Chapter 2: Book 3, chapter 1
Zee stood on the bow of a frigate, watching the city of Porten disappear around the bend as the ship followed the river.
She was relieved to finally be leaving, one step closer to getting off this planet. Sailors rushed around the deck, up the mast, pulling on ropes, and unfurling the sails.
Cloth and rope snapped taught, the ship lurching forwards.
The speed was impressive, the wind whipping at her clothes and hair, the riverbank passing rapidly. The nightingale was a long sleek ship, built for speed and maneuverability.
It was one of the fastest ships of the Royal Navy, a light warship built for speed. Two other frigates of the same class followed close behind, an escort for when they reached the Airidan sea.
Those two ships were amusingly named, the dance and jig, and the empty tankerd. The cool wind drumming on her back felt nice, pushing away the heat of the hot summer sun.
She watched the banks, the trees blur past for a while, letting her mind wander. Her musings were interrupted by the soft fall of footsteps on the deck.
"How can I help you, princess?" Zee asked, not bothering to turn around.
"How did you know it was me?"Allison asked, sidling up next to her and leaning on the ship's polished brown railing.
"My new skill allows me to sense movement, remember. Whenever you move I get an image in my head, like a colorless painting of you." Zee said, her red hair, dancing in front of her eyes.
"That's bizarre. How far can you see?" Allison asked curiously.
"Anything that moves on the ship, and even somethings under us. Though seeing under the water is super weird." Zee said.
"So you can see people going to the latrine?" Allison asked with a devious smile.
"Ewww. Why would I want to see that?" Zee asked, blanching.
"What? It's just a question." Allison said innocently.
Zee groaned. "Fine….. Yes, I can. Feel better now?"Zee said disgustedly.
Allison covered her mouth to hide her grin. "So, you have been peeping on people going to the-"
Zee quickly covered Allison's mouth with a hand, cutting her off, as a tall muscular Allevark approached.
Prince Malden had thick black fur with white tufts atop his fluffy ears. He was at least two heads taller than her, with rippling muscles.
A giant two-handed war hammer hung on his back in a leather bandolier. The crown prince wore a deep burgundy robe, with silver trim, and open toes sandals that exposed his claws.
"Who have you been peeping on?" Malden asked, walking up behind the princess.
Allison took a step away from Zee her eyes sparking with amusement. Zee quickly jumped in before Allison could say anything.
"No one has, Allison was simply telling a joke."Zee said, flushing in embarrassment.
Retreating, Allison said. "Actually, it was Zee peeping."
Malden raised an eyebrow, his fluffy black ears twitching in curiosity.
"Peeping on who?" Malden asked.
"Everyone aboard the ship." Allison said mischievously, quickly backing away.
"Even me?" Malden asked, glaring at Zee.
Zee cleared her throat, her glare at Allison promising vengeance. Her cheeks burned, but Zee decided to get her revenge later. Instead, she quickly changed the subject.
"Soo, Maldy, since we will be stuck aboard this ship, I was wondering if you could teach me some aura control?" Zee asked, changing the topic.
Thankfully, Malden dropped the embarrassing subject, his eyes flashing with something she didn't like. The crown prince grinned, baring his needle-like teeth.
"I might be able to. For a price, of course," Malden said.
"What do you want?" Zee asked, already suspecting the answer.
"I want you to make me another spatial storage. I even have the items you can use to make it." Malden said.
Zee was taken aback, having thought he would ask for her family's cultivation technique.
"You want me to make two of them? Don't you already have one of those?" Zee asked, eying his bracelet curiously.
"I do, and I am still waiting on the first.. This second one is to be a gift for my father." Malden said.
"You do remember that I am an amateur at etching? I ruined my earring and still haven't made the first one you asked for. Sure I made a spatial storage on the earring, but it's useless. Anything I put in there is crushed." Zee said.
Malden nodded, seeming unphased.
"I know that, but your spirit companion is good at etching right? Besides, I am not asking you to get it right on the first try. I have a bunch of jewelry you can test it on until you get it right." Malden said.
