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Chapter 89 (1 of 2) Kidnapped.
🕑 Added 2024-08-05 13:09:53 +0000 UTC“Hard to starboard!” a curly-haired woman roared over the sound of the wind. The M.W.S Dawnlight’s deck was slick with hail and freezing rain. “We’re going to anchor down in the cove!”
“Captain, these are shallow waters-”
“They’re not as shallow as you think! The reef here is projecting an illusion to repel large creatures from getting near! The empty water in my perception still extends for another fifty metres down up ahead!” Adrianna paused for a second and then shouted, “Halt!”
Quartermaster Vima spun the wheel to twist the rudder, cutting off the boat’s momentum. Adrianna pointed at Zhang Mingxia and Catherine Sherwood. “Hoist the sails!”
She spun to face the anchor windlass. “Deirvetch! Lower the anchor!”
Normally the freckled young man would complain about his mundane tasks, but tensions were high that day. Ruel did it wordlessly, cloth wound tight around his hands to help him grip the slippery, ice-cold chain.
Wind whipped ceaselessly as the warship finally stilled. A small comfort in the circumstances of their weather was that the waves weren’t as bad this close to a shore.
Everyone on deck gazed silently at the island’s sheer cliffs in the distance. A conical mountain rose in the middle and a wreck of a ship sat on the very top of the overhang above the cove. There was a steep incline from the island centre to the tip of the structure. The ship balanced precariously, but the tattered flag of the Distorted Depth’s Navy flew in the wind high above.
“...when the Commander revealed to us that we must ascend the mainmast of the wreck to obtain the flag, I had not been picturing such a perilous climb,” Zhang Mingxia murmured.
Adrianna suppressed a sigh as she gazed at the shipwreck of her past before she became a Commander. That time hadn’t been as simple as collecting the flag.
They had to haul the entire wreck behind them to White Squall Fortress.
She exchanged looks with Caspian and he nodded. As he left to collect the map of the island from her cabin, she turned to the others. “All of you. Meeting room. Now.”
...
“Let me begin by dissuading your notions of letting Arventiel fly up there and collect the flag,” Adrianna stated curtly, leaning on the long table with the detailed map in front of her. “Mason, tell them what you could see with your Hawk-Eye Archer Skill.”
“...I saw many winged beasts flying around and below the shipwreck,” the brown-haired woman began carefully. “It looks like a nest.”
“Gargoyles.”
Everyone looked at Dais Twyla who had spoken up.
“I’ve heard stories about a Lair of gargoyles having formed up there, in the cave systems within the overhang,” the Werewolf explained. “Apparently, they spread their influence to include the wreck.””
Adrianna looked at the map. “Baxtimer, what can you tell us about gargoyles? They were in the monstiary I ordered everyone to study. If you can’t answer, I’ll tell you all myself.”
“Uh, me?” The red-haired man looked confused at being called on, but he began, “They, uh, are made of stone and stuff. So, they’re earth element guys. I think they lay eggs in high places too and they’re territorial, so, maybe... don’t get near the eggs unless you’re suicidal.”
“And why should we be wary of them especially?” Adrianna asked, crossing her arms.
“Because... most of us aren’t good at smashing stone? Half of us use water to fight, but at least three of us can use fire- no, wait.” Drew held up a finger on each hand. “If we send all our fire guys up there, we could accidentally burn the ship and flag, or possibly cause the overhang to fall if we create a big explosion.”
She gazed at him for just long enough to make him nervous and then nodded. “Good enough.” Adrianna tapped on the map. “We can’t use highly impactful attacks. This requires finesse and awareness of your surroundings. Get in quickly, and out quickly. No melee attacks that will upset the boat’s balance, no loud skills that will wake up the entire flock. Understood?”
There were nods. Wilden Leutia, the necromancer, awkwardly raised a hand. “Captain... we don’t have to do anything, do we?”
“Of course we do.” She turned around to peer out the foggy porthole. The island overhang formed an ominous backdrop against the turbulent sky. “Everyone left on the ship will have to protect it against the natural mana phenomenon that occurs.”
Adrianna frowned as the saw the ice coating the top of the conical mountain. “It goes through cycles, with a period of three months having erratic explosions and flash freezing, all coming from this island. Unfortunately, this month falls within that period.” She turned back, giving them all a solemn look. “We’ll have to act quick. We’ll be fine if we get caught in a week flash freeze, but the stronger ones will generate impenetrable icebergs around us and lock us in for the next few days where we’re at risk of meeting Scions of the Aberrant who can alert it.”
They gave her terse nods.
“Captain. Who shall be the one in charge of the team going to reclaim the flag?” Zhang Mingxia asked cooly.
Adrianna looked around the room. “I recall informing you all that I wouldn’t be sharing that until the time comes.”
There was shifty glances among them. She shook her head. “I guess this is close enough.” Adrianna paced back and forth with her hands behind her back. “Officer Zhang Mingxia, I cannot send you because when it comes to earth element monsters, mana to break their defences is essential.”
The cultivator successor nodded in agreement.
“However, it would reflect badly on the Empire’s Distorted Depths Navy if I stopped your company from participating in this major milestone, so whoever I select as Squad Leader will have to choose between you, Zhang Meng, and Liao Tengfei.” She stopped to look around. “Baxtimer, Sherwood and Deirvetch have the highest chance of blasting through the protection of the Gargoyles, but as discussed prior, you three could also endanger the team.”
Catherine scowled and opened her mouth to retort, but Liliana covered the redhead’s mouth and shook her head. The green-eyed spearwoman huffed and crossed her arms.
