks here and there. Large circular entryways held shut against the Barge¡¯s hull, Mevi assumed they each led to a yacht like the Magi Falcier¡¯s when she first arrived. Yet some smaller connecting pathways breached the walls in between the larger; looking just barely tall enough to fit Mevi¡¯s Sentinel. The people rushed to and fro, attending to idle figures standing near to the Slipaway Connectors that were attached to hidden ships beyond their walkway.

    Mevi was surprised. So many people remained, not leaving for the surface despite how long it had been since they first entered the new system. She had assumed the moment the meeting with Alestair was over each of the attending officers had left for the surface while Mevi fumbled through her Magi-given quest. Yet the amount of people, especially those with intricate masks and inscribed robes, seemed to show that few had actually departed, if any at all.

    As Mevi followed towards the various Slipaway docks, she noticed a cluster of elegantly decorated figures making their way straight towards her. Ouapi¡¯s masked face snapped upwards suddenly, staring off into the distance in the way everyone did when they interacted with the Nerve Net. Mevi had now noticed, each of her companions had donned their masks. They must¡¯ve put them on to shield from the winds or while they were walking. If not for their significantly different bulks, Mevi wouldn¡¯t have been able to tell them apart as each wore fairly simple white robes with very little silver or golden scripture. Ouapi held the most rank of everyone, besides Mevi herself, and donned several significant scriptures in silver that Mevi translated as oaths of fealty to Odion and his apprentice. As the figures approached closer, Mevi¡¯s retinue stopped completely.

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    The people approaching Mevi and her retinue were zealously decorated. Their leader donned an ornate mask that resembled a silver crown, spinning around their head erupting curved spikes like a miniature mountain range. Their mask glowed a mixture of white with wisps of green like falling leaves. The robes were emblazoned with hundreds of words of scripture, few of which Mevi could decipher, and each glowed with arcane aura even as it shone with polish on the silvery surface. The others behind their leader were far less decorated compared, but each had similar masks without crowns and their robes showed various levels of intense scripture, yet without the glowing aura. Mevi suddenly felt underdressed again, her simple robes had not a single letter of writing or any ornate symbolism, even the mask Oupai held at her side for Mevi was basic in comparison to the intimidating figure rapidly approaching. Then the figure spoke, ¡°Mevare, you have arrived remarkably on time. I commend you.¡± Alestair¡¯s voice was obvious, even under the slight muffle of the mask.

    Bowing deeply, her companions followed suit, ¡°Thank you Lord Alestair. I tried to make as much haste as I could, but I had feared I spent too long preoccupied and assumed everyone had left already.¡± Mevi replied.

    ¡°You needn¡¯t call me, ¡®Lord¡¯. We are of the same rank. And it is never a waste of time to perform the Magi¡¯s will.¡±

    ¡°Thank you¡­ Alestair.¡± Mevi hesitated, his personality was entirely different than it had been when they first met.

    ¡°You are new to many things, Mevare. When we have time I will teach you as much as is needed. For now, know that we await the holy Grand Magi¡¯s order to depart; only our most holy Magi knows when it is safe to exit. Space is torn by the departure and arrival of the Barge, and only the wisest know when it has calmed enough to traverse.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡± Mevi said, but in truth didn¡¯t understand a word.

    ¡°Come, I have prepared your shuttle but you may await our departure with me.¡± He turned to leave, but waited as he stared at her.

    Mevi looked back at her companions briefly, but made to follow, ¡°Of course Alestair.¡±

    Alestair waved a hand, and a few of his attendants intercepted Mevi¡¯s retinue. It seemed they weren¡¯t meant to follow her. As she walked behind Alestair, Mevi began to feel uncomfortable. They only walked a short distance away, Alestair waved a hand as they approached part of the wall near one of the large Slipaway Connectors. At the wave of his hand the Connector opened wide, revealing a bright passage into an unknown vessel. Mevi noticed as Alestair¡¯s own retinue stopped short of the passage, staying in the dockyard as Mevi and Alestair continued into the ship alone.

    The two of them walked forward, illuminated by the bright lights embedded into the Slipaway Connector. The path should¡¯ve been short, but the silence and tense air stretched the walkway wide and long. Mevi felt an ominous presence looming around her, and a nervousness she hadn¡¯t felt in a long while crept into her. She was alone for the first time in a long while, only Alestair, a stranger, to keep her silent company. She felt something lay ahead of her, but what it was she couldn¡¯t guess. Suddenly Alestair spoke as they crossed halfway through the passage, ¡°We received a strange request a little while ago, one approved by our Lords Magi so I did not question it.¡±

    ¡°Was it a new task for me?¡± Mevi asked, trying to ignore her growing-frantic nerves.

    ¡°In a way, yes.¡± Alestair was silent for a few moments as they passed the threshold into the vessel, ¡°A formal request had been pending for a time, and our Lords Magi had to accept it due to the peculiar nature of it. Someone wished to meet you, specifically before you left. So he was allowed in for a brief conversation.¡±

    As Alestair passed the threshold, Mevi hesitated. The masked figure looked back to her and held a hand out welcomingly, but she felt a dark presence beyond the safety of the tunnel. She only now noticed a remarkably dark interior of the ship, no lights illuminated the inside of the vessel, but she could faintly see outlines of structure and curving metallic surfaces. She hadn¡¯t noticed the darkness until now because of how familiar to the dark she was, but now she feared it. She had always feared the dark despite her people¡¯s living within it, but this was a real fear. She knew something lurked within, and if not for the social obligation of following Alestair¡¯s directions, Mevi would have run far away from this looming darkness.

    Mevi stepped forward, crossing into the dark. As she did, Alestair bowed towards the dark interior. Then he stepped back into the Slipaway Connector, retreating into the illuminated hallway without her. Panic raced as she was confused what was happening, without any warning of what to expect or what was truly going on. Alestair nodded a head towards Mevi and said, ¡°I will be just outside. I''m told this will be a breif conversation, but still be sure to be respectful.¡± Then Alestair waved a hand and the door to the bright tunnel slid shut. All Mevi could eek out was, ¡°Wait¡­!¡± before the door shut and she was left in the dark. Then she heard a voice, a creeping, echoing, ominous voice that whispered from the darkness, ¡°Hello there, little Starlight.¡±

 Chapter 18: Little Starlight

    The still echoing voice reverberated around Mevi, shaking her core like an earthquake. Something moved in the pitch-black room. A slithering presence slinking behind Mevi¡¯s perception. The feeling was unmistakable now, only once before had she experienced such oppressive darkness and the tell-tale feeling of overwhelming dread and anxiety; the Magi Falcier.

    As if on cue with her realization the voice echoed out again, ¡°Oh little Starlight¡­ To think how high you¡¯d soar.¡± The voice creeped into her mind as much as it boomed around her. Like a voice shouting directly into her ears yet impossibly far away at the same time. Mevi couldn¡¯t muster a response as she stood, barely keeping herself from cowering in the dark. ¡°Yet again you wound me¡­¡± the voice mimicked sadness, ¡°To think you would become such a gleaming gem with so little polish. If I had known¡­¡± the voice trailed off, losing some of its power.

    The darkness began to shift and move, as if the darkness itself was a creature with some kind of motive. Yet as Mevi tried to muster courage to stand tall as Maphet¡¯s Magi Apprentice, another wave of dread crashed into her soul. A figure began to materialize, and as it did some small amount of light was let into the room from an unknown direction. The shadows coalesced into a figure. A dark and looming robed figure walked forward while wisps of shadow trailed off their body.

    The Mask of the Magi Falcier was in full view, and it spiraled with emotion. A dark swirling cloud with mists of purple and faint light was almost sucked inwards like a cosmic drain. A black hole at its center that seemed to be actively consuming the light around them and slowly devoiding the barely visible room of color. The spiraling entity on Falcier¡¯s mask was almost hypnotic, Mevi could feel herself swaying towards it as if being pulled in. Before she fell into the swirling abyss she pulled herself back. A warm orange glow began to shine faintly as she held fast against the dark temptation to fall into nothingness. Her own glow fought desperately against the absorbing darkness, but it was a failing battle. Falcier almost seemed amused as the display of defiance radiated unintentionally from Mevi.

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    ¡°You certainly have soared, little Starlight. Your glow is absolutely¡­ intoxicating.¡± A hand materialized out of the dark robes and moved to touch her face, but shrank away as the light pushed it back. ¡°Such an interesting pet¡­ I am sure your masters are pleased with what they found in the gutter.¡± Falcier pulled away angrily, turning his back to Mevi and pacing towards the center of the room.

    Mevi worked up what little courage she could, and barely let out a whisper, ¡°What¡­ what need have you of me, my lord?¡±

    ¡°Need?¡± Falcier repeated the question to the air.

    The air darkened again, what little light was allowed in or emanated from Mevi was devoured whole once again by the darkness. A rage was bubbling in the air, not red and hot but cold and piercing. Falcier was paused in the middle of the room, and despite not being able to see Mevi knew; the Magi¡¯s body grew as something unnatural took its place. A feeling of intense fear of the unknown penetrated her mind, and Mevi couldn¡¯t stop herself from cowering against the door behind her.

    The intense presence of Falcier turned and loomed around Mevi like an oppressive curtain of weight. A foul stench of death and rot creeped out of the dark as the intense presence grew stronger. ¡°You presume¡­¡± the voice was now inhumanly low, gravely, and furious. ¡°Deign to assume that I would have NEED of you?¡± Mevi felt like a massive giant¡¯s hand was closing in around her, a grip on her psyche forced her fully to the ground. ¡°Hear this Mevare Bensari¡­ I have no needs but for your suffering. Eternal, unending, suffering. It would amuse me so greatly¡­¡± The presence seemed to almost grab at Mevi¡¯s body, but was buffeted by a wind that was not conjured by Mevi; intentional or otherwise. The evil creature strained for a moment but gave way quickly. The darkness slowly began to fade and the presence returned to a semblance of humanity as the rage calmed, ¡°Remember this moment. I am never far away, my little Starlight. When your master tires of you, when they are toppled, or when you are lost in the dark¡­ Know that I will be there to take you. I will not have a treasure escape me so easily¡­¡±

    The voice faded and echoed, and the creature in the dark slowly disappeared entirely. As light began to filter into the room as it should, the door to the Slipaway tunnel opened and Mevi fell fully to the ground. Barely able to breathe again, she heard a firm voice speaking to her as someone began to tend to her. The words were muffled behind an intense ringing in her ears, but the intent was almost gentle and caring. Mevi allowed herself to be helped, but her mind¡¯s eye still followed the shadow¡¯s flight away and into the dark unknowns of the Barge.

 Chapter 19: The Visitor

    When Mevi eventually came to, she was almost surprised she hadn¡¯t fallen unconscious again due to her poor constitution. Instead she just had to sit down dazed for a few minutes before regaining her sight and mind. To her surprise, she wasn¡¯t the only one in the ship¡¯s foyer that was collapsed on the ground.

    Laying near the center of the room was a purple-robed individual who bore no mask. He lay asleep, but fitfully so, and just when Mevi and Alestair¡¯s attendants reached the foyer to attend them the figure began to awaken himself. As Mevi¡¯s senses fully returned she saw the purple-robed figure in all his height as he stood up in tandem with Mevi. Four distinct arms sprouted from his body, a symmetrical face split horizontally in half by a deep blue chitinous plate in the shape of a upside down ¡®V¡¯ on the top, with patches of thin red flesh that breathed rhythmically, while the bottom half was soft light blue with bright accents around the more human features. Golden tattoos framed his face with beautifully etched accents along his features that connected at a blue jewel embedded into his forehead. As he stood straight an orange sigil, like an eye made to look like the rising sun, was emblazoned on his chest. Mevi recognized him almost instantly, Murano.

    A swell of emotions bubbled briefly at the recognizable face, someone who had been friends with Kalesi and who Mevi had met before so much chaos infiltrated her new life. The alien face was stern and strange like Mevi remembered, but he was obviously battered and slightly bruised with small chips in his hard chitinous head-plate. Regardless of his state, Murano walked towards Mevi with purpose as he brushed off the worried attendants. Mevi began to speak, ¡°Murano, so much has happened, Kalesi-¡± but she was cut off.

    ¡°I am aware.¡± was Murano¡¯s simple response.

    ¡°You are a mystical healer, can you go to her and help her as you did me?¡±

    ¡°I am afraid that is not my intent for meeting you here¡­¡± He paused as if sadness penetrated his hard exterior for a moment, ¡°My master bid me send you a gift. A tool to use in perilous times. He, The master of Mana, Lord of The Magicae, and Magi Councilor sends you aid.¡±

    Alestair, now privy to the sudden public conversation interrupts, ¡°Magister Magicae, should you not have waited to deliver such a message until prying eyes and unqualified others were vacated?¡± Despite Alestair¡¯s mask his glare at the fawning attendants, who were staring at the display in awe, was obvious and their obvious dumbfoundedness was cut off by their lord¡¯s gaze.

    Murano continues to look only at Mevi, ¡°My lord does not interest himself in the politics of other Magi. He only seeks the betterment of understanding and prosperity for the Holy Barge. He deems any to know his intent, if they are so interested.¡±

    Alestair bows his head slightly, ¡°Of course Magister.¡±

    Regardless of Murano¡¯s publicness, Alestair cleared the room of observers anyway, and quickly escaped the conversation himself. Murano seemed to heed Alestair¡¯s intent and waited until everyone left the foyer, but Alestair purposefully left the door open and stood in the hall only a moment away. Murano continued, ¡°Pleasantries aside, I am glad to see you, mostly unharmed, Mevare. Keep what happened before we met confidential, needless rumors of Magi visits only cause disorder.¡±

    ¡°But he hurt you¡­ and seemed intent on trying to hurt me as well.¡± Mevi struggled to say her quiet words.

    ¡°Yes, as is their right. The Magi may only be reigned by another Magi, so telling others about this encounter will only stir discord. Tell your new lords if you feel threatened, but others must not know.¡±

    Mevi hesitated to ask her next question, afraid of the answer, ¡°Murano¡­ or, actually, Lord Magister. Your personality seems to have changed¡­ I am sure you resent me for what happened to Kalesi-¡±

    Mevi wanted to continue her apology, but Murano placed a firm hand on her small shoulder, ¡°Wrong. You could not be blamed for what happened. Through my lord¡¯s gifts I witnessed some scenes of your plight¡­ I am truly sorry for your loss. My demeanor has only changed because of the circumstance. I am here in an official capacity, Lady Apprentice. As such certain attitudes must be shifted, I don¡¯t mean to make you uncomfortable. Please, sit down, my lord sends you aid that must be explained as quickly as possible.¡±

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Mevi stopped her stammering and allowed herself to be led to a small table and set of chairs. They were turned over but Murano righted them easily enough. For a few moments they sat quietly, Mevi collecting herself and pushing her perils down to be uncovered at a more convenient time. When she seemed mostly calm, Murano unveiled a bundle hidden in his robes. Within the purple velvet package lay a perfectly smooth amethyst jewel encased in silver and shimmering strings. Murano fully removed the item to reveal it to Mevi; a delicate purple glove with silver and gold strings intertwining amongst themselves as they bind the purple jewel firmly into place. Murano placed the item in front of Mevi while she marveled at the variatable work of art.

    ¡°This is your Maige, a gift made by the expert hands of my lord Vol¡¯s best craftsmen and Magicae. As you are gifted in the powers of a Magicae, normally you would have joined my master Vol¡¯s sphere of talent, but uncertain and dangerous circumstances prevented our action and notice of your potent abilities. Know that my lord fully supports Lord Councilor Maphet, and as such refuses to allow a Magicae to go without the proper tools to harness their inborn gifts.¡± declared Murano.

    Mevi struggled to find her words after such a gift and revelation, ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say¡­¡±

    ¡°Say nothing at all. This Maige is your right, so it is only correct that you wield it.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Murano, and thanks to Lord Vol. I will treasure this.¡±

    ¡°My lord sends one other gift, a premonition he beheld that you played a significant role. I am not privy to the entire vision, but I am bid to deliver a part of it to you: ¡®beware be to those that venture without gold into the forests of black. A dragon of old holds sway where none still dwell, be it unto the learner to deliver righteousness to where there is none. Let fire rain from the sky, pain and sorrow fall where few still yet breathe, hark to the learner for their light will guide a new path.¡¯¡±

    Mevi sat, soaking in the ominous prophecy. Neither spoke for a few moments, moments that dragged slowly with the weight of an unknown doom. Murano stared thoughtfully at Mevi, who was fidgeting and whose mind raced to interpret the strange warnings. Finally, Murano placed a hand on Mevi¡¯s, which she hadn¡¯t noticed were instinctively clasped tight.

    ¡°It is good to see you again. I worried a lot about you after I first left you know. Kalesi kept me informed of certain things up until you left to venture into the Rust¡­ She¡­¡± Murano struggled with his last words.

    ¡°She deserved better. We shouldn¡¯t have been there but for the intervention of-¡± Mevi felt a familiar frustration welling up once again.

    ¡°I know, Mevi. Yet even if it is true you need to be careful what you say and think. I wanted to be the one to deliver my lord¡¯s gifts of friendship, but I wasn¡¯t the first on his list of who to send. Yet in the end my voice prevailed when I revealed my initial involvement with you. It was quite the scene, I must say.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I seem to just cause trouble everywhere I go.¡±

    ¡°You do have a knack for it, it seems!¡± Murano jabbed jokingly.

    Mevi forced a smile, but the joke seemed more truthful than he might¡¯ve known. Mevi and Murano reminisced about simple and mundane things for as long as time allowed, which wasn¡¯t very long. After only barely ten minutes Alestair intercepted their pleasantries, ¡°My lord Magister, Lady Mevare... Lady Mevare¡¯s shuttle is prepared, and she sadly must go to prepare herself and meet her crew.¡±

    Murano stood up, ¡°I suppose all must end eventually.¡±

    Mevi stood up, and an invisible weight began pressing her down as anxieties swam in the back of her mind anew, ¡°Yes¡­ It was nice to see a friendly face, lord Magister.¡±

    ¡°I have another message for you, Mevi. Before I leave.¡± Murano began, ¡°Kalesi sent me one last message before you both entered the Pipes.¡±

    Mevi perked up, ¡°Really? What¡­ Do I want to hear it..?¡± she hesitated.

    ¡°I cannot make that judgment. I can only deliver the message.¡± Murano waited, seeing Mevi mentally prepare herself with a few deep breaths, ¡°Kalesi sent me a request before you both left. ¡®If I am to fall, adopt Mevi into the Magicae.¡¯ she asked me. She also said, ¡®If that does happen, make sure Mevi feels cared for. I won¡¯t accept anything less. Regardless of what happens, she is my new first priority.¡¯ along with these she sent along the codes to access her old living quarters and forwarded documentation to transfer all her possessions into your ownership. I have already arranged for her things and all else to be transported to your new home. As for the first request, it''s quite impossible now. But I have certain assurances that when you complete your next assignment you will have a new personal Magicae tutor.¡± Murano gave a slight smile, ¡°It''s anyone¡¯s guess who it will be!¡±

    Mevi let the message sink in. While not directly meant for her specifically, the news and intent behind it was more than enough. Mevi was training to not be overwhelmed by her emotions from now on, but something like this had to be an exception. Without a second thought Mevi hugged Murano in thanks, using him to hide a few of her small tears. The large alien magister replied in kind and let her sink for a moment. After the emotions possessing her faltered and were finally put back down deep, Mevi bid Murano goodbye and followed Alestair out of the Slipaway Connector.