Zee gave the prince a sidelong glance, hesitant to say yes. "In the meantime, you will train me how to use my aura as you do?" Zee asked.
Malden nodded. "We have a three-week voyage ahead of us. It should be plenty of time to get a hang of the basics." Malden said..
"Give me a second. I will ask Dern if he is willing," Zee said, suddenly tense.
She was nervous, and not because of the two royals in front of her. The spirit in her head was more of a concern. He had been oddly silent over the last three days. Ever since he told her he is a soul-sucking monster.
Or a parasite, though she didn't know the difference. Either way, Zee wasn't sure how to move past this odd separation between them.
She was, for lack of a better word, disturbed. Zee wasn't sure what to think after his revelation. Dern was like an annoying little brother, someone who she may not get along with all the time, but who she thought of as family.
Having him inside of her head for every moment of every day had let her understand him far better than she had ever known anyone else. The continued silence was like a part of her had been torn away.
Sure, Dern was irascible, annoying, and hard to get along with. Even still, he was someone who had watched her back since they met, saving her life more times than she could count.
He might actually be her best friend, aside from Allison of course. This whole thing kind of made sense. Zee was a warrior who killed people and monsters to get stronger.
Why wouldn't her spirit companion be a soul-sucking monster? I mean, she should have expected it after seeing what he looked like. Not to mention that soul-wrenching screech he did whenever she called him out.
Annoyance radiated from the obsidian splinter in her head. "Alright, alright, that's enough. I get it. Stop with the lovey dovey comment's or I might throw up." Dern said.
Zee grinned. "So, are you willing to help me?" Zee asked.
"Does this mean you have forgiven me?" Dern asked hopefully.
"Uhh. For what?" Zee asked.
"You know the soul-sucking monster thing," Dern said, annoyed.
"Oh, that. Have you taken a bite of my soul, or anything else fishy?" Zee asked.
"No," Dern said.
"Do you intend to?" Zee asked.
"Nope, as I said before, I can't or I die. I am fused to the splinter in your head, remember." Dern said.
"Keeping a secret like that was a dick move, but I can get over it. You are still willing to help me grow stronger, right?" Zee asked.
"Sure, as long as your requests aren't too idiotic," Dern said.
"Great. So, can you help me make a spatial storage?" Zee asked.
"Sure, why not? I have been bored to death up here." Dern said.
Zee focused back on the two royals, smiling.
"Dern agrees, "Zee said, addressing Malden.
Malden smiled. "Excellent. Let's get started with your aura manipulation right away."Malden said.
With nothing better to do aboard a ship, Zee focused on training. Sparring on the main deck with Allison in the morning, and aura manipulation in the hotter parts of the day with Malden.
In the evening, Zee and Dern puzzled over how to fix their mistake, trying to find out what they did wrong when making a spatial storage last time. As it turned out, that was much more frustrating then she anticipated.
.....A week later, Zee was sitting on the rocking deck, the cool, early morning sun warm on her back. The prince sat on a chair in front of her. Some of the crew, and Maldens' royal guard, watched on.
The sailors were interested, whilst the guard's looks were hostile, clearly thinking she wasn't worthy of Malden's attention. She ignored them all, focusing on splitting her aura.
This had become a daily occurrence, one which many aboard the ship with nothing better to do gathered to watch.
And why wouldn't they? Malden was in the E ranks and considered one of the strongest people in the nearby kingdoms.
Any knowledge he held had to be top quality, worth a fortune to the people stuck in the F ranks.
Zee took in deep breaths of salty air, the rocking of the ship, and the clank of rigging, doing nothing to help her focus.
With her mental energy, Zee grasped her intangible spirit and gently pushed it outward. At the same time, she kept a firm mental grip on the energy contained inside her body.
It was like she was peeling away a layer off her aura, and pushing it outward. After a few seconds, the second half split away, expanding in a shell around her.