 Chapter 20: Descent

    Mevi fidgeted with the glove as she and Alestair walked away from the ship her meeting was on. As the pair of them fully exited, the Slipaway Connector closed with a hiss and clank. Alestair hastened their pace, so Mevi followed as close behind as she could. As they walked she caught glimpses of Alestair glancing at her more than a couple times, but he never mentioned anything that he may or may not have seen or heard.

    As the two of them stopped in front of a short connector, Alestair quickly bid Mevi farewell. He seemed to be quite busy, so Mevi didn¡¯t think twice about it as one of his attendants told her about her crew and ship. The vessel that would ferry her down to the surface was considered an ¡°Escort Boat¡±, though the classification meant nothing to her. The ship had a stationed crew of ten loyal acolytes and initiates, with a single steward as its pilot. The ship apparently only had two decks, the main deck of the ship held small cabins for guests and a synthesizer for food. The lower deck held the crew¡¯s quarters as well as the bridge with the attached captain¡¯s cabin. The ship was apparently ¡°barely 50 meters long, but it will serve well for quick transport.¡±

    As Mevi and her new escort entered the short Slipaway Connector they quickly exited onto the main deck of the ¡®small¡¯ ship and she was greeted by a host of familiar and unfamiliar faces. Abuzz with activity and work were the crew of her transport, standing along the opposite wall of the entrance were Mevi¡¯s chosen companions and two others. Standing in wait for her, Hellion, Zelkan, Saerin, Ouapi, along with two identical sentinels and a well-dressed, and extravagantly decorated, masked individual. For a brief moment Mevi rushed forward when she saw the first sentinel, eager to meet her protector again, but as she noticed the appearance of a second she hesitated. Mevi hadn¡¯t realized how identical the sentinels were until now.

    Walking forward, her eyes on the two stiff protectors standing at attention, Mevi cautiously said farewell to her attendant. The two sentinels were identical save for one thing: one kept a pair of huge swords on their back while the other wielded what seemed to be a more elegant and keen blade and massive shield. Both massive warriors held long rifles fit with technological wizardry and a pair of holstered smaller guns at their hips, yet the smaller guns were still large enough Mevi would probably need two hands to wield one. Mevi watched them as she approached her companions, who almost seemed to be waiting for her reaction or some kind of command. Mevi desperately hoped her sentinel was among the two here, and as she stared with worry she fidgeted with the soft glove and unconsciously caressed the smooth purple gemstone. As she did she could feel the gemstone become warm to touch, and her senses heightened. She could smell the expertly-disguised scent of rugged oil and sweat hidden under powerful scent eliminators. The sounds of clanking work echoed through the deck from down below and the clicking of heels as her patient attendants shifted in place. As she focused further she could hear something strange, it was almost like breathing¡­ Air, or something that sounded like a breath, was coming from the two sentinels of all things; it hissed and had hints of intense heat, but the sound was almost unmistakably similar to quiet breathing. The quiet sounds she heard from the large warriors made them feel more alive and louder than she had ever noticed before.

    As the strange heightened focus and extreme sensation grew further, Mevi felt she could feel something deeper than basic sounds. She felt a strange energy coming from the bodies around her. Saerin glowed with purple curiosity and pink optimism. Zelkan held a brown pride riddled with yellow worry. Ouapi was a gray content with a regal blue. While Hellion had a kaleidoscope of glowing emotions and powerful warmth. The two sentinels held almost identical radiations, a white and cold blank filled their souls, but one of them was infected; a soft hue of duty and weak sense of care was glowing orange and green. A slight swirl in the should-be automotus personality.

    Mevi felt she knew which one was her protector. Approaching forward, snapping herself out of the strange trance of sensation after putting the glove into a pocket, Mevi¡¯s companions straightened. Walking in front of the sentinel wielding a sword and shield, Mevi placed a hand on the ornate golden armored gauntlet, ¡°I am glad you¡¯re with me again.¡± she said gently. The Sentinel looked down but gave no response, but with the still-lingering mystical focus Mevi felt she noticed a swell in the Sentinel¡¯s green spiral.

    Hellion clapped, walking out of line over to Mevi. The other sentinel, drawing their two swords in a flash, stepped forward protectively between him and its mistress. Reminiscent of how protective and easily provoked the Sentinel also is, Mevi quickly waved it to the side. No longer under threat, Hellion laughed, ¡°I was take¡¯n a bet to see if you could tell em ¡®part, little lady. Looks like my win!¡±

    ¡°I never agreed to a bet, I simply said there is no difference between them so our lady wouldn¡¯t tell the difference.¡± Zelkan defended himself.

    ¡°But I won too, Zel! You can¡¯t back out just because you lost!¡± Saerin added.

    The three began their bickering, it made Mevi¡¯s mood lift a little to see how friendly they had become in such a short time. Ouapi approached Mevi, and the new sentinel made no attempt to bar her steps. Urging the decorated fellow to follow next to her, Ouapi introduced the new face, ¡°This is Steward Laer¡¯kin, of the naval vocation. He will be your pilot, guide, and crew intermediary for this assignment.¡±

    ¡°And hopefully many more, my lady!¡± Laer¡¯kin said with an elegant bow.

    ¡°He has studied the geography of our destination through personal scans and available information. I am told he is quite capable.¡±

    ¡°Well, i¡¯d not want to brag, but before I was accepted by the Magi I was my colony¡¯s foremost scout and pathfinder. I can get you just about anywhere and almost always in one piece!¡±

    ¡°Please endeavor to keep us in one piece, Captain Laer¡¯kin.¡± Mevi replied with a smile.

    With the bickering about bets and debts resolved, the captain introduced his crew quickly as they ran past still preparing the ship for travel. The crew were energetic and excited, apparently on their fifth re-check of the ship to ensure its safety and readiness. They all acted with impressive formality despite most of them still being Initiates with a few Acolytes as officers. As Mevi toured the ship, the captain eventually led her to an elevator of sorts leading to the lower deck. The small and cramped space seemed to barely fit the Sentinel if they leaned forward, the only other entryway were various entry hatches with ladders that the captain insisted ¡°Our lady should not exert herself while on my ship! The crew have almost certainly made those passages filthy with oil and dust!¡± When the captain left, Mevi¡¯s two protectors attempted to follow her below deck but quickly realized how difficult it would be to fit both of their large bodies in the elevator at the same time. Mevi witnessed, for the first time, what she could only assume was a sentinel-to-sentinel conversation. The two massive warriors stopped short of the entryway and began a sort of intense staring contest. Their full helms blocked any facial expression, their bodies didn¡¯t move in any perceivable way, and no sound was made. Yet for a few short moments, no longer than a second or two, the two of them stared directly at each other with great intensity. Eventually the new sentinel turned its back and stationed itself in front of the elevator door. Mevi¡¯s Sentinel led her into the elevator, standing just behind her while leaning forward to avoid touching the ceiling.

    The lower decks were where all the tools, valves, engines, and strange devices were housed. The crew barely had privacy from each other, only a small room with curtains between their bunks. Yet the captain insisted that the living conditions were perfect for their needs, being up and about so often the beds were more or less just a place to fall over into between shifts than to properly sleep. The captain promised their quarters in Magi Odion¡¯s facility, for they were oath-bound to him, were much more accommodating.

    When the tour was finished, a sort of buzzing chime sounded. A soft beep started to sound at regular intervals throughout the ship. The captain hustled quickly to get Mevi back to the main deck. ¡°Everyone get to your stations and our esteemed guests I request you retire to your cabins.¡± he insisted, ¡°That chime means ships are about to break away and the beeping is a proximity alert to be aware of potential turbulence. The stabilizers will protect from most of the moving and shoving, but just to be safe strap in.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, captain. We are in your hands.¡± Zelkan said, hurrying to lead Mevi to one of the nearby cabins.

    Mevi and her companions quickly retired to their individual cabins, with Mevi¡¯s sentinels stationing themselves in front of the door both inside and out. Zelkan ended up getting himself trapped in Mevi¡¯s cabin due to the Sentinel¡¯s unbudging stance, having taken up the interior guard while the new sentinel took the exterior. Begrudgingly accepting the Sentinel¡¯s silent insistence, Zelkan finished helping Mevi strap herself into a sort of reinforced chair that wrapped around into a half sphere with elegant protective soft, yet firm, padded metal-looking piping and wiring. Zelkan himself took a seat on a nearby chair that was attached to the ship¡¯s wall, it had basic safety straps and he made sure his were properly tied down.

    Mevi couldn¡¯t remember the ship taking off when she was first taken by the Magi, was it as chaotic as this? There was a slight rumble beginning that seemed to come from outside, could that be the sound of the bigger ships moving? She swore that she could feel the ship swaying from side to side, grabbing the sides of the chair¡¯s protective shell to keep herself from moving. Zelkan watched Mevi carefully and even the Sentinel¡¯s head tilted slightly down towards her. She could feel a new nervousness forming, being unable to see what was happening outside made her almost scared. The flying transport through the city didn¡¯t frighten her, she could see what was happening outside. Yet here, with no windows or way to know what was happening, the unknown source of the rumbling and shaking was working its way into her nerves and fears.

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    Suddenly the captain¡¯s voice started speaking clearly from nowhere but also everywhere throughout the ship, ¡°All right crew! This is our lady¡¯s first real solar sailer ride! Let''s give her a smooth one!¡± a muffled cheer could be heard from somewhere else in the ship, ¡°My lady, don¡¯t worry about a thing. We¡¯ve got some of the best recruits of the bunch working on this vessel and I''ve only ever crashed into another ship twice in my whole career! Hold on tight and get ready, we¡¯re taking off!¡± Captain Laer¡¯kin declared with gusto.

    With a lurch, loud clanks, and a new set of beeping alarms, the ship was underway. Mevi did her best to hold on, curling up into the chair for safety as the ship began its travel. After detaching from the Barge the ship¡¯s rocking and swaying stopped, the rumbling was only barely noticeable now too, but the joke the captain made made Mevi realize, the ship could very well crash and she could do nothing to stop it.

    The ship seemed to fly stable for the duration of its departure. No new announcements sounded and even the two sets of beeping alarms eventually quieted and stopped. After a few more minutes of no strange sounds or alarms Captain Laer¡¯kin sounded from above again, ¡°We¡¯ve cleared away from the rest of the fleet. We are starting our course with haste to the planet and plotted our entry orbit. The deck is safe to walk once more, so feel free to exit and take a look outside!¡±

    Hesitantly, Mevi peaked out from the protective shell of her chair. Zelkan was already unbuckling himself like he was used to this kind of procedure. After another moment of hesitation Mevi began to unbuckle herself as well, Zelkan quickly helping speed up the process. When the both of them were safely exited from their chairs they entered onto the main deck.

    Mevi¡¯s companions were already gathered near the front of the ship, they seemed to be staring out of some kind of viewport. Enraptured by whatever they saw outside, not even Ouapi noticed Mevi right away. When she did, Ouapi moved away to let Mevi take a look outside via a real-time screen.

    The scene was both beautiful and terrifying. A fleet of ships, golden, silver, shades of black, bronze, and countless others pressed forward with orange light streaming behind them from the engines. No two ships looked even remotely alike. Some were sleek and thin like flying daggers while others bulged and were round like metallic gelatinous masses. Several of the ships moved and shifted parts of themselves as they traveled, while a seldom few seemed to entirely transform from one shape to another mid-flight. It was a massive fleet, all heading in a single direction: Demnos IV.

    The fleet was framed by an array of vast stars, sparkling and shining with such intensity that Mevi first thought the viewing screen was actually decorated with jewels. Yet brighter than even the most brilliant distant twinkle was Demnos¡¯ home star. By some trick of the viewing monitor the stars still shone despite the system¡¯s own star in full view and somehow, even staring directly at the surface of the star, Mevi¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t sting or hurt. Demnos was a purple giant of a star, Mevi had caught glimpses of Baes¡¯ star before and it seemed tiny in comparison to Demnos. The purple giant seemed to swirl and writhe with life and activity. Clouds of cosmic stuff jetting out in spectacular displays of light and energy.

    Within this frame of brilliant starlight was an impossibly large planet. Mevi could not tell how far they were from the planet, or how far it was from Demnos¡¯ star. Yet the planet, to her view, seemed to almost eclipse the bright purple light erupting behind it. Mevi had no sense for astrology or cosmics, but the scale of these celestial bodies seemed incredible.

    Orbiting Demnos IV, Mevi could easily make out at least four small planetoids. Yet they were so small in comparison to their mother planet that they might as well have been pebbles floating around a boulder. The moons shone like sparkling jewels in the radiance of their purple star, reflecting light into pinpoints of a blue-purple array of colors.

    The planet itself, in all its titanic glory, was dark as it was framed by the blinding light behind it. Yet even with the bright rays of starlight, Mevi could see something she thought wasn¡¯t real. Across the surface of Demnos IV was spottled specks of blue and large swathes of green. Almost the entire planet¡¯s surface was covered in a thick dark green, with large areas almost checkerboarded by blue. Noticing her bewilderment, Zelkan eagerly explained, ¡°My lady, this is your first time seeing a planet from space, correct?¡±

    Still enraptured by the mysterious picture in front of her, Mevi didn¡¯t even turn to face Zelkan, ¡°Yes, it is¡­ incredible.¡±

    ¡°Would you believe me if I told you those spots of blue were water?¡±

    Mevi snapped her attention towards Zelkan, ¡°That couldn¡¯t be true!¡±

    Yet even as she doubted herself, the largest body of blue on the planet seemed almost to shift and move. Mevi was sure she imagined it. A quantity of water that big? So unfathomably big that it was seen from space? Those sort of tall tales were restricted only to old texts and fairytales. Yet here it was, right in front of her.

    The group of them watched the sight for a time longer. Soon Captain Laer¡¯kin rejoined them, deciding to quietly watch the scene with them. After a time of spectacle, Laer¡¯kin approached Mevi, ¡°My lady, regrettably we must close the viewing screen for now.¡±

    ¡°But¡­ Sorry, of course, Captain. May I ask why?¡± Mevi resigned, disappointed.

    ¡°While normally we would allow a full viewing of our landing, the conditions here are¡­ strange, to say the least. The star emits a type of radiation that is dangerous to the internal sensors on our small vessel. We detect extremely small amounts of strange material echoing out of the viewing screens whenever we keep them on for too long. So we must shut them until the material is analyzed and understood.¡±

    ¡°Of course, I understand.¡± Mevi didn¡¯t understand, but knew it was better to be on the safe side.

    Mevi watched the planetoids in the purple star system for a few moments longer before the viewing screen blinked out and disappeared altogether. Leaving nothing but a golden wall in its stead. Mevi hadn¡¯t properly seen such a marvel before, nor had she ever seen a real image of a star; none of the texts she snuck to her room had depictions of such things for her to steal glances at. Mevi began to dread that this would be the first and last time she saw the star¡¯s light and brilliance.

    As Mevi turned to face her companions again, she realized they had set up a sort of meeting table and chairs in the center of the main deck. Saerin was attempting to circumvent normal programs on the synthesizer to create some kind of food, Ouapi and Zelkan worked on a sort of small console attached to the table as they edited some program, all the while Hellion seemed to be jokingly standing at attention next to Mevi¡¯s two sentinels. Hellion made such a stiff face she thought he might be sick, then he cracked into a smile. ¡°If you are done fooling around, Hellion, let''s take our places and discuss our mission.¡± Ouapi chastised.

    ¡°Alright, ma¡¯am. Just livin¡¯ the place up a bit!¡± Hellion retorted, finding a nearby seat.

    The group of them sat down, Mevi ushered to the head of the table by Zelkan. Saerin finally finished her own preparations and managed to produce a sweet-smelling warm liquid, ¡°tea¡± she called it. The drink was slightly bitter at first, but had a slight fruity taste that Mevi enjoyed. With all their number finally sitting, Ouapi began the briefing.

    The meeting, at first, was very similar to the one Alestair gave within the meeting for the higher ranks of Maphet and Odion¡¯s servants. Demnos IV was a jungle planet, massive trees and deep swamps. Thick vegetation lined every part of the ground, including the native¡¯s own cities. Cities that carved out safety in the height of the trees, the surface of open swamp, or in the depths of subterranean caves. From what information that could be gathered by monitoring the planet¡¯s primitive communication system, as well as surface-level viewing, there were four distinct factions on the planet.

    The first faction were a free-natured people living amongst the trees. Apparently having an affinity for flight and the most high tech of the four factions. These creatures had been broadcasting a signal into space for several centuries now in an attempt to contact alien life as well as study the universe beyond their own planet.

    The second faction were a practical people who lived on floating cities amongst the vast swamps and coastal regions. They were by far the most prosperous and vast of the four factions, having long since tamed the aquatic and other creatures that might normally threaten them. This animal-power gave them strong economic power within the other factions as food, labor, and war-beasts were all things the great beasts of the swamps provided.

    The third faction were dwellers in the deep. Isolationists who only tolerated conversation because of necessity. Their caves overflowed with raw materials, and their craftsmen apparently had songs sung about their skill among the other peoples, but without technology to refine and improve their skills and food to feed their people, it wouldn¡¯t matter how rich they were in the end.

    These three factions formed a strong symbiotic relationship, each carefully treading around the others to be careful not to upset their balance. From what Zelkan says, when the first signals were sent out by the more technological of the three, it almost broke their delicate alliance. Yet after a while they simply assumed it was a pipedream and they were truly alone in the universe. Hellion wondered aloud if they were regretting that ancient idea to call out into the void right now.

    Besides the main groups there was another, a fourth faction that almost escaped the information gatherers among Odion¡¯s most skilled servants. Among each of the main factions there seemed to be great civil unrest in recent years. So much so that mass exiles into the dangerous forests and jungle depths were carried out every few months. Yet these people didn¡¯t always perish in the depths of the jungle like was hoped, these exiles supposedly formed their own faction that survived by combining the skills of each faction into one in a bid for survival.

    Mevi didn¡¯t fully understand the depth of the conversation. Ouapi talked in such technical terms that Zelkan often had to ¡®translate¡¯ on her behalf. Just as the briefing was approaching the subject of the ruins Mevi would be investigating, Laer¡¯kin¡¯s voice sounded from above, ¡°My lady, crew, we are beginning our entry path into orbit. There might be a few bumps here and there, but no worries! I¡¯ll keep us stable, so no need to strap in just yet.¡±

    With the announcement Mevi couldn¡¯t help but worry. If the jostling exit from the Barge was anything similar to landing, Mevi wanted to be strapped in just in case. Zelkan noticed Mevi¡¯s obvious tension and interjected before Ouapi could start the new section of her briefing, ¡°Ouapi, I suggest we save what is remaining until we have landed. Our lady doesn¡¯t seem comfortable, I think it would be best to wait until she has calmed down.¡±

    Ouapi thought for a moment before agreeing, ¡°Understood. All that remained was geography, basic information on our task, and native non-sapient life. But it can wait.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Ouapi.¡± Mevi said, ¡°I think I will retire to my cabin until we land.¡±

    ¡°Shall I assist you in buckling in, my lady?¡± Zelkan asked.

    ¡°Please do.¡±

    Mevi dismissed herself with Zelkan and her Sentinel following close behind. Stationing themselves as before, new sentinel outside and Mevi¡¯s Sentinel inside, her guards took up their spots and Zelkan moved to start strapping Mevi into the protective chair just as a heavy bump rocked the vessel. No alarms sounded, but Mevi and Zelkan stared into the air and looked between each other for a moment of hesitation regardless. Continuing the process the buckling was suddenly interrupted by loud static blasting throughout the ship. Gargled noises like someone attempting to talk though a powerful windstorm popped through the static but nothing was understandable. Suddenly, the Sentinel grabbed the edge of Mevi¡¯s protective seat. In the same motion the Sentinel used its other arm to grab hold of Zelkan by the shoulder.

    Almost in an instant everything went black. The last thing Mevi heard was the sound of tearing metal and intense wind. Before she could understand what had happened, she hit her head against something and her vision blurred into black. The sound of a shout was the last thing that ringed in her ears before every sense vanished.

 Chapter 20.5: Sentinel

    Intense heat. Building pressure. Gravity anomaly. Fracture in ship hull detected. Deploying magnetic pedites¡­ activated. Deploying personal shield¡­ activated. Objective: protect the child. Raced the processing analysis and conclusion through Sentinel MO-M1¡¯s calculation servos. The ship¡¯s hull was punctured by a powerful explosion that rocked the entire ship. The Sentinel¡¯s internal lateral processor detected a rapid descent along the originally plotted course, far from standard procedure.

    Around the sentinel the furniture was shaking, reinforced metal was buckling, and its ward was endangered. Mevi, this sentinel¡¯s charge and ward, was unconscious from a blow against the protective casing of her seat and the sudden change in air pressure. Zelkan, identified as the 3rd most priority lifeform, was barely conscious as the pressure in the vessel changed rapidly to match what was outside. M1 had one hand holding the child¡¯s cage, while the other protected Priority 3 from falling upwards or into a wall. Both entities were protected, stable, but the projected course of the vessel being uploaded to M1¡¯s internal calculators predicted a violent crash that would result in 89% casualties. Unacceptable.

    Sentinel M1 briefly released the Child¡¯s cage, she was in no immediate danger. Refocusing its attention on Priority 3. Still holding Priority 3¡¯s arm, M1 forced the small humanoid into his chair and buckled it in. Ripping pieces of once-decorative metal bars and struts out of the wall, M1 formed a make-shift cage to protect Priority 3. Priority 3 yelled constantly, insisting ¡°Protect Lady Mevare, leave me be!¡± As his orders were in direct violation of the sentinel¡¯s emergency task analysis processor¡¯s evaluation, the directive was ignored.

    Once Priority 3 was secured, a marker on Sentinel M1¡¯s vision HUD displayed: ¡®Survival chance increased by 23%. Survival rate: 59%.¡¯ Acceptable. Additional survival rate will increase when the ship is secured. Went M1¡¯s thought process. Turning to the Child, Priority 1, M1¡¯s vision HUD displayed 62% survival rate. Unacceptable. M1 moved to the Child¡¯s cage, the small girl was still buckled and limp in the protective casing. Gently moving the Child¡¯s extremities, despite the turbulence, M1 repositioned its ward into a safer position. Then, using its immense strength, it bent the protective cage around the Child to fully encase them from harm. M1¡¯s vision HUD displayed, ¡®Survival chance increased by 19%. Survival rate: 81%.¡¯ Unacceptable. Seeking additional safeguards.

    Without any other choice, M1 left the Child and Priority 3 in the relatively safe cabin. Exiting its ward¡¯s room, M1 witnessed the chaos outside. Barely standing amidst a whirlwind of furniture, a piece of long jagged metal pierced through its left shoulder, sentinel MO-M2 stood in protection of Priority 2. Priority 2, the tan-skinned and black-haired humanoid, identified as Saerin, huddled against the vitae-leaking sentinel. M2 had pieces of its armored chassis forcefully removed or otherwise pierced by smaller shrapnel and debris. Yet it stood in protection of its charge valiantly.

    Moving quickly to secure Priority 2, M1 ignored the obviously dead bodies flying around the space. Their speed and damage made identification difficult without focus, so their identification could be ignored until the emergency task analysis processor dictated their evaluation priority. Taking Priority 2 from M2, M1 moved to a nearby cabin. Quickly closing the distance, while protecting Priority 2 from multiple pieces of flying furniture, the two of them entered the relative safety within the empty cabin. It took only moments to secure Priority 2 within this cabin¡¯s protective cage. Bending the metal the same way it did for the Child, Priority 2 was secured. Their consciousness ebbing in and out dangerously, M2 deployed an electro-stim that would put them into a more consistent state of unconsciousness. Without their mask, Priority 2 was subject to elemental and air-chemical changes that might cause them delirium and result in accidental self-harm. As the stim was administered M1¡¯s vision HUD displayed, ¡®Survival rate: 92%¡¯. Acceptable.

    Priority 2 secured, M1 moved back into the chaos of the main deck. M2 struggled to move, their right magnetic pedite malfunctioning to a point of uselessness. Yet M1 tracked their trajected course; Priority 6, the blue-skinned creature that was newly acquired and identified as Hellion. Priority 6 clung to a piece of opened panel, barely hanging on with the whirlwind around him. M1 identified its next task, as the bodies were still unidentified, and moved to secure the new objective.

    Securing Priority 6 was easy enough, yet the small blue creature¡¯s squirming made carrying him difficult. Due to the air pressure and foreign air chemistry now freely flowing through the vessel, Priority 6 was likely experiencing minor hallucinations. It was dangerous, but necessity required it, M1 administered an electro-stim before Priority 6 was safely secured in a cabin seat. With the limp body no longer fighting against salvation, M1 moved to enter the nearest cabin.

    As M1 approached the nearest door, which was opposite of the doors the Child resided, it stopped. The suction of air was beginning to increase on the side of the vessel M1 was heading towards. Anomaly detected. Pinged M1¡¯s precognitive danger proximity alarm. The device was rarely wrong, turning its back to the door and holding Priority 6 firmly, M1 prepared for an unknown danger.

    Suddenly the door ripped from the wall, exposing the vessel fully to the outside. The vessel¡¯s pressure levels were already mostly equal with what was outside, but a sudden suction of air was inevitable. One. Two. Three. Three unidentified bodies were sucked out into a great nothing. Just before a fourth body exited, the breach response shields finally activated; cutting off entry or exit to the damaged hull. The fourth body, halfway through the door when the shield activated, was cut in half with only the torso and an arm remaining.

    Time was of the essence, Priority 6 needed to be secured and remaining priorities found. Then a safe crash trajectory needed to be calculated if it wasn¡¯t already. With Priority 6 under M1¡¯s arms, M1 made its way to a nearby cabin that was uncompromised. Quickly fastening the protective straps of the seat¡¯s padded cage to Priority 6, this task was done. Yet even as the safety straps were in place, the survival rate of Priority 6 dropped rapidly. 74% went to 71%, then 67%. Unacceptable. Without visual confirmation, M1¡¯s predictive rate calculator assumed the Child¡¯s new survival rate was 72%. Utterly, unacceptable. The new factor of a catastrophic hull breach would certainly drop all of M1¡¯s priorities¡¯ survival rates by factors that were unacceptable.

    Returning once again to the chaos, the whirlwind calmed slightly with the breach mostly closed by the shield, M2 struggled to move. Scanning Sentinel Unit MO-M2¡­ Multiple fractures in chassis, internal functions compromised, internal structure shattered. Prognosis: Extreme bluntforce trauma suffered. Time until service ceases; 325.8 hours. Confirm? Processed Sentinel M1. Sentinel M2 received the request in a fraction of a second, and normally a reply would be just as quick. Yet M2¡¯s response came at an unacceptably slow 2.3 seconds late. Using its crude vocal speakers, wasting time due to severe damage no doubt, M2 reported, ¡°Higher functions compromised. Waregear compromised. Utility compromised. Requesting remote control takeover.¡± said M2 in a deep, stiff, and quiet rumble.

    Sentinel M1 didn¡¯t bother a response, if a sentinel unit requested a remote takeover that meant its thinking program was generating errors or otherwise infected with instability. M1 activated its full takeover bug, which transferred instantly to M2¡¯s primary processor. Relinquishing all control to M1, M1 and its new body moved forward. Using M2 to identify the remaining bodies, while M1 progressed down a service hatch to the lower deck.

    Just as M1 approached the door to the bridge, M2 identified Priority 4 from amongst the bodies. Priority 4, a thin, light-blue, humanoid identified as Ouapi was marked as deceased. Bluntforce trauma and extreme asphyxiation the primary causes. Summoning M2 to its side, M1 proceeded onto the bridge.

    The bridge was a mess of chaos and carnage. The left half of the platform, that should be filled with control consoles and navigational gear, was instead ripped free of the vessel and replaced by open air and a faint shimmering shield. The shield was intact, stable, but if the ambient download of information was correct; the ship¡¯s reactor was rapidly deteriorating due to an unknown cause. Manning the remaining stations were three conscious acolytes and the Captain. Priorities 7 and 5 respectively. Surprised to see something enter the bridge, the acolytes stopped their work for a moment. It took less than the length of their pause for their captain to yell, ¡°Quit your gawking, back to work!¡±

    Sentinel M1 sent a request to the Captain, directly to the Captain¡¯s nerve implant, Status. Current safety measures = inadequate. Requesting additional safeguards before crash.

    ¡°Ugh!¡± winced the Captain from the received datastream, ¡°Aeh, we are doing the best we can. Normally we would activate the atmospheric shield, but something was lodged into the reactor section. We can¡¯t draw more power until it is removed.¡±

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Confirmed. Reactor will = cleared. Replied the Sentinel, attaching the message to the already open datastream.

    Sentinel M1 turned to leave just as M2 limped to the bridge door. Sentinel M1 made to move towards the reactor section at the back end of the lower deck, but suddenly M2 grabbed it¡¯s shoulder. Error. Irregular activity detected. Deactivate. Demanded M1, reaching for its holstered handgun.

    A counter datastream was sent back, by M2¡¯s faulty processor despite the full-takeover protocol that M1 enacted. Error¡­ Rejected. Sentinel Unit MO-M2 = not in error. Sentinel Unit MO-M1 = in error.

    Explain. Demanded M1.

    Sentinel Unit MO-M2 = compromised. Utility negligible. Soon = Dead. M2 explained, Unit MO-M1 = Plan. Plan = Enter reactor alone. Result = Unit MO-M1¡¯s death.

    Sentinel Units = expendable. Retorted M1.

    Sentinel M2 spoke for the second time, a strangely human voice echoing below the monotone buzz, ¡°Then expend me.¡±

    M1 calculated the chances of success. If M1 went itself, the unknown variables regarding the state of the reactor could very well result in M1¡¯s instant destruction. Sending M2 would allow for scouting actions and an acquiring of data. Unit MO-M2¡¯s plan = not in error. Enacting strategy.

    Both sentinels marched down the crew quarters. M2 struggled to keep pace with their fully functioning counterpart, but held partial control over its own motor functions once again. M1 disregarded the catastrophic error, for now, as the destruction of M2 was almost certainly assured. The automated report after concluding this mission will inform those interested in the sudden error in personality protocol.

    The two sentinel units stood outside a heavy tri-alloy vault door. A massive safety emplacement to keep the extremely unstable energetic powers from infecting or eroding a ship¡¯s crew. Automatically connecting to the reactor¡¯s regulation sensors, M1 confirmed the presence of an unknown object and a lack of protective shielding around the reactor chamber. No gestures or instructions were required, M2 knew its duty.

    Activating the heavy door with a thought, the door struggled to open, so giving it a helping hand by ripping the heavy door back into the pocket in the wall it should normally retract into, M2 then proceeded inside while M1 gathered visual and sensory data outside. There indeed was an object lodged in the reactor, and in the hull floor, sticking out of the vessel entirely. Like something threw a jagged rocky hill at the ship and part of the weaponized terrain stayed behind. Initial visual scans recorded the probable size of the stone object to be at least 23 meters long.

    The spike of rock punctured the bottom hull of the reactor, just barely missing the main core. Instead it punctured semi-vital systems like auxiliary safety precautions such as individual cabin shielding power reserves. M2¡¯s feed gathered data, while being bombarded by intense radiation that even sentinels are damaged by. As the data was collected, the only course of action viable seemed to be to cut loose the damaged section and release the object. The ship¡¯s automatic repair system will activate after the foreign object is removed.

    M1 began entering the reactor, but before it could M2 closed the door. In a flash of movement and a powerful override code to the reactor control system, M2 blocked M1¡¯s path into the reactor. Erratic behavior detected. Explain. Demanded M1 over the shared mental link.

    Mission = Unfinished. Primary objective = Protect the Child. Sentinel Unit MO-M1¡¯s continued functions = required for mission. Conclusion /// Secondary objective = Protect Sentinel Unit MO-M1. Explained M2, cuts and pauses slowing the datastream.

    Conclusion calculations = in error. Unit MO-M2 = in error. Report to repair bay. Await further instructions.

    M1 could sense slight movement from M2¡¯s vocal utensils and vocal speakers. It was trying to talk with its vocal speakers and at the same time sending a faint datastream, M2 simply said ¡°No.¡± Then, turning its back to the reactor door, M1 was helpless but to watch M2¡¯s erratic behavior through their shared visual link. M1 had lost all control, any trace of its full takeover bug was somehow wiped from M2¡¯s system. All that remained was a partial visual takeover, allowing slight view perspectives every few moments as the signal cut in and out.

    M2 moved to the stone spike, and began its work. Taking out the energetic rifle all sentinels are outfitted with, M2 began the slow process of heating and melting the ground-side hull. The armor of the ship is thick, and automatically repairs itself when damaged, so progress was slow. Yet thanks to the foreign object¡¯s presence, the hull buckled and bent which allowed slightly easier penetration.

    The work was grueling, and took too long by M1¡¯s calculations. By the time M2 would cut enough of the ship away to remove the spike, the Child¡¯s chances of survival would only be at 87%. There must be something else M1 could do to ensure complete safety. So M1 stopped its attempts to counteract the reactive firewall M2 had erected, choosing instead to let it work autonomously for now.

    Digging into the side panels near the reactor vault door, the circuit and current routes were exposed. Identifying what fed power where, M1 began quickly remaking the circuit routes. Synthesizers = unneeded, rerouting power. Weapon systems = non-functional, rerouting power. Teardrive system = unneeded, rerouting power. M1 worked quickly and expertly, using its handgun¡¯s various heat and output settings to act as a welder and cutter. Various redundant, broken, or useless systems were cut off and rerouted. After deactivating 47 individual systems, M1 finally restored power to individual shielding units in the cabins and decks. It would take a couple minutes for them to be fully charged, but after reaching full charge the power would remain in-system for at least 84 hours.

    While M1 worked on its task to reroute power, it also monitored M2¡¯s progress. Despite its disabled state, the sentinel unit worked diligently. M1 even decided to aid the unit¡¯s error-riddled program, providing technical support in the barely functional datastream connecting them. As M2 stayed longer and longer in the reactor, its various system functions shut down faster and faster. What once was 300 hours of function was quickly cut down to less than 100 hours due to the radiation alone. Yet the unit¡¯s task was nearly finished.

    The rapid and high powered welding of the energetic rifle stalled the regenerative hull long enough to slowly move and slide the rock spike further and further out of the reactor. Before five minutes of work was done the rock spike was in a place to be forcefully removed with strength alone. Yet M1 was still barred entrance from the reactor by M2¡¯s scrap-code firewall. If M1 was in the reactor with M2 the work would have finished in less than half the time, and if M1 was there now it would have enough strength to force the rock spike out of the hull. As it stood, M2 had few options remaining.

    The reactor was leaking dangerously, if the ship¡¯s auto repair systems couldn¡¯t fix the damage soon a safe landing would be impossible. With M1¡¯s uplink to the few still-functioning ship systems, M1 calculated less than 173 seconds before their course was in an irreversible death spiral. M1 transferred relevant data to M2, and the unit knew what it had to do.

    Attaching the two handguns into the combi-slot along the top and bottom of the energetic rifle, the weapon¡¯s power quadrupled in available strength. The device was quickly swapped to force-emission, and the recoil functions were disabled. The only way to protect it¡¯s priority 1 objective was the use of its own body. Positioning itself against the rock spike, aiming at a section of hull that¡¯s circuitry was already disabled and power rerouted, M2 could pull the trigger any moment and in doing so protect their priority objective. Yet it hesitated.

    Sentinel Unit MO-M2, specifically requisitioned for the sole purpose of protecting the Child and its belongings, hesitated in performing its duty. The unit wasted precious moments as unintelligible code processed through its heavily corrupted system. As M1 attempted to invade M2¡¯s main processor with another attempt at a full takeover, the seemingly random data was partially viewable. Unit M2 seemed to be recalling¡­ Memories. Yet not reviewing data, instead recalling ancient memories meant to be deleted long ago. Things that should have been scrubbed to save space and maintain focus, to prevent such catastrophic errors as M1 was currently witnessing.

    M2 hesitated for 3 seconds, 8, 15, 20, and then 30 seconds. M2 spent 30 precious seconds reviewing ancient memories of entirely useless value, no strategic or utilitarian value was seen in these actions. Pictures of an animal, vast golden plains, scaling a towering mountain, a dark shape in the sky, sudden captivity, and then quiet silence. M2 wasted 30 seconds recalling useless data that should have been scrubbed from its systems. Yet once the 30 seconds was over, M1 received one final datastream transmission, I''m ready. Glory be to the Lords Magi.

    M1 hesitated to respond for 0.08 seconds, but eventually replied, Glory be to the Lords Magi.

    With the final exchange between the two autonomous Sentinel Units, M2 activated their fully-charged energetic rifle. Set to force-emission, the device erupted in a powerful blast. With the recoil functions deactivated the power of the blast was increased exponentially, and where M2 aimed the hull was ripped free and shot out into the open nothing. The force in front was equal in proportion to the force behind. Sentinel Unit MO-M2 launched itself and the stone spike free from the ship, flying out into the open nothing beyond.

    As M2¡¯s functions faltered due to the incredible force that nearly ripped it to shreds, M1 received a few more moments of visual transmission. The transmission showed fire and destruction raining from the atmosphere of Demnos IV. Ships were aflame as they hurtled towards the surface at speeds that would spell certain doom for those aboard. Some vessels maintained course, only to be hit with 20 meter long rock spikes that tore through or embedded themselves into the remaining vessel¡¯s hull. Swarms of flying creatures as large as some small escort vessels attached themselves to and tore at the flying vessels. Some few ships had managed to turn free of the chaos and retreat back into space, but it was a fraction of the whole. Fire and carnage rained on the jungle planet of Demnos IV. Yet Sentinel Unit MO-M1 was unfazed.

    As the transmission feed cut out, M1¡¯s vision HUD displayed updating information. Regenerative hull was reforming around the reactor, projecting time until full hull repair was 0.23 hours. Yet the repair was not the intent. With the foreign object removed, full-power deck shielding could rengage around the reactor, allowing a stable environment and power routes to be more or less reestablished. The ship¡¯s functions were recharging, and with enough spare time to ensure the Child had a 94% survival rate. The only thing that could increase this rate now was to return. So with its duty done, Sentinel Unit MO-M1 returned to its ward. Its priority 1 objective. It returned to protect Mevi, it¡¯s Mevi. As it moved to finally reenter Mevi¡¯s room, a spark shocked out from its helm, and what normally would be detected as scrap-code errors in its personality index was instead automatically dismissed without report.