"Good, keep your energy contained, and push the second layer of your aura outward," Malden said through a mouthful of sandwich.
Sweat rolled down her forehead, the effort of focusing so hard a difficult strain on her mind.
For the first time in a week, one-half of her aura pushed away from her body, brushing up against Malden.
His aura felt so deep, hot, and raspy, like a vast desert of shifting sand. She suddenly could feel it, his overwhelming reserves of energy, and a faint odor of something foul.
Sitting on his chair, Malden froze, his sandwich halfway to his mouth. His eyes widen, a look of startlement in them.
Madlen lowered his sandwich, looking at her with a mixed feeling of elation and disgust in his eyes. Zee noted the look and quickly pulled her aura back.
"What's wrong?" Zee asked. Malden's cocked his head at her, shaking his head.
"Your aura give's me the chills. It makes me feel like you are a predator, and I am the prey." Malden said, his eyes distant.
"I think it's the boon of Despair,"Dern said, cutting in.
"Really? What makes you say that?" Zee asked uncertainly.
"Ya. It does say that all Allevark will have a natural fear of you for killing so many of them." Dern said.
"Well, that sounds troublesome. I was hoping it made me more friends, not less."Zee said.
Malden spoke, drawing her from her mental conversation. "Now that you have the basics figured out, it's time for the real training to begin," Malden said.
"What real training?" Zee asked, already exhausted, her well of mental energy mostly drained.
"Now we will teach you how to fuse your aura with your spark of incite," Malden said.
....Two weeks later.
The sun was high in the cloudy sky, and the air was hot and humid. It was early afternoon and the three frigates were sailing up the river Dansk toward Carden.
By now they were firmly in the heart of allevark territory. Zee gaped over the railing, her eyes tracing the towers that lined the mouth of the river. It was a fortress to keep out any invaders.
Several rowboats from the fortress paddled out to each frigate to confirm their identities before allowing them through.
Once they passed through the gates, the landscape changed. Farmland lined the riverbanks, with houses, small docks, and people.
At first, it was just a few people, then the number turned into hundreds. Soon all she could see was cultivated farmland, acres of trees, and wheat as far as she could see.
Given that it was the hottest time of the day, most people were cooling off in the shade. Or swimming in the river, while others were fishing on the banks.
She spotted a few children, cute balls of fur, running along the shore, pointing and shouting excitedly at the warships.
Zee smiled, unable to help herself. After weeks on a ship, she was aching to get off and walk around without the ship moving beneath her.
Allison strode up beside her, looking up the wide, slow-flowing river.
"Are you excited?" Allison asked.
Zee gave the woman a hesitant smile. "A little ya. Though I don't want to get my hopes up too much." Zee said.
Allison placed a reassuring hand on Zee's shoulder. "Don't worry, Carden isn't near as bad as Porten. They have been dealing with me now for years. I think some of them even like me."Allison said.
Zee cracked a half smile. "You only say that to make me feel better,"Zee said.
Allison smiled, looking excited to be returning to the capital.
"Sure, the people are not all that inviting to humans, but it's not all bad. Carden is definitely a much prettier place than Porten." Allison said.
"That's good, I guess. I like pretty places."Zee said, taking a deep breath of humid air. "So, how much longer until we reach the city?"
Allison waved to the sprawling farms, vineyards, and orchards. "We are already here. This is technically the edge of Carden, though it will take another hour to arrive in the city harbor proper." Allison said.
"The city is that big?" Zee asked gobsmacked at the idea.
"Yea, it has over a million people," Allison said.
"No wonder you have so many farms. That sounds like you need a lot of food to feed them all." Zee said.
"The logistics of running this city alone are incredibly daunting. It makes me glad I have no chance of taking the throne." Allison said, leaning her elbows on the railing, her long white hair framing her face.
Zee nodded. "Ya, being a king would suck," Zee said.
"Speaking of kings. Did you finish the spatial storage item Malden wanted?" Allison asked.
Zee grimaced, reaching into her uniform and pulling out an expensive-looking gold ring. The ring had a massive green gem on the surface, reflecting its uniqueness.