 Chapter 21: Crash, Part 1

    Mevi was startled awake by a heavy crash. Shaken and tossed in her protective seat, Mevi panicked wondering what had happened. It was dark, the lights were completely out, but Mevi¡¯s eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness so similar to her native world. As she looked around to get her bearings, she noticed she was in a sort of padded metal cage. The padded metal bars made a protective sphere around her, but as she looked closer it seemed that there were imprinted hand marks in the padded metal frame. Like some powerful giant had grabbed and bent the metal.

    Just as Mevi came to this conclusion a figure stepped forward, outlined by Mevi¡¯s darkvision was the massive frame of her Sentinel. Without hesitation the Sentinel ripped the protective cage open like it was made out of paper. Assisting her escape from the chair, the Sentinel seemed to be slightly sluggish and stiff in its movements. Yet Mevi was glad it seemed mostly fine. Suddenly memories started coming back to Mevi.

    She was on a ship heading towards Demnos IV. The last thing she remembered were loud noises and a yell, then she woke up here. Looking around desperately she noticed a limp figure next to her. Rushing to the figure she saw it was Zelkan by his mask and diligently cleaned robes. Terrified of his stillness, Mevi placed her ear against where she thought his heart would be, listening closely as she waited¡­ Du-dump¡­ Mevi sighed in relief, he seemed to be breathing and alive, just asleep. Though as she looked at him, slumped over in his chair he couldn¡¯t be comfortable.

    Looking at the Sentinel was all the prompting it needed, quickly moving to action the Sentinel removed Zelkan from the restraints and set him down on the floor. Glad that he was safe and sound, Mevi needed to venture to the rest of the ship to figure out what was wrong; Zelkan could sleep for now, at least until the others were found and safe. Before she did, Mevi¡¯s memory kicked again.

    Reaching for her pocket she found the gift Murano had left her, the elegant glove with intertwining silver strings connecting at a purple gemstone. She still remembered the last strange gem she had used, the one that egged and pushed her daemon over the edge into a rage. The gemstone was so beautiful, delicate, and small. It was hard to believe something so simple could possess any power. Yet the moment she slipped the glove onto her hand she was proven wrong.

    As if a void inside of her had only just now been revealed, something missing from her soul seemed to brighten and awaken from a long sleep. Inside her soul was something, something that thought and felt on its own. Something that taunted and tormented her in her childhood. An entity that ravaged and killed her enemies in her rage. A thing she had many times wished she was without but had always missed when its presence was gone. Her Daemon awoke once more, and it wanted the world to know.

    Erupting in a burst of orange, red, purple, and white light; the gemstone shone with a spectacular brilliance. The purple stone shifted and changed hues, her daemon fought for control over the thing and infected it with a bloody red and hot white. Yet she knew the danger of letting it have free reign, fighting against the presence with the patience and abilities she had practiced in solitude for so long, Mevi repelled the daemon¡¯s advances. Fighting against the thing¡¯s will, Mevi tinted the gem orange, using the skills she learned in long meditation, in keeping her emotions calm, and focusing on her duty the gem was won over by her will and not the daemon¡¯s. Yet a fragment of the daemon was left on the gemstone, at the edges of the newly orange gemstone were wisps of red and white that swirled like stretching roots. Yet they receded, succumbing to Mevi¡¯s control.

    The light show was over, in moments Mevi had managed to reign in and stop the creature that had tormented her for most of her life. Her feeling of accomplishment made her proud, and her pride lit the room around her with a warm light that would be her guide in the darkness. Bravery newly held, Mevi ventured out of the cabin into the awaiting ship.

    The light of her gemstone flooded into the main deck, exposing the carnage and chaos to the light. A massive hole in the side of the ship was ripped wide, yet the ship walls seemed to shimmer around the damage and Mevi could have sworn she saw the wall¡­ growing back to its normal shape. Beyond the wide opening was an oppressive darkness, one even Mevi¡¯s eyes would struggle within, from Mevi¡¯s position she felt she saw small fires burning around the ship below the opening. It illuminated what looked like ancient depictions of tree trunks, standing tall and proud, reaching high into the above, beyond where Mevi could perceive.

    Yet Mevi didn¡¯t spend long gawking at the forest or distracted herself with thoughts of spreading fires, at the base of the opening was a body. A torso with a single arm, bloody and pooling gore around it, was stinking and bleeding on the once-pristine golden floor. Mevi recoiled, and her gemstone¡¯s light flashed red as her emotions spiked with surprise and horror. The Sentinel rushed forward, confused at what danger it had missed, placing itself between Mevi and the sundered opening. The Sentinel unwittingly blocked the view of the corpse, which allowed Mevi to calm slightly. Yet she felt sick to her stomach, nothing could have prepared her to see that so suddenly.

    The state of the ship was drastic. Furniture, objects, rubble, and debris were scattered across the entire main deck. Piles of things clung to the back end of the main deck, blocking the side connectors almost fully. A foul smell wafted from that direction, one eerily familiar to the corpse by the opened hull. Mevi tried her best to ignore it, instead realizing she should focus on finding survivors than digging through rubble.

    Mevi looked up to her Sentinel, wondering if it saw anything that had happened while she was unconscious or if it had simply stayed with her and Zelkan. Then Mevi recalled there should have been a second sentinel, and was curious where it had gone. Mevi looked at the opened hull and wondered if it had somehow fallen out of the ship whenever the injury to the vessel had happened¡­ Refocusing her efforts, Mevi decided on the most straightforward option, ¡°Sentinel, do you know where my other companions are? Are they safe?¡± Mevi asked.

    The Sentinel looked down at Mevi, realizing the invisible danger must¡¯ve passed. Without another word it walked towards the door adjacent to Mevi¡¯s. Opening the door forcefully, as whatever device made it automatic was probably broken, the Sentinel ripped the door open with remarkably little effort. Inside lay another person, strapped into a similar metal casing as Mevi was. The Sentinel quickly moved in and removed the figure, and Mevi was relieved to see it was Saerin. She seemed peacefully asleep, easily more so than Zelkan. Even after being picked up and placed on the floor, Saerin turned to one side as if she was simply asleep in bed and nothing was wrong. The peace she found so easily made Mevi feel a little lighter, somehow even when she was asleep Saerin managed to be an optimist.

    Mevi moved to kneel down next to Saerin, shaking her shoulder slightly. Yet her friend didn¡¯t move beyond tired annoyance. Mevi shook harder, whispering for her to wake up. After a few more moments Saerin awoke mumbling, ¡°Why¡¯s¡­ why is it so bright? What happened?¡± Mevi realized how brightly her stone was shining, reflecting the brilliant hope that was rekindled after finding her first real friend again. Muffling the light a little bit, taking a moment of effort to focus the stone¡¯s intent to a more normal volume. ¡°Sorry about that, Saerin. You need to get up, I think the ship crashed somehow¡­¡± Mevi said.

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    ¡°Crashed?¡± Saerin sat up quickly, yet still her eyes were struggling to stay open, ¡°Are you alright, Mevi?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Of course I am! Sentinel protected me admirably. Zelkan is safe too, he¡¯s still asleep though. You seemed easy to wake up when I found you.¡±

    ¡°Oh¡­ Good for me? What about the rest, or the crew?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know yet, I only just now found you¡­ There is a dead body outside, and I think there might be another buried under rubble.¡±

    ¡°Oh no¡­¡± Saerin paused, sobering up at the dreadful news, ¡°We should check for the others and go down to the lower deck to see the damage. If the main reactor is leaking or badly damaged in some way, we need to escape as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°Ok! Can you help me look?¡±

    Saerin got up, her body creaking and cracking as she stretched fully awake. The two of them ran out back onto the main deck, and Saerin had a similar response to the foul-smelling corpse. Yet compared to Mevi, she handled and overcame the initial shock quickly, like she had seen such a state before and it simply made her see pity rather than horror.

    The Sentinel began walking towards another door, attached to the room directly next to the hull breach. The two of them followed close as the Sentinel ripped open the door, this one heavier or more jammed than the last. Yet when the door was torn free of whatever restrained it, inside Hellion sat in their own safety chair and straps. The man was in quite the state of disheveledness. His clothes were partially torn in places, like he had gone through a whirlwind of razors, but seemed otherwise fine and completely conscious. Save for the odd position he found himself in. He seemed to be trying to worm his way out of the straps without unlocking them, or that he couldn¡¯t unlock them. He caught himself with one arm under a side strap while the other stuck out where his head was meant to be, all while he had slid halfway out of the straps entirely only to get stuck against the padded metal cage. Still, somehow, filled with confidence Hellion quickly addressed the onlookers, ¡°Ah! Little lady! Glad to see ¡®ur all safe ¡®n sound! Was just ¡®bout to join ya, just gimme a minute.¡±

    ¡°Hellion¡­ Do you need help?¡± Mevi asked cautiously.

    ¡°Oh this? I¡¯ll be outta ¡®ere in just a minute, all ¡®cording to plan.¡±

    ¡°You know, if you stretch your arm any further it¡¯ll dislocate.¡± Saerin commented.

    Hellion paused his attempts, ¡°I was wonder¡¯in why my arm was hurt¡¯in¡­ You know, little lady, if ¡®ur big ¡®n scary helper ain¡¯t busy¡­¡±

    Mevi moved out of the Sentinel¡¯s way and gestured towards Hellion. The diligent protector approached and hesitated, looking down at the mess of body parts tangled up in metal, wire, and straps. Carefullying tearing or bending parts of the seat to allow for Hellion¡¯s escape. The man¡¯s confidence or wry smile didn¡¯t fade the entire ordeal, despite Saerin laughing as he turned himself upside down to escape fully. Mevi held back a few of her thoughts of amusement, but was glad Hellion seemed unharmed. Standing up straight, like nothing had happened at all, ¡°Right! Little lady, Rin. I need the two of y¡¯all to go help out Zel. I¡¯mma take our big friend ¡®ere to do some weight liftin¡¯!¡± said Hellion.

    ¡°Wait, Rin..? Hrmm, fine. But what could you possibly need help lifting? We are going to go check on the lower deck next.¡± asked Saerin.

    ¡°Listen, sometimes we guys just gotta go lift heavy things. I¡¯ll only be a few, so take the little lady and wake up Zel. You might need his big brain to open things, or somethin¡¯.¡± Hellion paused his levity for a moment as he asked, ¡°Please Rin. Just trust me ¡®kay?¡±

    Something passed between them, a wordless message or a look in their momentarily serious eyes that made Saerin give in, ¡°He¡¯s not wrong. I should check up on him just to be sure, and unlike all of you I need light to see. So I''ll need your help, my lady.¡±

    Mevi was cautious of the glances between them, worried what their silent seriousness meant. Unsure exactly what was going on between them, but knowing Zelkan needed to be looked at by someone medically knowledgeable, she didn¡¯t question the idea. As she left, Mevi gave a look towards the Sentinel. She knew she must¡¯ve looked worried or perturbed, the Sentinel looked down and began to follow, something about it making Mevi feel like it was concerned in some expressionless way. Yet Hellion grabbed the giant¡¯s arm, it almost reacted by grabbing at his wrist, but Hellion whispered something to the golden giant that made it pause. It reacted in a way that was entirely new, it hadn¡¯t ever taken verbal commands from anyone but her before, usually ignoring everyone in favor of its own opinions; if it had opinions. Mevi wondered what few words Hellion had said that could have swayed the giant, but she followed Saerin back to Zelkan regardless.

    The two of them returned to Zelkan, still sleeping on the ground the man seemed calm despite not knowing his face under the mask. Saerin knelt down next to him, and seemed to hold his hand then placed her head against his chest. After which she pressed and felt at his abdomen and extremities carefully. Taking out a small pouch bundled in her robes, Searin explained, ¡°I made sure to take these with us in the Undercity, but I didn¡¯t get a chance to use them. A nice little device that helps take bodily readings and a few useful chemicals¡­¡± As Searin opened up the pouch, her mood seemed to drop sharply. The inside of the pouch was a wet mess with a small metal device of which its screen was devastatingly cracked. ¡°Oh, I programmed that scanner custom¡­¡± Saerin mumbled to herself.

    Mevi put a hand on Saerin¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I''m sorry, if the ship¡¯s functions are still capable maybe we can fix it?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°Yeah, it was just for convenience anyway.¡± Saerin let out a big sigh, ¡°Well anyway. Zel seems stable. Looks like he hit his head on something, but without taking a closer look it¡¯ll be hard to see how bad. The scanner would¡¯ve let me keep his mask on, without it we¡¯ll have to be a little intrusive¡­¡±

    Mevi suddenly realized what Saerin meant; she was going to remove Zelkan¡¯s mask. Somehow the thought caused her anxiety and excitement at the same time. She had always been curious what her advisor looked like, but breaching his privacy in this way almost felt wrong. He had always had his mask on, never once showing his face to her, and Mevi wasn¡¯t sure if she should be allowed to look without his permission. Saerin noticed Mevi¡¯s worry, ¡°We can¡¯t be sure if he¡¯s alright without me taking a look. You can wait outside if you leave that light with me, if you¡¯d prefer.¡± Searin said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think the light would work like that¡­ I will stay, we need to make sure he¡¯s safe!¡± Mevi said confidently.

    Saerin moved her hands towards the mask, the other¡¯s masks were simply slip-on that fit snuggly; Zelkan¡¯s seemed to be intertwined and almost attached to his robes. As Saerin pulled back some of the upper layers, a metal plate was revealed; like a sort of armor that was hidden expertly under the robes to be invisible to the outside, not even a hint of its shape or rigidness was noticed until now. Mevi wondered if he had always worn it or only recently. As the robes were taken away, a tight-looking undersuit of some kind was also revealed, covering every inch of Zelkan¡¯s skin. The mask seemed to clip into the metal plate and was slid into the seams of the undersuit as well. Saerin cursed something under her breath about heat stroke as each new layer was revealed.

    Saerin started to untangle the mask¡¯s silks from the robe¡¯s, then moving to the clips attached to the breastplate. As she slowly removed the clasps firmly attaching the mask in place, Zelkan¡¯s arm darted up to grab her wrist. At the same time as Zelkan¡¯s arm moving the lumens in his mask lit up, glowing to life in bright swirling colors. Both Saerin and Mevi yelped and jumped back, a bang from outside was heard and Hellion shouted ¡°Where are you going ya¡¯ big lug?!?¡± Then the Sentinel appeared in the door, hand gun drawn and searching for the source of danger. Seeing no threats in the room, it looked down at Mevi. Zelkan spoke, ¡°What kind of new perversion is this, Saerin? Undressing me in my sleep?¡±

    ¡°Perversion? I am a doctor, I am only attending to a patient who was unconscious a few moments ago!¡± Saerin retorted.

    Mevi briefly ignored them, ¡°I''m sorry, Sentinel. We were just startled, please go help Hellion some more.¡± Then turning to Zelkan and bowing her head in apology, ¡°I am so sorry Zelkan¡­ We were worried you were hurt and thought to check.¡±

    Sitting up, fixing his robes and undone clasps, Zelkan retorted, ¡°My lady! Don¡¯t feel the need to apologize, I am sure it was entirely Saerin¡¯s curiosity rather than any medical concern. And must I remind you-¡± turning to Saerin, ¡°-you are a Medical Technician. I don¡¯t think you have earned your doctor¡¯s qualifications. You run equipment, not operate on live subjects.¡±

    ¡°I know more than anyone else here, regarding medicine at least. So I claim seniority in the field of injuries!¡± Saerin retorted.

    The two glared at each other, the familiar bickering almost soothing to Mevi. Then Hellion came to the door, noticeably dirty with his hands covered in red ichor. The man¡¯s usual aloof attitude was replaced with a grim contemplation, unsure what to say he hesitated. The hesitation, the unsaid words, left fear and anxiety in the air. ¡°Got some bad news, my lady.¡± Hellion said, unusually formal, ¡°As I was afraid of, the ma¡¯am¡­ I mean, Ouapi. She¡¯s gone.¡±

 Chapter 21: Crash, Part 2

    The words hung in the air like an eternal echo. Thoughts raced across Mevi¡¯s mind, Ouapi¡¯s gone? The possibility of one of her close companion¡¯s deaths didn¡¯t ever occur to her, the idea itself was preposterous; her emotional turmoil refused the idea outright. There must¡¯ve been some mistake, Hellion simply identified a different body that seemed similar, was Mevi¡¯s conclusion. Yet the looks on the faces around her seemed to doubt her internal conclusion, like they knew what she was thinking and felt sadder for the delusion.

    Mevi raced out of the room, but before she could exit the Sentinel, of all things, stopped her. Scooping her up into hard metal arms, the lumbering warrior held Mevi in the air like she weighed nothing. Hellion didn¡¯t seem surprised, looking down at the ground forlorn, Saerin moved towards Mevi concerned but hesitated, and Zelkan stood in an unknown silence, his emotions hidden behind his mask. Mevi¡¯s mind and emotions raced, no coherent thought was passing through her. The light of her jewel spasmed wildly in color, hue, and power. Those gathered blocked their eyes, and seemed confused by the show of light, but soon the light leaked from the jewel and emanated from Mevi like a glowing beacon. The once warm orange was bleeding, red rage trying to leak in and gaining sway slowly.

    Mevi fought against the impassable obstacle that was the Sentinel, still determined to confirm the death with her own eyes. She looked at the construct, the thing blocking her path, and demanded, ¡°Release me! I need to make sure she¡¯s ok!¡± the words coming out strained, cracked, and weak. The Sentinel, despite its programmed loyalty, hesitated. It moved like it would almost put her down, but then decided otherwise. It walked into the room further, still holding the squirming girl. Placing Mevi down onto the soft bed, which was remarkably intact despite the chaos, the Sentinel held Mevi by the shoulders in place. The reaction and unloyalty was surprising to Mevi, the warrior should follow her orders and protect her! Yet even as she thought about the betrayal, an itching nerve in the back of her mind voiced her cruelness. Despite the emotional turmoil her mind was racing in a thousand different directions, like a cacophony of voices fighting for some kind of superiority. In the chaos of her own mind, despite its insistence, not even the rage of the Daemon could take hold. The pure wild thoughts of her confused emotions repelled the rage, she didn¡¯t feel rage. She wasn¡¯t angry. But a powerful sadness not felt for a long time was building, but it didn¡¯t quite break the dam of her thoughts despite its power.

    Mevi¡¯s companions looked on with pity and their own sadness, Hellion the most stable of the group outwardly. Even Zelkan was remarkably rigid and silent, even compared to his normal state. Saerin stepped towards Hellion, turning away from the sight of Mevi¡¯s weak rebellion. She and Hellion whispered to each other, the intensity of Mevi¡¯s heartbeat in her ears and the screaming in her mind blocked out any chance to understand them. The two of them left the room, and their absence and grimness only increased Mevi¡¯s turmoil. Yet the more she fought, the longer there was for the news to set in, the more exhausted she became in her struggle the sooner the truth began to penetrate her delusion.

    Mevi weakly beat her hands against the armored chest of the Sentinel, who knelt down to hold its mistress in place. Mevi¡¯s face was a twisted curl of frustration and held back tears. Despite the situation, she still tried to hold back foul emotions which only twisted her psyche further. Mevi¡¯s hands beat against the hard metal, making them sore and red. The Sentinel tried to twist or block the blows, not for its own safety but to gently stop the small girl¡¯s attempts to keep her from harming herself. Zelkan finally moved again, sitting next to Mevi and placing his own hand on the girl¡¯s shoulder.

    The strain was too great, despite Mevi trying her hardest she couldn¡¯t hold back her frustration. Without a body to solidify the terror, Mevi¡¯s tears were replaced by a quiet tremble. She fought so hard to keep herself in check, knowing the potential damage it could cause, but couldn¡¯t help when her body lurched with tearless sobs. The Sentinel seemed to realize she would no longer run away, because it let her go and stood up. The thing was so imposing, standing at its full height and looking down at her. Cruel thoughts passed through Mevi¡¯s mind; Why didn¡¯t the Sentinel protect her? What use was it if it couldn¡¯t keep all of them safe? Where was the other sentinel, did it abandon its duties, had it even tried? Mevi¡¯s mind began to find faults where before there were none, the protector having kept her and her companions alive and fought so many battles, despite its normal protocol, to save her and her group. The nagging nerve in the back of her mind grew, pointing out all of her group¡¯s inadequacies. The ship had crashed, somehow. Everyone had saved themselves without helping Ouapi, putting themselves in the safety of private rooms first. Even the Magi, in all their power and wisdom had either seen these events and done nothing or were ignorant to a danger and put her and her companions in it. Yet, even as her mind raced with passionate frustration and terrible sadness, she realized: Why didn¡¯t I do anything? Why did I fall asleep like some frail damsel? Why can¡¯t I ever protect those I care about?

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    The self loathing consumed her foul thoughts about the others. The only briefly-banished thoughts of her own failings came back in a swarm. Despite the situation, despite the countless factors both good and bad, the only thing that was consistent was her. Mevi came to the conclusion, the terrible idea, that she could be the only thing consistently putting her companions in danger. Kalesi, the first person who had ever really cared about her, nearly died because a Magi was interested in her. Her friends were nearly captured and tortured by Modrak because of Mevi''s inability to gather information and foresee an obvious danger. Murano, attacked and battered by the Magi Falcier because of his association with her; even before that, risking his life to break her free of nightmares and emotions Mevi failed to control. Now, Mevi had jumped into a situation without understanding anything. Mevi failed to take control and prevent disaster despite how obvious past events had painted her future. When things became difficult, scary, dire, or dangerous she only ever cowered or hid. Mevi came to the conclusion that the faults and dangers were all stemming from her, the only common factor.

    Regardless of the truth of her thoughts, the validity of her conclusion, Mevi quietted and the light from her stone died to a dull dim. Saerin and Hellion returned, Saerin having obviously shed a few tears evident by the redness around her own eyes. Zelkan still sat, not sure how to comfort his mistress. The situation they found themselves in was an impossibly dreadful one, even without the presence of death. Yet Mevi didn¡¯t cry, she held back the weakness. The confused rage and dread-fueled flailing was done, she refused once more her own weakness. She smothered the sadness and fear that so often possessed her. Standing, a slight tremble still echoing in her aching body, Mevi resolved herself. If she was the cause of their woes, she would be the one to fix them.

    Her tantrum over, but with the dreadful air still looming, Mevi pressed forward. She will see her companions through this disaster, and she will not give into sadness or fear. Whatever lies ahead she must face head-on, she had to do at least that much if she wanted to save anyone from an unknown planet filled with who-knows-what. ¡°We can¡¯t sit here and wait.¡± Mevi said, a tremble still echoing in her voice.

    ¡°My lady, you can still rest¡­ I know this-¡± Zelkan tried to comfort her.

    ¡°No¡­ I appreciate the concern, but we need to focus if we are to survive. We don¡¯t know where we are, there might not be any rescue coming, and we don¡¯t know the state of the ship.¡± Mevi said firmly, ¡°I cannot do anything without all of you. I know I am weak, I don¡¯t have experience, I don¡¯t have a fraction of any of your intelligences, so I need you all to stay strong with me¡­¡± Mevi spoke with a dour gentleness.

    Hellion stood straight saying, ¡°¡®Course, little lady. I¡¯ll do whatever I can.¡±

    ¡°I will always aid you, my lady.¡± Zelkan echoed.

    Saerin was quiet, her normal optimism broken by the situation around them. She walked slowly to stand in front of Mevi and took her hands gingerly. Tears not unfamiliar to Mevi were welling in Saerin¡¯s eyes, but a determination was hidden behind the exterior sadness. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re ok, Mevi?¡± Saerin asked genuinely.

    A sad smile came to Mevi¡¯s face, a failed attempt to reassure her friend, ¡°Yes¡­ But even if I weren¡¯t, we have no choice.¡± Mevi said.

    Saerin paused, it looked like something had broken in her heart to see Mevi react like this, ¡°Of course¡­ I am with you, always.¡±

    The Sentinel gave no response, but Mevi felt she could almost sense its own determination. The massive protector, despite Mevi¡¯s cruel imaginations, had almost certainly protected her and Zelkan. It would not give up, she knew. The Sentinel, seeing Mevi¡¯s brief gaze, straightened and readied itself. Mevi would certainly need her protector throughout this turbulence.

    Mevi made her way out of the room, everyone else hesitated to let her leave. The Sentinel especially seemed cautious of the tattered remains of the main deck. Yet regardless of their own fears, Mevi¡¯s newfound determination broke whatever reservations they had. Mevi¡¯s light had been dim until now, but grew into a deep orange; the light¡¯s warmth all but gone, replaced by a stiff duty and hard will. At the edge of the light Mevi could see the pile of rubble moved slightly to unveil a partially covered body. The light-blue tint of skin peaked out from the ragged robes. Despite Mevi¡¯s false confidence, she couldn¡¯t bear to look upon the body further. She feared how she would react to see the state her dead companion was in, so instead she stared hard at the patch of blue for a moment of silent prayer. A secret hope that something was listening and would take care of Ouapi now that she was gone.

    The next course of action was clear, if Mevi¡¯s memory served. The reactor, the thing that powered this near-magical ship, needed to be found and checked on. If there were any other survivors they needed to be saved and gathered up. To survive, Mevi knew as many people as possible were required. Whatever lay in wait in the looming darkness outside was unknown, and if past events were any example it was almost certainly dangerous. Mevi reassured herself, ¡°I will keep us safe, we will return¡­¡± she promised herself, and then whispered, ¡°I will return and finally save you, Kalesi¡­ I will never give up.¡±

 Chapter 22: Survivors

    Mevi pushed past the scene on the main deck, knowing her newly forged determination would likely shatter the moment she fully saw Ouapi. Choosing instead to lead the group down into the depths of the ship. The elevator was nothing but a sparking broken mess, so she began towards a service hatch she remembered the crew using during their introductions. Before she could begin climbing down the dark ladder, Zelkan stopped her, ¡°My lady, we don¡¯t know what could be down there or how dangerous it is. Please have the sentinel go forward first.¡± he asked, a hand placed on her shoulder gently.

    Mevi hesitated, not wanting to stay on the main deck for any longer than necessary, ¡°Sentinel?¡± She asked, still unsure.

    The massive warrior knew her wish without her needing to speak it. Leading the way down the hatch, the heavy clanks of metal boot against metal rungs and hard plating echoed loud as the warrior¡¯s bulk pressed against the ladder. It descended without issue, but from the top Mevi could see it carefully staring into the dark below as it stood at the base of the ladder. Mevi wondered what it could see down there, and why it was taking so long to confirm its safety. After a few more moments, the Sentinel finally looked back up to Mevi and silently reached a hand up; this was probably its confirmation to come down.

    Mevi climbed down the ladder, using the Sentinel¡¯s offered hand to further steady herself on the greasy metal bars and rungs. The rest of her retinue joined her in the dark below. Above, some little light was let in from fires and sparks, below only Mevi¡¯s jewel offered any light. She willed the thing to shed its aid across the dark, as even her eyes struggled in the complete dark the lower deck found itself in.

    Light shed across the space, revealing the complete chaos that had wreaked havoc on the lower deck. Even worse than the main deck, this place was nothing but piles of rubble, broken cargo, metal spikes erupting out of the walls, and broken hull. In some parts large jetting rocks even punctured the bottom of the hull like the ship had crashed against a sharp mountain and got itself stuck. The sharp metal breaks and stoney punctures made the place reminiscent of the Undercity, like a dark cavern that housed who knows what type of monstrosity waiting among the shadows.

    Just as Mevi had the thought of some unknown beast attacking from the dark, a shout rang out further into the lower deck. A cry of pain, a man shouted loudly; someone was still alive! Mevi thought, a little hope returning to the light of her gemstone. Mevi looked at the Sentinel and it knew she would move forward with or without it, so leading the way the Sentinel cleared a path through the rubble and debris. Shoving aside fallen technology and tangled wires to make a path mostly traversable. The lower deck seemed more skewed than the main deck, it bent forward at a noticeable angle that made stumbling easy and one wrong move could make you roll until you hit something. The Sentinel led them down this decline, making sure to pace itself and stay within arm¡¯s reach of Mevi as she struggled to stay upright.

    As the group finally conquered the terrain and made it to the end of the ship that should have been the bridge, another shout echoed out; obviously originating from within the bridge itself. The Sentinel didn¡¯t hesitate, it seemed to know they were here to find the source of the yell and help them, it moved to the door and tried to open it normally. When that failed it simply ripped the door off its hinges. It took several strong yanks, each one resulting in metal buckling and latches breaking, but by the fourth yank the door broke free and revealed the interior.

    Inside a single red light shone just enough light to outline the room. What once was barely dim suddenly flooded with the bright light of Mevi¡¯s jewel, an audible flinch, ¡°Aagh!¡± was heard from inside in response to the sudden light. The bridge was a mess, earth and ground pierced the interior from a hole in the hull tearing open more than half the bridge. Laying in the middle of the bridge was a large metal beam that somehow broke free of the ceiling, crashed through the walling, and now lay collapsed across a struggling person¡¯s legs. Besides the obvious, two others seemed alive. A man was struggling to lift or move the beam off the legs of their friend, while captain Laer¡¯kin leaned against a control panel and struggled against gravity; somehow his left arm was hewn clean off with the stump bound tightly with scrap cloth dyed red with blood, and his left leg seemed crumpled and bent in a way that looked completely broken. Turning to the intruders, Laer¡¯kin let out a heavy sigh of relief, ¡°My lady! I am so glad to see you safe! We are trying to handle the situation, please return to your-¡±

    Mevi cut him off, ¡°Sentinel, please help that man.¡± Mevi directed at the man pinned under the metal beam, ¡°Captain, I understand your worry but we need to work together. We are here to help.¡±

    ¡°Please my lady, I couldn¡¯t let you risk or strain yourself!¡± he pleaded.

    ¡°Captain, we aren¡¯t in a situation where we can remember the ranks and etiquette of the Holy Barge. Please, allow us to help.¡± Mevi said firmly.

    The Sentinel moved into the bridge, easily lifting the metal beam off the legs of the pinned crewman. The Captain watched and slowly realized she was right, protocol, etiquette, rank, status, and everything else; nothing mattered right now. Hesitating, but straightening with confidence, the captain asked, ¡°My lady¡­ I feel I could direct our efforts best, would you give me permission to use your retinue?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Please, just keep in mind everyone¡¯s safety.¡± Mevi replied, cautiously scanning the chaos of the bridge.

    ¡°Thank you, my lady. Technician Saerin, I am aware you have some knowledge in medicine and surgery. We have one still-functioning fabricator with a built in synthesizer further back in the cargo hold according to scanners, please take Acolyte Tzark and requisition as many medical supplies and implements as possible; anything you think would be useful to treating the wounded and survival in an unknown jungle environment, preferably any vaccines and counteragents for poison and all-purpose antivenoms if you know of any.¡±

    ¡°Of course, I have memorized enough formulae to stock this entire ship of medicines!¡± Saerin replied, quickly leaving after the only mobile acolyte had ensured the safety of their wounded friend.

    ¡°Chief Attendant, Zelkan, I am aware you have some familiarity with technology?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I have a broad understanding of most devices, even some brief piloting training.¡± Replied Zelkan.

    ¡°Good, I need someone to help me operate these controls. The auto repair is going haywire, engines are shot, and who knows what else is going wrong due to computer incompliance. Begin fixing the code and redirecting mechanical pathways manually as best you can.¡± Commanded the captain, gaining more confidence with each declaration.

    ¡°Of course.¡± Zelkan said, looking briefly at Mevi before rushing to a terminal.

    ¡°Finally¡­ Hellion, I read you survived in the Undercity and have experience with military affairs. I need you to scout the perimeter and check for damage or obstacles our scanners can¡¯t see. It might be dangerous.¡±

    ¡°Danger? Ha! You came to the right man. I¡¯ll get everythin¡¯ checked out!¡± Hellion said confidently, giving Mevi a wink before returning back to the main deck.

    ¡°My lady¡­¡± the captain hesitated, ¡°Our scanners cannot penetrate the protections around the reactor in their current state. I need your sentinel to check on its status personally, but the radiation¡­ It could damage it.¡±

    Mevi looked towards the Sentinel, it having finished rescuing the trapped and hurt crewman, ¡°Sentinel?¡± It looked to its mistress instantly, ¡°Can you safely investigate the reactor?¡± Mevi asked.

    Without any further words the Sentinel simply began to walk back out to the cargo bay of the lower deck behind them. Heading towards the reactor, Mevi could only hope there weren¡¯t any real dangers; for anymore of her companions to get hurt would risk fully breaking Mevi. She worried about the dangerous tasks ahead, but even she could tell their necessity in such a precarious situation. Finally the captain turned to Mevi, ¡°My lady, I know you commanded me to enlist your help¡­ But we cannot perform our duties if we worry about your safety. Our minds would be most at ease if you are close at hand. Please, if you don¡¯t mind, attend to Acolyte Tanaka.¡± Laer¡¯kin looked in the direction of the wounded man, who was still groaning in pain despite being freed from the obstacle.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Mevi begrudgingly agreed, she couldn¡¯t think of any way she could help in this situation and would just get in the way. So moving to the injured man, Mevi tried to help him get more comfortable. Not wanting to risk hurting him further, and cautious from the state of his legs, she couldn¡¯t do much for him besides clear the rocks and rubble away so he could lay down in relative peace. He groaned and squirmed, but his legs were completely still and imobile. Reaching up to grab Mevi¡¯s arm, his hands were bloody and his face was cut and bleeding enough to blind him. ¡°Kami¡­ Is that you?¡± he asked.

    ¡°I''m sorry, I don¡¯t know who that is, my name is Mevare.¡± Mevi said gently.

    ¡°Where is Kami? I can¡¯t see her, where did she go?¡± the man tried to look around as he squirmed and quaked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know where she is¡­¡± Mevi looked briefly at Laer¡¯kin for advice, but he simply shook his head sullenly, ¡°When you get better we can look for her together.¡±

    ¡°Oh Kami¡­ Where did you go?¡± his voice trailed off, and he seemed to finally fall unconscious.

    Saerin was nowhere to be seen, and Mevi didn¡¯t know what to do to help the wounded man. Without any direction she sat next to him and allowed the man to rest his head on her lap, she tried to clean the wounds on his head with her robes as best she could. Deep gashes on the right side of his face and across his forehead, a sharp cut penetrated into his right eye that looked like it would be permanent. He breathed fitfully, coughing even in his sleep, but he could barely move due to his injuries and mostly stayed put.

    It wasn¡¯t long until the acolyte that went with Saerin returned, bearing bundles of medical equipment and medicines. Tzark, the acolyte, briefly worried over the blood covering Mevi so suddenly, but she brushed his concerns aside. This man, Tanaka, needed the attention and care not her. The thought of this man, of all the crew, having fought for their lives and struggling to fix the ship even as it crashed made her strangely proud of them. Yet her own faults reared their head amongst her budding affection towards the crew who tried so hard to protect and transport her. Mevi couldn¡¯t help but think about how hard everyone had been working, how much they struggled and fought, all while she was safely put away from danger and had been asleep until after the crash. If all she could do was be a cushion and comfort for a hurt crewman, she would do this to the best of her ability.

    Saerin eventually returned, Tzark having begun basic triage for the wounded and bleeding Tanaka. Saerin didn¡¯t bring up Mevi¡¯s bloody clothes, nor did she question her decision to sit with and comfort the wounded, instead she worked immediately. Watching Saerin work was mesmerizing. Her hands were so swift it was difficult to see if she was setting bones, stitching cuts, or injecting medicine. Yet she quickly bandaged and stitched Tanaka back together, splinting his legs and cleaning his deeper wounds with precision. The man quickly slept quieter, with the aid of whatever medicine Saerin gave him.

    Briefly after Saerin finished her work, captain Laer¡¯kin suddenly bent over clutching his head in pain. Saerin¡¯s other patient needed attention, but as Saerin ran over to the captain and tried to fix his bandages he pushed her away. ¡°Don¡¯t mind me. Already wrapped myself up as best i¡¯ll be¡­¡± Laer¡¯kin winced again suddenly, ¡°That thing sure talks a lot huh?¡± he mumbled.

    ¡°Captain, you need to have these wounds cleaned and you should be medicated.¡± Saerin insisted, ¡°I have no idea how you''re still standing in all honesty.¡±

    ¡°Fine as long as you can patch me up while I work, do whatever you want.¡± Laer¡¯kin turned briefly to Mevi, ¡°Your sentinel has finished investigating the reactor. All seems mostly in order, automatic repairs have begun and the damage to the hull around the reactor is aparently already mended.¡± Laer¡¯kin reported, wincing through the pain of Saerin¡¯s treatments.

    ¡°That sounds like good news. Is the Sentinel safe too?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°It looks like the thing didn¡¯t sustain any permanent damage, it was only in there for a minute or two, so it¡¯ll fix itself up quickly enough- gaah!¡± Laer¡¯kin¡¯s leg jolted after Saerin¡¯s latest medication was injected, ¡°Woman!¡± he suddenly snapped, ¡°I apologize¡­ Please refrain from any invasive surgery, you can do that later if needed.¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t even begun any real treatments, your leg is under so much stress from multiple fractures, two breaks, and your foot is all but mush! If you don¡¯t lay down soon and let me fix this, it''ll need to be amputated.¡± Saerin complained, ignoring his protests and continuing her own work.

    The two grumbled against each other as the Sentinel reentered the bridge. It stared for a few moments at Mevi, maybe analyzing the blood newly coating her robes and checking for wounds, but quickly fully approached. Her shadow was once more sanding by her side, but she didn¡¯t feel any better as the incredible situation still pressured her greatly.

    Zelkan, Laer¡¯kin, and Tzark each worked diligently on the still-functional terminals, trying to reestablish power and focus the ship¡¯s automatic repair systems. As time clawed by, Mevi became worried that Hellion hadn¡¯t returned yet. The captain had sent Hellion out on his own, so Mevi had hoped it was a simple task to look around the ship and come back, but as the minutes dragged along her worry gained more and more traction. Even Saerin was looking towards the bridge door every once in a while, like she also expected Hellion should return soon. Mevi was moments from standing up and insisting they send out a search party when Hellion finally burst through the door. ¡°Have I got a treat for us!¡± Hellion suddenly yelled as he entered the bridge.

    Everyone jumped, besides the Sentinel, startled by the sudden entrance, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you man?¡± Laer¡¯kin demanded, ¡°Our ship doctor is performing delicate, and painful, procedures here!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so dramatic, all I am doing is minor splinting and tissue repair. You are more of a baby than you made yourself seem earlier.¡± Saerin rebutted.

    ¡°Well, not to distract y¡¯all, but I went ¡®an found somethin¡¯!¡± Hellion insisted.