"Three weeks and nothing. I have already broken half of the cheap stuff Maldy gave me. I might have to sell my soul to Dern to pay Maldy back."Zee said with a wince.
Allison waved a hand through the air dismissively. "Keep working on it. If it was easy to make, spatial treasures would be a lot more common." Allison said her tone reassuring.
"I love the enthusiasm, but that doesn't help. For some help with my aura manipulation, I promised Malden a spatial treasure before we arrived."Zee said, her eyes falling on the rippling current sloshing against the prow.
"Hmmm, what seems to be the issue?" Allison asked, curious. Zee took out a recently failed project, the necklace not quiet as impressive as the ring she had just put away.
"Here, watch,"Zee said.
She took out a single Dara, the coin shiny, glinting silver. With a push of mental energy, the coin vanished, disappearing into the necklace.
Well, it actually disappeared into the small pocket of space she had attached to it. With another mental tug, Zee pulled the coin back out.
It appeared in her hand, though it was now a small clump of metal. It looked like it had been crushed, put under immense force.
Allison twirled her fingers through her silky white hair, a habit she had when she was lost in thought.
"Hmm. It looks like it's been crushed. Does it crush everything?" Allison asked.
She shook her head. "No, Maldy put his hammer in there, and nothing happened to it," Zee said.
Allison hummed again, nodding slowly. "I know someone who might be able to help you. When we arrive in Carden, I can ask Yukna, she is really good with etchings and stuff." Allison said, fondness in her voice when she spoke the name.
Zee let out a defeated sigh. "I guess I should go tell Maldy I won't have it done in time," Zee said.
"Maldy will be fine, though you will need to finish it before Father's birthday in five days," Allison said.
"Wait, it's for the king's birthday?" Zee asked, staring at the gaudy ring in her hand.
"Probably. I assume that is why Maldy wanted you to make it so badly." Allison said.
"Huh. Sometimes I forget Malden's father is the king." Zee said. After her talk with Allison, Zee pushed her thoughts on how to make the spatial storage to the back of her mind.
After weeks on a boat, Zee was thrilled to see their destination come into view.
The city of Carden was built in the valley and up the slopes of two towering mountains. With a population of over one million Allevark, it sprawled into the distance.
She had never seen a city so large, the number of buildings and people on the streets hard to comprehend.
Even from the ship which was approaching the harbor, she could see the mass of Allevark, and some humans on the dock..
Surprisingly, most of the humans were not slaves, wearing the crest of Carmanah, a white lily on a green field. Zee supposed she shouldn't have been too surprised given Carmanah, and the allevark were allies.
"I see there is no parade to greet our return," Malden said casually. Beside her, Allison laughed, the sound almost musical.
It was nice to hear the princess was actually happy for once. Allison smacked Malden playfully on the shoulder.
"That's because you told the king we would arrive in three days," Allison said.
"Can you blame me?" Malden asked with a sly grin..
"Father definitely will," Allison said, her lips turned upward.
"He will get over it," Malden said, glancing over as three members of the crew threw heavy lines onto the dock. The sailors pulled and twisted the ropes with expert precision, allowing slack in the lines so as not to break the thick ropes.
The ship slowly came to a stop, shifting only a little now. With a loud crash, the gangplank was lowered. Zee didn't bother to rush, knowing the sailors still needed to secure a few more lines.
Instead, she peered over the prow, down at the docks, and the hundreds of people both humans and Allevark loading and unloading cargo from other ships.
Everything from rowboats and triple-masted barges dwarfed the frigates in terms of size. Some of them made the fast frigates look like rowboats.
It was chaos, her spatial ripple going wild. The cacophony of hundreds of people and ships on the move overwhelming after weeks at sea.
It took her a few minutes to get her baring, upon which she realized Allison and Malden were gone. It took her a moment of scanning the ship, then the dock to find her.