    ¡°We are busy, get on with it if it is something significant.¡± Zelkan said, mostly ignoring the posturing.

    ¡°Well the mood in ¡®ere is mighty awful¡­ I¡¯m hopeful what I went and found will lighten up this-here band of ¡®unfortunates¡¯.¡± Hellion paused for suspense, ¡°I found¡­¡± he paused again, ¡°A river!¡±

    Silence deafened the room. Those working paused their vital tasks just to bask in the¡­ absurdity of his declaration. Saerin let out a heavy sigh, and Zelkan couldn¡¯t help but hang his head for a moment. ¡°What¡¯s with ¡®ur sigh¡¯in? A river is useful!¡± Hellion defended himself.

    ¡°I won¡¯t disagree, with our current power levels it would be important to preserve resources as best we can¡­¡± Laer¡¯kin began, ¡°But we really have other things to worry about.¡±

    ¡°Exactly! Now we got one thing off the list!¡± Hellion said proudly.

    ¡°You know I was worried about you for a few minutes! I would like those minutes off my lifespan back please.¡± Saerin teased.

    ¡°Oh? Worried ¡®bout little ol¡¯ me? Well, ¡®sides the river I did spot a lot of other things ¡®round ¡®ere.¡±

    ¡°Please give us your report, we don¡¯t have time to dawdle.¡± Laer¡¯kin requested firmly.

    ¡°So, for starters, we¡¯re in a forest!¡± everyone sighed heavily after Hellion¡¯s attempted joke. ¡°For real tho¡¯, the forest is big. Those trees block any light that might get in. The bushes ¡®n littler plants are nothing to laugh at neither. Big ol¡¯ shrooms ¡®n flowers or some such.¡± Hellion took out something he had stored in his robes. ¡°Somethin¡¯ walkin¡¯ ¡®round out there¡¯s big too.¡± He produced what looked like a large rock, a sharp and jagged rock on one side that had specks of red ichor at the base. The rock was easily the size of Hellion¡¯s fist, maybe twice as big. ¡°Somethin¡¯ ¡®round here is big, and left a big mess outside¡­¡±

    Mevi¡¯s mind shot back to the visions of the dead found so far, her anxiety got the better of her and she couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°What kind of mess..?¡±

    Hellion hesitated for a second, ¡°Looks like whatever this belonged to liked meat. Big ol¡¯ pile of gore outside from somethin¡¯ that was bigger than a speeder.¡± Hellion explained.

    The revelation startled Mevi. If she knew what a speeder was, that would be as big as the shuttle her and her companions took to the royal docks. Something bigger than six people, not to mention the room between and around to fit those people, a creature that size sounded like a monster straight from the Bensari archives. A creature only talked about in whispers or to scare children, the creatures that supposedly inhabited the planet her moon-colony orbited. A creature like straight out of myth and legend was near their crash site so recently? ¡°That¡¯s not all.¡± Hellion began again, ¡°Since we¡¯re near a river, that¡¯ll draw in all kinds of trouble. Beast ¡®n critters¡¯ll show up from all around after not long I¡¯d guess. Both to drink from the river, ¡®n to check out the ship¡­¡± He paused for a moment, thinking about his next words carefully, ¡°The bodies will just attract ¡®em faster¡­ We might need to burn ¡®em soon, else that big critter might show up.¡±

    ¡°Burn..?¡± Mevi mumbled, horrid thoughts flitting across her mind.

    ¡°You would suggest such a blasphemous act, Hellion?¡± demanded Zelkan, ¡°You would forgo our rights and the traditions of our lords?¡±

    ¡°Not to point out the obvious, but we ain¡¯t got much a choice. We can¡¯t perform a ceremony, and we certainly don¡¯t got anywhere to put em. Ship¡¯s in ruins and just strugglin¡¯ to put itself back together.¡± Hellion retorted, sounding almost frustrated.

    ¡°But to suggest burning¡­¡±

    ¡°I regretfully¡­¡± Laer¡¯kin interrupted, ¡°I think I must agree with Hellion. Our preliminary reports suggest intense density of fauna, many of which seemed to register as possible megafauna. If even a small percent of the creatures detected through the fleet¡¯s scans are carnivorous¡­¡± Laer¡¯kin let the train of thought trail off, everyone knowing what he meant without the necessity for words.

    Zelkan turned back to the panel he worked, deciding to focus on what was in front of him, but his rigid and sharp movements betrayed his own frustration and disapproval. The group was quiet again, Mevi wasn¡¯t sure what a proper funeral should be but even she thought the idea of burning corpses was brutal. Laer¡¯kin slowly got back to his own work, but the tension remained in the air like a stranglehold.

    Almost as if it had been waiting for its moment to interrupt the group¡¯s dreading, a loud cracking and tearing sound echoed from somewhere. Its volume was such that it felt right outside the door of the bridge. The terrible noise was some part mountainous rumble and another part like high-pitched tearing metal; and it was unmistakably a call of some monstrous creature. The yelling call had managed to clearly echo from far outside and into the bowels of the ship, reaching all the way to the secluded bridge in the lower deck. The Sentinel sprang in front of the group to block the doorway before anyone realized what the incredible call could even represent, but its intent was clear; something was coming.

 Chapter 23: Fear

    There was a pause after the echoing cry of some unknown beast slowly died out. What it was, how far it was, or how dangerous it might be was all entirely unknown. The Sentinel stood at the bridge door, scanning the lower deck for dangers like something might jump out of the shadows and attack. Those still conscious were dead silent, each of their instincts screaming to be silent, make no sudden movements, and to hide. Each of those present waited and watched the Sentinel carefully, its senses and instincts stronger than any of the ship¡¯s faulty sensors. As the last vestiges of echoing sound rang out and disappeared completely, the Sentinel slowly began to lower its guard. For the first time, Tzark spoke up, ¡°We can¡¯t stay here! Whatever that thing is will kill us for sure! We need to leave, or this ship¡¯ll become our coffin!¡± the acolyte said, his words shaky and unsteady as fear filled his lungs.

    ¡°Pull yourself together. Our best chances are to get this ship operational, after which we can leave.¡± Lear¡¯kin said, but almost in a way like he was reassuring himself instead of his crewman.

    ¡°Excuse me ¡®captain¡¯, but it''s obvious even to me that this ship is skuttle! We need to find some kind of shelter, or maybe look for the natives!¡±

    ¡°Silence!¡± Lear¡¯kin demanded, ¡°We will do no such thing, we have wounded and running would only make us a target while we limp our way out.¡±

    ¡°Captain¡­¡± Tzark said with an impish tone, desperation filling his heart, ¡°We could leave Tanaka behind. And you¡¯re tough enough to run on a broken leg, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Mevi interrupted, ¡°We won¡¯t leave anyone behind or abandon them. We can find a way out of this together.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me ¡®ma¡¯am¡¯, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯re in charge anymore. No offense.¡± Tzark replied dismissively.

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget yourself, Acolyte.¡± Lear¡¯kin growled.

    ¡°She said it herself, rank doesn¡¯t mean squat out here. If all of you are intent on staying in a death trap, suit yourself. I want to survive, and I memorized the geography of our crash site before we lost scanners. I wanted to bring you all with me, but if you refuse to come I will leave alone.¡± Tzark snarled back, a barely hidden hostility baring its fangs.

    ¡°Acolyte!¡± Lear¡¯kin shouted, trying to put an end to his impudence.

    ¡°Wrong! My name is Tzark Nelevanna! I refuse to participate in your slow suicide. I¡¯ll be faster on my own anyway.¡± Tzark then turned to Mevi, softening slightly, ¡°My lady, it was a pleasure to meet you. We can still leave together, you don¡¯t have to die here. You can bring your companions and leave this fool of a captain to his death. Let¡¯s get out of here before it''s too late.¡± he said, a foul intent lurking behind his facade of care.

    ¡°I will not abandon the injured. I think you should stay with us, we will surely be stronger together. Please¡­¡± Mevi asked, trying to muster as much sympathy and reason as she could.

    Tzark¡¯s mood instantly became more foul. Scowling at Mevi like she was some kind of sick leper begging him for salvation. The man looked between her, his once-captain, and the rest of the retinue. Realizing that he was the only one who held his opinion, he turned to leave. Spitting his distaste onto the ground as he left. ¡°Acolyte! Cease this madness!¡± Lear¡¯kin demanded, ¡°Sentinel, stop that man from leaving!¡±

    ¡°Belay that order.¡± Zelkan interupted, ¡°If this fool wants to leave on his own, let him. I would not allow such disrespect to our lady to stay here in the first place.¡±

    Lear¡¯kin scowled at Tzark as he walked towards the door. The Sentinel barred his way, and seemed to be analyzing the small Acolyte as Tzark stared up at the massive warrior. After a few moments, the Sentinel stepped to the side and allowed Tzark to leave. The disgruntled man didn¡¯t look back, leaving the threshold of the bridge and breaking out into a run for the main deck and beyond.

    The scene left Lear¡¯kin almost trembling, but with fear, worry, or rage Mevi couldn¡¯t tell. Zelkan stared towards the darkness Tzark left behind, his emotions hidden by his mask. All the while, Searin had been doing her best to ignore the outburst and was trying to focus on Lear¡¯kin¡¯s injuries, yet she was obviously disturbed. Mevi stood there, not sure exactly how to react; it was his right, she thought, to leave if he didn¡¯t want to be here. Yet some part of her had believed she could convince him with gentle words alone like she had done with others up until now. She didn¡¯t know what was out there, in the darkness of the forest, but she did quietly hope he would survive and make it to salvation like he so believed.

    A somber mood took over the group, but everyone continued their tasks and diligence. Hellion seemed uncomfortable, like he was waiting to say something but couldn¡¯t find the confidence to bring it up. He milled over his thoughts for a while, shifting his weight back and forth on his legs as he processed whatever he was thinking about. After a few minutes had passed since Tzark left, Hellion finally decided to speak up. ¡°Not to dredge up somethin¡¯ foul again¡­ but we gotta figure out what to do with the corpses.¡± Hellion said, his words like an executioner¡¯s axe coming down on the tension among the group.

    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Lear¡¯kin muttered, ¡°I had almost forgotten¡±

    ¡°Listen, I know y¡¯all don¡¯t agree. So I¡¯ll go an¡¯ do it myself. Just stay ¡®ere, but with that thing out there, all the noise from the crash, ¡®an everything else... We gotta get rid of some bad factors.¡±

    The grim tension returned to the room, having only briefly left for a few seconds after Tzark had stormed out. Saerin stopped her work on Lear¡¯kin. Standing up, emotion twisting her expression into a sad pain. ¡°I have finished my due diligence here¡­ I will help you. I can at least say part of our prayers, and hope the Magi forgive us.¡±

    Hellion gave Saerin a nod, looking towards Mevi. She wanted to say she would go with them. She wanted to pay her respects and honor the memory of those who had died under her care. Yet the vision of gore, the glimpse of ragged blue skin, the very idea of seeing those scenes again terrified her. Mevi stood still, incapable of a real response. Hellion seemed to understand, and turned to leave. The two of them, Hellion and Saerin, left for the main deck. The Sentinel watched them leave, almost like it wondered where they were going. Mevi couldn¡¯t bear to watch them perform their duties, but she couldn¡¯t send them out alone. Walking next to the Sentinel, Mevi quietly asked, ¡°Please¡­ Go with them, just in case. Bring them back if there is any danger.¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    The Sentinel watched its mistress give her commands, then it looked towards the two leaving for the main deck. It seemed to understand, but lingered for a moment as it stared down at Mevi. The thing looked at her, its face completely hidden behind its golden armor. Yet every once in a while, the glimmer of red eyes peered out of the thin black slits in its full helm. It watched her for several seconds, then it turned to comply with its mistress¡¯ directions. The three of them left, leaving Zelkan, Mevi, and Lear¡¯kin in the room with the strained breathing of the unconscious Tanaka.

    Mevi wasn¡¯t sure exactly what she could do to help the restoration efforts. Yet not wanting to bother or interrupt the work of those with important tasks, she resigned herself to tend to Tanaka. Sitting down next to the man, he still breathed and heaved fitfully every once in a while. His legs splinted and covered by a blanket, Mevi began tending to him. A bowl with chilled water was next to him, and a discarded piece of cloth lay half submerged. Mevi noticed how red and irritated his skin looked, placing a hand against his cheek it was easy to tell he was burning up. Saerin was nowhere to be seen, having left with Hellion, Mevi wondered what to do. Yet without direction, and not wanting to be useless anymore, she figured wiping away his beeding sweat and cooling him down would hopefully help.

    Mevi couldn¡¯t help it when her thoughts began to drift during her work. She thought about how painful this must be for Tanaka, how much Lear¡¯kin¡¯s life will change because of his injuries, Ouapi, the dead or missing crew, she thought about how much everyone had suffered so far. She wanted them to be safe, she hoped they would get better with time, she silently prayed there wasn¡¯t some divine punishment to those who were lost or now being unceremoniously cremated after death. She didn¡¯t know much about religion, and she knew nothing of the afterlife, but she cared so deeply for those when they were alive she wished there was something after to ease their pain. That is all she wanted, she wanted their pain to be less. She frustrated as she cleaned Tanaka¡¯s face, arms, legs, and body of the sweat and pain that his fever caused. She wished for the pain to lesson, that he would feel better and that no more hurt would be had from any of her companions or crew.

    As Mevi focused, despite her drifting thoughts, her emotions began to leak into her work. She couldn¡¯t stop her empathy from seeping into the light her stone provided. Slowly, and carefully, a soft teal began to leak into the otherwise static light. What had become simply a stiff source of illumination was being dyed a small, and slow, amount of colors. No one noticed, the infecting emotions were conjured so slowly as Mevi was lost in her duties to her wounded and sick patient, but the color was there.

    Saerin, Hellion, and the Sentinel returned. Quietly, somberly, and with a dark air around them with wafts of smoky smell swirling about them. They returned to witness as both Zelkan and Lear¡¯kin had paused their own work, all of them now watching Mevi weave strange colors through the air and light into and out of Tanaka. None of them dared to speak, none of them risked interruption. Mevi was entirely oblivious to her audience or to the strange rhythm she had begun to experience as she wove her care into the simplest of movements. A green light echoed quietly where Mevi¡¯s hands touched Tanaka¡¯s skin, a careful touch and diligent determination shown as evidence of her deep dedication to her people. Streaks of green light would soon hover through the air, linger against skin, or swirl in spirals around the gemstone glove. Mevi¡¯s powers were awakening once again.

    Something about Mevi, some part of her soul yearned so badly to fix, heal, care, and protect her people that it began to manifest. Mevi had devoid herself of her emotions, she had been practicing keeping calm and pushing out all emotions she could for fear of them, that when she did begin to feel something she thought was harmless she let it manifest fully. Her empathy completely filled the void that she had made in her heart, the nothing was filling with love and thoughts of her friends. This materialized so obviously that even those unattuned to the Magicae arts could see the spectacle for what it was; a miracle.

    Mevi¡¯s awakened emotion began to calm, her dance of care was winding to its conclusion, and Mevi¡¯s thoughts began to return to normal. She remembered Kalesi, Saerin, Zelkan, and all they had done for her. Her truest friends, and she had finally noticed her inferno of emotions collecting inside of herself. In what felt like an eternity of colors and magic, but was really only minutes, her audience watched as the teal and green wisps sputtered out and were replaced once again with the stiff light of her voided thoughts.

    The first person to stir, the first person to interrupt the spectacle, was none in the audience. It wasn¡¯t even Mevi snapping back to reality, but Tanaka. Tanaka stirred and awoke, twisting upwards to sit up as he looked around confused. Mevi was startled fully out of her trance-like state. ¡°Please, lay back down. You¡¯re wounded!¡± Mevi asked gently, trying to pull him back down carefully.

    ¡°Agh, who..?¡± Tanaka mumbled, noticing Mevi, ¡°My lady? I feel¡­ I feel fine, but what happened? I remember the alarms and trying to repair the thruster system, then a crash¡­ We crashed, didn¡¯t we?¡± he suddenly became sober.

    Saerin now rushed over, snapping out of the trance Mevi¡¯s dance had also put her in, ¡°Tanaka, you need to lay back down. Both of your legs were badly broken, you need to recover your strength and rest.¡± she explained.

    ¡°What? I feel sore, but what are you talking about?¡± Tanaka asked, confused.

    He pulled in his leg, and began to stand. To everyone¡¯s complete shock he began to stand. What had been little more than crushed bone, torn skin, and splinted bandaged messes were now standing; albeit wobbling slightly. Tanaka winced and clutched his left leg and he stood unaided, dropping to a knee. ¡°Fine, ok, maybe I did hurt something. Damn, my leg is cramped, is this what a broken bone feels like? It''s not too bad.¡± Tanaka said, smiling as if to lift the mood.

    No one responded to his jest. Everyone had seen his legs. They were crushed by several tons worth of metal, they were all but destroyed. Saerin had said under her breath during his care that amputation might be the only way to prevent an infectious death. Yet here he was, standing before their eyes as if that had never even happened. Eyes were naturally drawn to Mevi, as Mevi herself stared in disbelief. ¡°My lady¡­¡± Zelkan said dumbfounded, approaching just behind his mistress.

    ¡°Zelkan, I don¡¯t know¡­ Did I?¡± Mevi sputtered, confused and aghast at the implication.

    ¡°Mevi¡­¡± Saerin began, ¡°You healed him¡­ Not completely, but you repaired his legs¡­ Not even our best Mana-gel chambers could do what you did in that time¡­ How did you-¡±

    Mevi didn¡¯t know. She couldn¡¯t know. But what she did understand, was the pain seeping into her skull. A pounding sound was echoing in her head that deafened any other noises. She reached for her head, as if she could tear out the pain that began to erupt in her brain. She briefly saw Saerin mouth some words she couldn¡¯t hear or understand, but Mevi could only writhe in response. She pushed her head to the ground, pressing her forehead against the hard cold metal, she gripped her temples with both hands and felt the weight of a thousand pounding drums hammering into her mind. She felt so much pain. She tried to scream, but couldn¡¯t tell if she succeeded because the pounding pressure drowned out any other noise. She fought against her own body, she could feel a familiar exhaustion coming on. She knew her body was about to collapse, she had done it before, but she refused to give in so easily this time. She grit her teeth and fought against her body¡¯s burning desire to fall unconscious. Yet suddenly, a sharp needle-point pierced into her shoulder. Mevi¡¯s head lurched as she turned to look at what it was, and it was none other than Zelkan. Zelkan had stabbed her with a medical device and was injecting something into her arm, to the protest of Saerin and aghast stares of the others. Whatever he had done, she felt it course through her arm and it possessed her consciousness. She couldn¡¯t fight back against the substance, she succumbed once again to sleep.

 Chapter 23.5: Saerin

    Saerin jumped at Zelkan. The man had just injected some unknown serum into Mevi as she was having some kind of seizure. It was too late, whatever Zelkan had injected had quickly emptied its contents into Mevi¡¯s bloodstream. Yanking the device, a small and durable gold-cast hypo-injector, Saerin removed the injector from Mevi¡¯s arm. She couldn¡¯t worry about Zelkan¡¯s unexplained actions, Mevi was convulsing and yelling like she was in intense pain.

    Working quickly, Saerin cleared the area of obstacles Mevi might crash into during this sudden fit. She had resupplied an amount of emergency medicine and a digi-scanner that uploaded data to her nerve implant. After a quick scan, and moving cloth and bags to cushion the area around Mevi, it was evident that everything was wrong with the small girl. All of her vitals were spiking, yet at the same time they dropped suddenly, like she was flatlining one moment only to revivify with intensity the next. Her heart rate beat at over eight hundred beats per minute one moment, only to pause at near zero the next. Her adrenaline and nervous system was going haywire, over producing almost every chemical and hormone in her body one second just to completely shut down the next. Saerin had never seen a condition like this before, if the readings were correct there was no way Mevi could survive this for even a second. Yet Mevi spasmed on the ground, screaming in pain all the while for tortuously long moments.

    Then, suddenly, it stopped. All of her abnormal symptoms returned to normal all at once. Saerin had been held captive by the experience, there was no way to help her friend despite all her medical knowledge. Yet she returned to normal. Her body stabilized, which according to all reason and logic shouldn¡¯t be possible. The chemicals overburdening her system just started to vanish. Damage to her nervous system, which seemed irreparable and lethal, disappeared like it was never there in the first place. Like a nightmare, only to awaken and realize it was a dream, the chaos subsided and Mevi fell into a deep sleep.

    Saerin was shocked and confused, nothing like this should have happened. There was no inclination for Mevi to have undergone such a traumatic episode, unless it had something to do with the strange lights Mevi had conjured? Saerin thought. As Mevi sat for several seconds, still and quiet, Saerin turned to Zelkan. The man stood by, silent and unreadable as usual. His mannerisms had changed since the Undercity. He was less like the man Saerin had known, his kindness had become a facade and he attuned only to what he thought was his duty. She hadn¡¯t said anything, she knew some small portion of what he had been through, but to inject some unknown reagent into Mevi? To do so without hesitation, without any explanation, or prior warning? Did he know about some medical condition he had refused to tell anyone? The words Zelkan had spoken once before rang out once more, ¡®-you are a Medical Technician. I don¡¯t think you have earned your doctor¡¯s qualifications. You run equipment, not operate on live subjects.¡¯ Perhaps Zelkan truly didn¡¯t trust her, yet still Saerin was supposed to be in charge of everyone¡¯s health. The thoughts and questions boiled in Saerin as she scowled at Zelkan, the unsaid accusations and unspoken opinions of both of them tensed the air between them. ¡°Acolyte¡­¡± Saerin hissed at Zelkan, ¡°What did you do?¡±

    ¡°I did my duty. She is safe now. That should be enough for you.¡± Zelkan replied, arrogant authority in his voice.

    ¡°As the only one in our retinue of the medical vocation, I am in charge of our health¡­ Especially when concerning our lady. I demand to know what just happened and what you did.¡±

    ¡°I. Did. My. Duty.¡± He clarified sternly.

    ¡°Oh I apologize, o¡¯ so high and mighty one! I¡¯ll turn a blind eye to the girl screaming and crying in pain only a few seconds ago! Whatever you say!¡± Saerin sarcastically yelled in mockery.

    Zelkan turned, returning to the terminal he had been working with, ¡°I owe you no explanation. I was given a duty to protect our lady, and I held to it.¡± he growled out the words.

    ¡°Whatever you know you need to tell me, if our lady¡¯s health is reliant on some unspoken fact only you know; what would we have done if you died in the crash?¡±

    He paused, his hands hanging over the console, ¡°You¡­¡± he hesitated, ¡°You are right¡­ There was no way to know this catastrophe would happen, or if one might be coming again soon¡­¡±

    ¡°Then tell me what is wrong with her, how can I protect her? You aren¡¯t the only one, nor even the best suited, to protect her completely alone.¡± Saerin begged.

    ¡°I¡­ I cannot tell you the details. I do not even know very much. But I was given a private missive directly from our Lord Magi Odion¡¯s office. It described almost exactly what we just witnessed, and after came a serum that was simply labeled ¡®medicine¡¯.¡± He turned to Saerin, his head hanging slightly, ¡°I apologize for not notifying you. You are right that others should know about this condition, if it happens again and I am not around.¡±

    Saerin hesitated. Directly from Lord Odion? What is happening that requires the Lord Magi¡¯s direct intervention? Saerin worried. Looking back to Mevi, who was huddled on the floor among the cushions and torn cloth Tanaka had once sat upon. She was so small when she slept, almost entirely skin and bones even after staying in the Magi¡¯s facility for so long. So young, yet with the weight of worlds on her shoulders. It was no surprise, now that Saerin thought about it, that some kind of side effect to the strangeness Mevi controlled was finally emerging. Saerin turned back to Zelkan again, ¡°How much of this serum do you have?¡±

    ¡°A crate was delivered to the ship and the scripture ID was identical to the one sent from Lord Magi Odion¡¯s office. Inside seemed to be thirty or so of these serums. I took one out of paranoia, I am glad I did.¡± Zelkan explained.

    ¡°We need to find that crate, and hope that medicine is safe. If something like this happens a second time, Mevi will die. There is no way a body could withstand such incredible stress again; the fact that she survived this time could only be a miracle of the Magi¡¯s providence.¡±

    ¡°Agreed. Captain Lear¡¯kin, would you stay here with our Lady and the sentinel? Tanaka, if you are fit enough to walk would you aid us in searching among the remains of the lower deck? Hellion you as well.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t hardly move from my post anyway, I will keep watch. Our Nerve Net signal is weak, but the ship transmits enough bandwidth for simple communiqu¨¦. I¡¯ll keep you posted if anything happens.¡± Laer¡¯kin assured.

    ¡°Not to repeat what I¡¯ve said ¡®fore, but there is somethin¡¯ outside. It¡¯ll be close by if we go by the sound alone. Someone should keep track of what¡¯s goin¡¯ on, an¡¯ at least be a unfortunate that can yell in horror to warn the rest of y¡¯all.¡± Hellion interjected.

    Zelkan seemed to think for a few moments, ¡°You are right. Please, Hellion. If you can, keep watch of the main deck.¡±

    ¡°¡®Course!¡± Hellion said, grinning wide.

    The three of them, Zelkan, Saerin, and the newly awakened Tanaka, all rushed out into the dark of the ship. Mevi¡¯s light had gone out, and only the bridge¡¯s emergency power lights were functional. The dim red glow of emergency power only stretched so far out of the bridge, barely illuminating even a few steps out the door. Zelkan likely had vision assistance built into his mask, his version was so modified and augmented that it likely had every aid Zelkan could cram into it. Tanaka and Saerin, however, struggled in the dark. The two of them seemed equally unsuited for such blind scavenging, running into objects and kicking hard surfaces. Tzark had found a personal lumen from somewhere, but after he ran off it was likely gone with him.

    After a few minutes of bumbling in the dark, using the wall as a general guide, Zelkan¡¯s voice suddenly exclaimed, ¡°Over here!¡± Then, suddenly light. Though small as it was, Zelkan had found another personal lumen. A small device shaped like a glass cage with metal wires intertwining in circular patterns; within held a jewel-like device that could bleed out bright light for hours without needing to recharge. The small device glowed its light throughout the lower deck, reaching ten meters or so in whatever direction its unveiled face was pointed.

    The sudden light briefly blinded Saerin, but she was able to make her way towards Zelkan with its assistance. There was a small crate of lumens, most of which were broken or shattered and leaking strange electric fluid onto the ground. The remaining lumens, thirteen in total, seemed mostly functional. Each of them taking one, Zelkan deactivating his mask and using one as well, they could begin scouring the deck.

    The mess that was the lower deck had crates, equipment, scrap, and rubble piled up in every spot imaginable. If this deck had ever been clean, Saerin wasn¡¯t sure. Yet the amount of carnage throughout the deck made combing it for Mevi¡¯s medicine almost impossible. The three of them dug and sifted through the debris for nearly twenty minutes. Grueling work, digging and moving the heavy items tossed atop each other made for extremely slow progress.

    As Saerin began to heave and shift a large metallic sheet away from what she thought was a container, a scuttling was heard nearby. The strange sound, like many little needles clinking against the metal tiles of the ship, echoed slightly in the wrecked room. Everyone paused. Looking back towards Tanaka and Zelkan, Saerin saw them staring back at her and deeper into the deck. Something was in here. Something was with them.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Tanaka began to slowly creep backwards, obviously spooked. Accidentally backing onto a piece of flat metal sheet he slipped backwards crashing to the floor with a clatter. The sound of the fall exploded loudly in the otherwise silent deck. Yet behind the sound of clattering metal and hard crashing, a skittering was heard once again. Instead of an echo it was closer, like it moved towards them. Saerin held up a hand, in some vain instinct like she could stop him from making more noise despite the distance between them. When the clattering finished, the sound of scuttling continued. It got louder and closer, twisting around the entire deck as it approached quickly. Tanaka had given up on stealth entirely, a whimper escaping him as he scurried away. Then they saw it.

    Appearing suddenly in the light surrounding Tanaka was an insectoid worm. A scaled and disgusting thing, as large as a man and twice as long. It pounced on Tanaka, the man screaming in horror as the creature lunged at him. Zelkan ran towards him like he could somehow do something, Saerin could only sit and watch. The creature would tear Tanaka apart, despite all Mevi¡¯s efforts to heal and protect the man it would be all for nothing. Then an explosion of light from the bridge door.

    Shooting out like a comet, a blue blast of super-powered energy flew past the countless random obstacles filling the lower deck. Finding exactly the right angle to fly through gaps and barely graze obstacles. The blue blast impacted into the grotesque head of the insectoid worm, exploding the upper half of the creature¡¯s body as it was overwhelmed with energetic current. The remainder of its body fell to the ground, flailing and twisting in place for a few moments before finally curling into a bloody spiral and dying.

    Saerin rushed over to Tanaka, who was covered in partially glowing green ichor. The goo was electrified and fizzed wherever it landed from the energy of the blast. Parts of Tanaka¡¯s skin that touched the blood sizzled and burnt slightly, but the man was so in shock he didn¡¯t even notice. Saerin looked up through the rubble, seeing the path the energy blast took marked by melted metal and seared objects; the energy blast avoided most of the debris on the deck, but what it couldn¡¯t avoid it tore through leaving a melted husk behind. At the source of the blast was the door to the bridge, standing in the doorway and illuminated by the dim red glow was the looming golden frame of Mevi¡¯s sentinel protector.

    Zelkan reached where Tanaka was suddenly, he having to cross and climb over more obstacles than Saerin did. Yet Searin¡¯s eyes were on the sentinel construct, or what should have been a construct. Zelkan followed Saerin¡¯s gaze and equally gawked at the golden figure. As they both stared at it, the thing turned and returned back into the bridge to stand over Mevi. Staring down at the small girl, and watching her carefully. ¡°Are sentinels supposed to act without direction?¡± Saerin asked, hesitantly.

    ¡°No.¡± Zelkan replied grimly, ¡°There should be no reason for it to act unless there is a direct threat to lady Mevare¡¯s life. I know for certain it was programmed to only think about and protect our lady¡­¡±

    ¡°Why did it protect Tanaka..?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. There should have been no reason for it to respond at all¡­ According to this sentinel¡¯s internal scripture, it should only protect lady Mevare. It responds to her direct orders above all else, but shouldn¡¯t go out of its way when not directly commanded. It might respond to me, but it will ignore even the highest chain of command if it conflicts with our lady¡¯s directions.¡±

    ¡°Mevi did ask it to protect us at one point..?¡± Saerin wondered.

    ¡°A sentinel¡¯s directives would have considered that order moot and void after Mevare fell unconscious¡­ There should be no other thing it does except stay by Mevare¡¯s side until she awakens, protecting only her and sacrificing others to do so if it felt the need. To waste precious ammunition on something that wasn¡¯t an immediate threat to its master¡­¡±

    Saerin and Zelkan stared at the golden thing. Illuminated by the red dim as it stood next to Mevi, staring down at her without a single move or hint of emotion. A sentinel, at least according to everything Saerin knew, should have been an automaton; a constructed cybernetic warrior with no ability for higher thought functions. It would definitely never disobey its base programming, choosing to prioritize its resources and energy reserves for only direct threats or the most effective of movements. Saerin had once seen denizens of the City of Light break out into a brawl on the street, all the while sentinels watched silently. Since the sentinel¡¯s directive was to prevent entry of a building, besides from certain important figures and to protect those figures, the sentinels ignored the fight. Only when one of the brawler¡¯s feet barely moved a centimeter past where the sentinels stood did they act or do anything, and even then it was a brutal slaughter that ended in an instant and left a dead body for the auto-cleaners to remove. A sentinel should never act outside its designated programing, so the fact that it had attacked without a prompt meant only one thing, ¡°The sentinel¡¯s internal processor has been corrupted.¡± Zelkan said, finishing Saerin¡¯s mind¡¯s conclusion.

    The three of them watched the sentinel for a few more moments, Tanaka slowly rising and listening silently to their conversation. The sentinel stared down at its unconscious mistress without any hint of the corrupted infection they suspected. It stood there so silently and stiffly, its gaze on only Mevi. Saerin couldn¡¯t help when a shiver went down her spine, the idea of a corrupted sentinel construct was a terrifying one. If its corrupted scripture designated something a threat, there were few things and even fewer living creatures that could stop it from eliminating said threat.

    Without any way to address this new issue, they were forced to return to their original task. Tanaka, scared from the insectoid, volunteered to go to the main deck; but despite his proclaimed fear of the bug monster, his eyes didn¡¯t once leave the sentinel. As they returned to their tasks Saerin quietly hoped their suspicions were somehow wrong. It didn¡¯t take them much longer to find the serum that was Mevi¡¯s medicine. Yet the sight dissolved most of the hope Saerin had that Mevi would be safe from whatever affliction she suffered. Inside a crushed metal crate was once a supply of a blue-tinted liquid serum housed within small injectors. The injectors were all crushed. Zelkan dug through the wreck, getting cuts from sharp metal and broken glass as he desperately excavated the pile. To some small relief, three serum injectors seemed to be intact, but the remaining were destroyed beyond repair or had cracked so badly they drained most of their fluid. ¡°Saerin¡­¡± Zelkan mumbled, cradling the medicine as blue and red coated his now-cut and torn gloves, ¡°Can you synthesize more of this¡­?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Zel¡­ If I wanted to even try I would need to know what it is, and if we don¡¯t know what it is I would need to analyze samples to try and guess what it might be. It could take days, and it would take more serum than we have without a better lab.¡± Saerin explained grimly.

    Zelkan stared down at the ground, resting the serum gentle on his lap and forming his hands into tight fists, becoming silent for a few moments before suddenly shouting, ¡°DAMN!¡± and slamming his bloodied fist against the hard metal container.

    ¡°Zel¡­¡± Saerin reached a hand out, but stopped as she noticed the usually stoic man tremble slightly.

    ¡°The missive¡­¡± he mumbled, ¡°The message said that without this she would die¡­ That she would soon experience seizures, and without it she would die¡­¡± his voice trembling, ¡°I¡¯ve failed¡­¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Saerin grabbed his shoulder firmly, ¡°Mevi isn¡¯t dead yet, our lady will survive this. I can gather as much of the serum that is in this crate as I can¡­ I¡¯ll find some way to replicate it. Even without it, we just need to hold out until the ship repairs itself and then we can leave, can¡¯t we?¡±

    ¡°The ship can¡¯t leave.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean¡­?¡±

    ¡°The ship¡¯s internal scanners are functional. The reactor leaked so much mana and so many necessary components were destroyed or lost as we crashed, the reactor cant synthesize anymore the necessary materials¡­ Soon the auto repair systems will deactivate, and all power will be gone soon after that. The ship will be a metal husk within a few days, a week at the very best. We can¡¯t escape.¡±

    The revelation shocked Saerin. She knew the ship was in a bad state, but it was a Magi¡¯s vessel! There was almost nothing that could seriously harm or deactivate Magi-tech besides other Magi-tech. What Zelkan said would be considered blasphemous to even imagine, regardless of if it was true or not. Yet blasphemy or not, if the ship couldn¡¯t repair itself and leave how would they escape? Would the Lords Magi send more vessels to retrieve them? They didn¡¯t even fully know what had happened or why they had begun to crash. What if the Magi decided it was too dangerous to send rescue parties? The fear and worry began to boil and spark fires of anxiety in Saerin. Despite her confident words she too began to panic. Yet she refused the very idea of giving up.

    Firming her grip on Zelkan¡¯s shoulder, Saerin quickly left and started gathering as many bottles and siphons as she could find. She and Tzark had briefly organized the medical supplies they had already found, thankfully most had piled in the same spot due to the strong ties and magnetic locks. Saerin refused to give up, she would study this serum and figure out a way to keep Mevi alive until the Magi came to rescue her. Saerin knew her own worth, and knew her life was nothing in the eyes of the Magi, but she also knew her lady¡¯s. Maphet and Odion would not abandon a newly appointed Magi¡¯s Apprentice, especially not the first apprentice Maphet had ever fostered. Despite their generally aloof political attitude, even they could not ignore the impact losing such a new and valuable asset would have on their reputation. Returning to where Zelkan sat, and beginning her collection of what little serum remained, Saerin reassured her companion with confidence, ¡°Mevi will survive. The Magi are coming for our lady. We only need to last until they get here. If I can even make a serum that is even one-fiftieth the potency of whatever this medicine is, I will. Whatever it takes to keep her alive and safe. We will not fail.¡±

    Saerin began to work. Sifting through the crate and trying to find where the serum pooled at the bottom, trying her hardest to avoid the specs of red blood floating in the liquid. Zelkan still sat there, holding the three injectors gently and hanging his head. Saerin hated being so firm and blunt, but she grabbed the man by the arm-mid work and forced him to his feet. He still hung his head, already giving up. She had seen one of her superiors do this to a battle-shocked medical technician during one of her first outings into the Undercity. She and several other medical vocation recruits had left to reinforce a Legion outpost while they were under attack from a horde of Undercity Gangs. Saerin hoped this trick would have the same effect as it had on that recruit. Balling her hand into fist, Saerin punched Zelkan square in the mask. With her relatively unfit and weak body not suited for combat as it was, Zelkan only stumbled backwards a few steps but it had the desired effect. Zelkan looked up, picking up his head from his dread and stared at Saerin, a small crack in his mask now stretched across the dark screen. ¡°Wake up Acolyte!¡± Saerin shouted, ¡°This is no time to quake and cry! We have a job to do, and I expect you to do it!¡± Saerin shouted nearly the exact same words she had heard her superior yell at the recruit that day.

    Saerin couldn¡¯t see Zelkan¡¯s face, but the man stiffened his posture and regained some of his confidence. A slight tremble was still shaking both of them, their hands not as steady as they had been even moments before, the cascading revelations about their situation shaking them deeply. Yet Zelkan had woken up, and Saerin needed him to be his normal self and help direct and fix such a chaotic situation as this. ¡°You¡¯re right. I apologize. I will leave the important task of studying this serum to you. We will need your expertise as the chief medical knowledge in our retinue to make it through this.¡± Zelkan turned, his body clearly showing his confidence had regained slightly, ¡°I am going to go fix this ship. We will survive this.¡±

 Chapter 24: Disarray

    Mevi turned and rolled in her sleep. Fitfully dreaming of dark visions and disturbing forgotten memories. Things so foul her mind had forgotten and prophecies so vague her mind couldn''t remember. Then she woke up.

    With a jolt, Mevi instinctively yelled as she woke up from a forgotten nightmare. She couldn''t remember the dreams she had, only that she wished she would forget ever having dreamed them. She was left with a confusion and dreariness that vagued her vision. The world spinning too much than what was normal, her mind aching, and a feeling like millions of pins driving into her legs.