Allison was jogging up the dock, her white hair making it easy to find her amidst the crowd. Malden backed by his five guards followed at a much more casual pace. Many onlookers parted for the royals, bowing, and staring.
Or they were just as curious about Duke Valac, being ushered along with the royal guard.
Crap. What was Allison doing? Zee gave the crew of the nightingale a parting wave before she leaped off the front of the ship. Much to the disappointment of many, she didn't smack into the water or the dock.
Before she hit, her body turned to mist, drifting over safely to the dock. Zee reformed atop the wooden planking, and jogged after Allison, wishing the woman made being a guard easier.
Like what was the point of having a guard if you just left them behind without saying a word? Zee berated herself for spacing out, waving at the dumbfounded dockworkers.
Some were staring at her, who was clearly a human, wearing the garb of a royal guard of the kingdom. The looks she got from the human dockworkers, from both the Carmanah humans, and the other human slaves were even more confused.
They were clearly conflicted, though most didn't make eye contact. Well, except for Malden's royal guard, who didn't look pleased as she ran up past them. Duke Valac who was being dragged after Malden looked the least pleased.
Zee ignored them all, falling in step with Malden. "Oh, there you are. I thought we lost you." Malden said, smiling as he scanned the docks, excitement and trepidation in his eyes.
"You left me on the ship." Zee said." I mean, come on Maldy, you could have at least warned me you two were leaving." Behind her, she could hear Valac mutter something obscene under his breath.
"I was-
"I can't believe you let this human trash talk to you like that," Valac said, cutting Malden off, having spit out his gag.
Malden glanced back at Valac. "I thought I told you not to speak, "Malden said.
Captain Milan took the hint and stuffed the gag back into Valac's mouth, slamming a paw into his ribs painfully.
Malden's smile returned, and he even waved to a large group of dock workers bowing in his direction.
"As I was saying. Allie ran off, and I didn't want to be left alone with a filthy human."Malden said.
One of his guards, Ralfineous snickered at the comment. Zee rolled her eyes, noting the other guards' smiling with her spatial ripple skill.
"I mean, you are probably right. Spending weeks aboard a ship with smelly kitties was not my idea of a good time either."Zee said.
Malden laughed, ignoring his tense guards. Judging by the glares they directed at her back, they really didn't like it when she insulted him.
"Good one," Malden said, amused.
Ahead of them, Zee recognized the colors of the royal guard. There were two of them, soldiers holding spears, standing out amidst the crowd. They were allevark, with the standard blue and silver trim.
Their condensed auras were what made them stand out the most, being firmly in the peak F ranks. Both soldiers were walking beside a dominative human woman, in the peak F ranks, though she had the aura of a noncombat class.
The woman was relatively short and slim, with short curly brown hair. A wide pair of spectacles hung on the tip of her nose. The woman walked forward with confidence, her oil-stained coveralls clinging snugly to her thin frame.
Allison, who was jogging, noted the recent arrival and simply vanished. It was the hallmark of the woman's waltz skill, moving her forward in a blur.
Zee was expecting Allison to reappear, her sword drawn, ready to cut the newcomer in half.
What happened was not that. In a moment, Allison reappeared right in front of the woman. She scooped the woman off her feet and twirled her around before bending her over and performing a perfectly executed dip kiss.
Mouth agape, Zee simply stared, watching as Allison passionately kissed the stunned newcomer in front of hundreds of onlookers.
Dumbfounded, Zee turned back to Malden, who didn't seem surprised in the slightest.
"Who is that?" Zee asked, confused. Malden waved a paw dismissively.
"Oh, that. Allie didn't tell you? That's her fiancé, Yukna." Malden said like it was something everyone should know.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Eric_Blackmore_5616
Eric_Blackmore_5616 Sorry for the mixed scramble. I had to rearrange some things and make book two end better.
Anyways, if you made it this far in the story, you are a champ:)
Like it ? Add to library！If you really like it, drop a review, those help.
Or just keep tagging along for the journey. I hope you have been enjoying reading the story as much as i do writing it.
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