    When Mevi looked up, a red-glowing metal warrior was knelt over her. Staring down at her with unknowable thoughts and emotions. A metal helm was all that she could focus on. Within the dark slits of the helm a dim red glow, two crimson eyes stared affixed to her. Mevi struggled to get up and the warrior, her Sentinel, offered a hand to aid her. Righting herself and pulling herself to sit up, leaning against the Sentinel¡¯s massive leg, she could focus on stopping the world from spinning.

    From the corner of Mevi¡¯s eye she noticed a one-armed man standing nearby and looking at her and her Sentinel. He was saying something, or his mouth was moving like he was saying something. He then ran off and out of the bridge, as if in a hurry, still moving his mouth as if speaking to someone else that wasn''t there. It was now when Mevi realized how loudly her ears were ringing, how deafening complete silence really was.

    As the jarring effects plaguing Mevi¡¯s barely awake mind started to subside, Saerin rushed onto the bridge. She didn''t bother saying or talking, Mevi wouldn''t hear her anyway. Saerin began inspecting Mevi¡¯s still tingling body, and Mevi felt a small sharp needle point into her skin. Saerin was stabbing a syringe of sorts into Mevi¡¯s leg, as she did she manually forced Mevi to stretch and bend her arms. Mevi felt a rush of blood flow, the tingles subsiding from where Saerin had stabbed the needle into her.

    After a few moments, whatever was injected into Mevi¡¯s leg eventually reached her head as well. The deafening ring in her ears began to lessen along with the other confusing, uncomfortable, and even painful effects plaguing her. She could hear the subtle sound of whirring machines, the click of boots against the metal tile, and the faintest of words leaking through the white noise. As the world came back into focus, Saerin¡¯s voice was barely audible, ¡°-evi¡­ Mevi¡­ Mevi, can you hear me?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Yes¡­ What¡­? What happened?¡± Mevi struggled to ask.

    ¡°You had a seizure, what is the first thing you remember?¡±

    Mevi thought. She focused hard on what she did and didn''t recall. She remembered waking up on the dark ship, sadness, finding Laer¡¯kin and his crew, Tzark leaving¡­ after that all she remembered was sitting with and tending to Tanaka. Then just pain and a disturbed sleep. ¡°I¡­ I remember trying to help Tanaka, but then¡­ I got hurt? I am not sure¡­¡± Mevi said, still confused.

    ¡°You did help him, in fact you completely healed him. His legs were crushed, Mevi. You completely healed him. I don''t know how, but you did.¡± Saerin stressed.

    ¡°Completely¡­ How? How did I do it? I need to remember!¡± Mevi lamented.

    She jolted up, but the pins and needles in her extremities suddenly returned. She ignored them, and a sudden and powerful headache struck her. Yet still she wracked her brain for answers. For the memory of ¡®how?¡¯ Vague images of green light, of a trance, an emptied heart; nothing useful. Mevi didn¡¯t know how she did what Saerin claimed, and her body refused to remember anything but scraps of images. Saerin placed a hand on Mevi¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Take it easy. You still need rest. The seizure was severe, if you have trouble remembering it might come back to you if you relax.¡± she advised gently.

    ¡°I suppose¡­¡± Mevi hesitated, ¡°No. You are right, Saerin. I should listen to you, though I feel myself becoming more and more useless as our predicament grows¡­ How long was I unconscious for?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°For only a few hours. Your sentinel watched over you the entire time. The rest of us were able to clean up and repair what we could, even gathering a few materials from outside and scouting a bit.¡±

    ¡°I never doubted any of you, I am glad to hear it.¡± Mevi tried to remember the confidence she had assumed before her seizure.

    ¡°However¡­¡± Saerin hesitated, her voice trailing off into silence.

    ¡°However? Did something happen? Is everyone alright?¡± Mevi began to worry.

    ¡°No, nothing like that. I don¡¯t want to stress you more, especially after you just woke up.¡±

    ¡°Please, I am feeling normal again. If something has happened, or if you all have discovered anything, I want to know.¡±

    ¡°Well, the damage to the ship is more severe than anticipated. Zelkan and Lear¡¯kin are attempting to fix what they can. Though there have been words voicing concern about staying here, that maybe we should gather what we can and leave.¡±

    Mevi thought for a few moments, ¡°What exactly are our risks staying here versus leaving?¡±

    ¡°The ship¡¯s power is going to run out in a few days, maybe a week. While the power lasts we have food, protection, heat, and other necessities¡­ Once the power goes out, we will have nothing. We could preserve a day or two if we cut certain systems, like the protective shield or heat. We didn''t pack any transportable food, so we would have to use the ship¡¯s systems for all of our supplies¡­¡±

    ¡°That is¡­ Troubling. To say the least.¡± Mevi admitted, shaken by the realization.

    ¡°Leaving wouldn¡¯t be much better, in my opinion. We have too many wounded to make a good pace. We don''t know what kind of creatures lurk outside either. We don¡¯t even know exactly how the ship crashed or why, it could have been a freak accident or it could have been the natives. Blasphemy aside, we don''t have enough information about our surroundings. Hellion seems confident enough, but the rest of us? It would be dangerous to even attempt to navigate without a real guide.¡±

    The situation was dire indeed. Mevi thought about both sides, but truly she couldn''t give a real opinion. She didn''t know a single thing about survival, or even pathfinding, she couldn''t even guess which direction was which in the Magi¡¯s facility most of the time. Yet sitting here felt like the wrong choice as well, waiting for something to come to us. It felt like waiting for a slow death versus a risky chance. Mevi didn''t know enough about the situation to give an opinion, and she felt Saerin¡¯s report might¡¯ve been biased. ¡°Take me to everyone else.¡± Mevi said, ¡°I need to see exactly what is happening and hear from the others.¡±

    Hesitating, Saerin complied, ¡°Of course¡­ But walk slowly, I would prefer you lay down but I understand the circumstances might not allow for leisure.¡±

    Saerin helped Mevi up into a walk. As Mevi struggled to regain her footing, still a little off-balance from the whole ordeal, the two of them carefully made their way up  to the main deck. The area was, in fact, cleaner and more put together than they had last seen it. The rubble in the lower deck was organized, or at least pushed to the far back, and crates of items were opened and neatly put into rows. A jerry-rigged light system was set up from small circular lumens and hotwired batteries to keep them lit for longer. The excess power seemed to make the small devices shed light enough for a single lumen to light most of the lower deck. Passing through the place and towards the ladder leading upwards, Saerin commented, ¡°I truly didn''t even want you part of this argument. The stress from your episode combined with all of this, it isn''t healthy to so quickly be thrown back into the flames.¡±

    ¡°There is no other choice. Besides, I would hate the idea of sitting and doing nothing while others work on my behalf, I want to at least be there.¡± Mevi reassured Saerin.

    As they approached the ladder, Mevi made to climb but stumbled on the first step. Her body was still wobbling and dizzy from the exertions of her seizure. Yet Mevi didn''t fall to the ground, the Sentinel leapt forward and gently caught her before there was more than a few centimeters of distance between her and the ladder. Mevi wasn¡¯t even sure if she had fully fallen or if the Sentinel simply rushed in to carry her anyway. Before Mevi could give a ¡®thank you¡¯ the Sentinel, still carrying Mevi in one arm, jumped up. Easily clearing two or three meters without any buildup or preparation for their jump. The Sentinel was able to reach and grab hold of the lip of the service hatch with its free hand. Seamlessly the Sentinel ferried Mevi out of the lower deck and through the service hatch.

    Mevi, a little surprised by the sudden rescue, didn¡¯t question her Sentinel. Yet after looking down at Saerin she noticed her friend¡¯s face filled with a different kind of worry and anxiety. Unsure what was wrong, Mevi could only assume things were worse off than Saerin had let on. Saerin quickly climbed up to the main deck and the three of them ventured towards the still-open tear in the hull; yet Mevi was carried by her unwavering Sentinel, it showing no inclination to putting her down even as she tried to scramble back to her feat, Mevi simply gave in and allowed herself to be held however embarrassing it might¡¯ve been.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    The main deck was equally cleared compared to the lower deck. Reorganized furniture and dangerous rubble pushed to the side or otherwise cleared to make the deck fully open. The tear in the hull seemed slightly smaller than before as well. Saerin led Mevi and the Sentinel to the edge of the tear. The opening led to a short field with fallen and slightly burnt trees, obviously trampled by the ship¡¯s crash. At the edge of the ¡®cleared¡¯ area was a thicket of massive trunks and tall grassy shrubs. Green as far as the night allowed, wooden pillars stretching high into the sky and beyond even where Mevi¡¯s eyes could perceive. A dark forest, if Mevi thought to name the scene.

    There was an amount of dirt, mud, and soil overturned and piled against the side of the ship; creating a natural-esque steep ramp up and down, probably only five meters tall as it reached all the way to the tear in the hull. A crude ladder was set up against the earth to aid in getting in or out of the ship, at the bottom of which were the rest of her companions, illuminated by a small deliberate fire and personal lumens shining from necklaces they wore. The group seemed to be in some kind of debate, arms flailing up and Zelkan¡¯s back turned from the group, Mevi¡¯s retinue were in the midst of an argument it seemed.

    ¡°-leave now! If we stay any longer that beast¡¯ll show up who knows when. Tzark already left, I¡¯m inclined to agree with him, but I won''t leave our Lady behind.¡± Tanaka argued.

    ¡°Lady Saerin already spoke on that matter, she is in no condition to move. That isn¡¯t even including me. If we head out in my condition I would certainly be left behind. I would give my life to protect our Lady, but I am inclined to believe you¡¯d sooner use me as bait than slow your pace.¡± Lear¡¯kin protested.

    ¡°Captain! I would never consider it, I will carry you myself if I have to, but you saw the computer¡¯s assessment of our landing zone! We could reach a native settlement in just a couple days even at your pace!¡±

    ¡°A computer which is barely functional. Even if its readings are correct, we cannot assume the natives would be friendly towards us.¡± Zelkan interjected, turning to face the group once more.

    ¡°Let¡¯s all calm down a bit, we can ask our princess. She¡¯s up and about, looks like.¡± Hellion said, pointing towards Mevi in the Sentinel¡¯s arms.

    Saerin put a hand on the Sentinel¡¯s arm, ¡°Please, can you take her down?¡± The Sentinel only spared half a glance towards Saerin, more interested in the arm that touched it than Saerin herself. After looking back to Mevi and receiving a ¡®go ahead¡¯ nod, Mevi was flown to the ground. The Sentinel leapt down, passing by the entire slope, landing with a crunch of trampled twigs, leaves, and debris. Saerin slowly descended, half climbing half sliding down the slope. ¡°Before you complain, Zel. Mevi asked to come see the situation for herself. The Sentinel has been plenty attentive towards her.¡± Saerin said as she came to an uneasy stop at the bottom of the slope.

    ¡°My Lady, I insist that you return inside. We were doing some reconnaissance and strategizing. There is no need for you to strain yourself!¡± Zelkan approached.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be some useless damsel waiting to be saved. If all of you have plans I want to help as much as I can. Or at least be part of hearing them.¡± Mevi explained firmly.

    ¡°I say she stay, can¡¯t hurt to get ¡®nother opinion, Zel.¡± Hellion agreed.

    Zelkan stood, hands gripped into tight fists. His rigid posture betrayed the frustration that was obvious, even through his cracked mask. Mevi wondered how that had happened, what went on in the few hours she was asleep? ¡°Fine.¡± Zelkan conceded, ¡°Our situation is¡­ dire, my Lady.¡±

    ¡°I heard a little bit from Saerin, the ship can¡¯t be fixed can it?¡± Mevi asked, knowing the answer already.

    ¡°No¡­ I tried looking at it from every angle, analyzed every surveillance node, and manually checked all the panels attached to the power core. The ship sustained too much damage, our Mana circuit was badly damaged and leaked the majority of its contents. The circuit itself is repaired, but without additional Mana the ship cannot resume a normal recharge loop. The vessel¡¯s power supplies are rapidly failing, all will be depleted within a week even if we take measures to lessen the power burden¡­¡±

    ¡°Is there no way to replenish the Mana?¡±

    ¡°Normally, we would requisition Mana from the Holy Barge. The veins of the great vessel course with the life-giving substance. Each ship has emergency Mana Transposition Circuits, devices that can instantly supply a small source of Mana as long as the Holy Barge is within the same system. Yet the device isn¡¯t working. All sensors say it is functional, but the programs refuse to cooperate.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re being jammed, my Lady.¡± Lear¡¯kin interupted, ¡°I noticed when we first entered the atmosphere¡­ Something is messing with the Magi-tech. It''s screwing with anything more complex than a wired-in computer. Even if we replenish our Mana reserves and get power back, the ship won¡¯t take off with the interference. The internal scripture refuses to operate with the interference present, that much is certain.¡±

    Lear¡¯kin was sitting on a crumpled log. The tree was five times or more wide than he was himself, so he dangled his feet from it by a decent gap. He seemed patched up, if that was the right word for the state he was in. A robotic limb of sorts was strapped to the side of his bad leg, encasing the leg itself in thin wires that wrapped around the limb every centimeter or two. Under the strange cybernetic aid was a mountain of bandages, red blotches staining the cloth deeply. Yet even without the full use of his leg and his left arm missing entirely, he seemed remarkably less pale than before. His face fuller and a more natural color in the low light of the portable lumens and flickering red glow of the fire in between them all. ¡°I am glad to see you are doing better, all things considered, Captain.¡± Mevi said, secretly hurting to see the man so maimed.

    ¡°Aye, I¡¯m fixed up thanks to Lady Saerin. She¡¯s a right good medic and surgeon, I¡¯ll give her that.¡± Lear¡¯kin agreed.

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t forget a good ¡®an angry one too!¡± Hellion interjected.

    ¡°If you all listened to me instead of insisting on lifting and moving hundreds of kilos of rubble, you¡¯d look better still. Yet apparently it can¡¯t wait.¡± Saerin said, half joking, half genuinely annoyed.

    ¡°Hey little lady! If I was hurt, I¡¯d do whatever you¡¯d say! ¡®Sides, if we don¡¯t get movin¡¯ we¡¯ll just get surrounded by beasties. We gotta get a move on.¡± Hellion defended.

    ¡°Back into the argument again then?¡± Saerin scoffed.

    ¡°What actually is our current predicament?¡± Mevi asked, ¡°Please, just one person at a time. We need to hear all angles.¡±

    There was a collective sigh between Saerin, Zelkan, and Lear¡¯kin. Yet Hellion stepped forward, as unperturbed and confident as he usually was. Not seeing anyone else volunteer, Hellion began, ¡°Well, princess, I told ya¡¯ I¡¯m good at these sorta survive-or-die sorta things, right?¡±

    ¡°I suppose you have said that before, in a roundabout way¡­¡± Mevi entertained the train of thought, curious where he was going.

    ¡°I¡¯ve survived a thing or two, cus I¡¯ve seen a thing or two. We ain¡¯t got much more than a day, I¡¯ll guess, ¡®till them beasties work up the courage to investigate. One big ¡®ol beastie seemed to have made a home round ¡®ere. You¡¯d guess the thing¡¯s a bit annoyed with our rude ¡®trusion. It¡¯ll be back ¡®fore we figure out how to tell it¡¯s tomorrow. Without a doubt.¡±

    ¡°I told you already, however large it may or may not be; we have the power and strength of the Magi behind us. Even our small arms weapons stored in the lower deck would easily dispatch a creature twice or thrice the size of the Sentinel. Not to mention the Sentinel itself would not let any danger befall our Lady, especially if she were to command it to fight.¡± Lear¡¯kin argued.

    ¡°You can¡¯t put faith in weapons all the time, Cap''n. Some critters¡¯ll surprise you. Be ¡®em big or small, they¡¯ll find a way ¡®round whatever weapons you got eventually.¡± Hellion stressed, a tinge of seriousness in his tone.

    ¡°As much as I disagree with the idea of leaving, the fact that our defenses aren¡¯t always full-proof should be obvious at this point. Especially now, not all things do as they¡¯re programmed to.¡± Zelkan said, his mask turning ever so slightly in Mevi¡¯s direction.

    Mevi wondered what Zelkan could mean by his comment. Was it something about her? Was his look simply wondering? Or perhaps, had something happened regarding the Sentinel? Saerin looked worried before when looking at the Sentinel, Mevi figured it was just general concern for the issues at hand¡­ But could something else have happened?

    Looking up at the Sentinel, Mevi stared at the thing. Its own gaze was, uncharacteristically, not looking at her. In almost every situation the Sentinel would either be looking at Mevi or at a nearby threat. But now, its stare was obviously and exclusively on Zelkan. A few moments of quiet silenced the group. The sound of a distant whirring, the pining whine of electricity from the lumens, and the crackle of the fire filled the space between them all for a few moments. They all knew something Mevi didn¡¯t, they had seen, heard, or uncovered something Mevi couldn¡¯t guess. Yet despite the alien tension, Mevi had to think of her own answer to the matter at hand. ¡°I think¡­ I think it would be wise to gather more information. I don¡¯t want to stay here until the day of our ship¡¯s last breath, but we cannot simply leave in our current state.¡± Mevi decided, ¡°Zelkan. You know the most about the ship¡¯s technology, yes?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­ Sadly our chief of scripture was lost in the crash. Without him, I will have to make due.¡± Zelkan replied.

    ¡°Then please, make it a priority to figure out an alternate way to restore power. Regardless of how. I remember¡­ There was a device on the Barge, within my mentor and I¡¯s home. It was supposed to allow us to recharge Mana to our complex in some way. Do we have something along those lines, or could we potentially salvage something that could mimic it? If not¡­¡± Mevi turned to Lear¡¯kin, ¡°We need to figure out where this jamming is coming from. If it interferes with Magi-tech like you say it does, I doubt there will be a speedy attempt to save anyone from the Barge until it is somehow taken care of. If we can figure out what it is, how to block it out. Maybe we can protect ourselves, or even stop it entirely. If we can do either, we can recharge and escape, correct?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­ If it were gone, if the jamming stopped I could easily pilot us to safety even with half a ship!¡± Lear¡¯kin assured.

    ¡°We cannot ignore our surroundings, however. We need to figure out a way to keep track of the things that could be a potential danger. Hellion, do you know of any ways that could track or even repel the creatures on this planet?¡± Mevi asked.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never met the beasties ¡®ere. But, I¡¯m good at spookin¡¯ things! I found out Tanaka ¡®ere has a good bit of experience in certain tech. I bet we¡¯d make a good repellent if we wanted.¡± Hellion agreed excitedly.

    ¡°Then it sounds like we know what we must do. We will stay here, trying our best to fix the ship, until there is one day¡¯s worth of power left. After that we shouldn¡¯t risk waiting any longer. If it comes to that¡­ We will go find the natives, we will hope there is safety somewhere.¡± Mevi said firmly, trying to hide her own unease behind a fake confidence.

    Everyone looked between each other, almost like they were surprised. Yet only for a moment. The group of them seemed to realize something, and their postures straightened as they fed off Mevi¡¯s confidence. ¡°Ma¡¯am! Wherever you lead, we will follow!¡± Lear¡¯kin declared, the others seeming to mimic this opinion with nods of confidence.

    ¡°We will survive this. I promise you that I will do all within my power to protect us.¡± Mevi assured, fully meaning every word.