“Zoc’uraghets.” Adrianna turned to face the man from the Tua’Cethla Kingdom with blond hair. “As you are part of minor nobility, I thought it best to give you a leadership role in preparation for when you return to your clan, but as you don’t want the position...” She sighed. “I can’t have an unwilling leader for this job. You won’t be a Squad Leader after this. Therefore, the one in charge of this task-”
“A question, Captain Riftmire.” Silenis Vima stepped forward. “You won’t be taking up the leadership task? I recall you having a flying illusion familiar.”
“My Illusionary Constructs?” Adrianna shook her head. “Monsters are territorial. You’ve seen how my constructs often anger the enemies. Unfamiliar, somewhat powerful monsters drawing close to the Aberrant’s territory will be too risky.”
“Ah, so you are still capable of doing the task yourself if you have too?” the grey-haired man asked.
She marginally raised an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t be Captain of the M.W.S. Dawnlight if I wasn’t capable of at least that.”
Silenis was always a unique person in the past. It’s almost amusing to see him trying to test me again. Come to think of it, because he kept to himself so much, I never heard what happened to him after I left the Navy. He always stayed under my command, for some reason.
Maybe I should put some effort into keeping him by my side during the next few years. He was never drawn over to Griffin and I don’t think Griffin ever learnt to appreciate Silenis’s value when he was so blinded by my title as Captain, Commander, Admiral and what not.
“Regardless, I’ll be protecting the ship against the mana phenomenon,” she said, turning back to the rest of them. “As for the team...”
Adrianna rubbed her neck to attempt to relieve herself of the headache that was beginning to form. Her eyes fell on a certain gold-eyed man, and anger bubbled up inside her when she saw his wide grin.
“Officer Conlan Griffin, you have three days to select your team from those aboard the ship,” she stated curtly, turning on her heels and marching up the stairs. “Be careful with your decisions. The success of this trip relies on your abilities.”
Caspian blinked and switched his gaze from the steps to the crew, then to the steps again. He turned around and followed after his Adrianna. “Hang on, Captain, you can’t just end the conversation there-”
The room remained quiet for a second, then Drew Baxtimer planted his hands on his hips and laughed. “Hey, we’re dealing with someone who can already use Battle and Sword Aura at Rank-1! We’ll pass this mission with flying colours!”
The new Squad Leader smirked and slung an arm across Catherine’s shoulders. “Hey, Drew, Cathy, Liliana. Can I talk to you for a bit?”
The three shared looks and followed him. Those remaining in the meeting room rolled their eyes and wandered off. Dais Twyla in particular scoffed at the show.
Adrianna knew that the Hero would be making his first big mistake with the group he chose... because stealing the glory was not how friendships continued, whether someone did it intentionally or not.
She had experienced that first hand. Often the people you saved didn’t appreciate it if you never communicated how bad the situation was.
...
-Two days later-
Palin Zoc’uraghets saluted the curly-haired woman standing on the forecastle deck, looking out a spyglass. “You called for me, Captain?”
“I did.” Adrianna hopped down and slipped the spyglass into her belt. She crossed her arms and gazed coldly at him. “I hope you understand that I’m disappointed in you, Officer.”
The man did nothing but dip his head. It was clear he knew he was at fault.
“I can understand not wishing to do a role because of lack of confidence. This is not your situation. Your files state that you wish to enter the line of succession for your clan, which leadership roles would contribute greatly. You requested I remove the position multiple times.” Adrianna turned around and raised the brim of her hat to peer up at the overhang towering above. “Military positions I’ve chosen for people aren’t a ‘currency’ that can be traded around at will, Zoc’uraghets, but you seem to be aware of that.”
She looked back to study him. “What did Griffin offer you in return for giving up the position and suggesting him? I’m finding it difficult to understand what a nameless commoner could grant someone with your ambition. Please, enlighten me.”
“...he’s a powerful warrior of the light element who can use both Battle Aura and Sword Aura,” he answered. “My clan has been beset by monster waves from the dark-element Dungeon bordering our territory for centuries, so while we’re a strong warrior clan, we haven’t been able to develop. Griffin is the best alternative to Paladins of Glory Pantheon, which I have neither the finance nor reputation to request to conquer the Legendary Dungeon in the centre of our plane. It’s my hope that when he grows stronger he can defeat it for us all.”
“Have you formed a contract?”
“The warriors of my clan never break a promise.” Palin placed a hand on his chest. “We have no need for a contract.”
Clearly he mistakenly believes Griffin will honour that promise. If it’s not to that man’s benefit, he’s willing to break any promise.
“The Dungeon you’re talking about is the Canyon of the Black Sun Dungeon, correct?” Adrianna asked. “The one with thousands of those draconic monsters called Wyrms. If it’s a dark Dungeon, are there any dark element wyrms?”
“Yes, it’s that Dungeon, but...” The Officer hesitated. “The dark element monsters found there are monstrous Sphynxes that guard the Sun Palace. It’s only Earth Wyrms that live in the canyon.”
Not dark... that’s a shame. I thought I had found a dark-element dragon bloodline for Hargrave. But then again, if it was a Dungeon that spat out dark-element draconic beast bloodlines all the time, the Crumbling Ruins plane would be much higher ranked among Major Kingdoms due to its value.
I wonder if I could leverage my connections to Annaliese to get Jasten Albrecht to conquer the Dungeon... Hargrave could gain an earth element bloodline from there too, although he seems to have his sights set on a fire bloodline this time around so I won’t take it away from him again-
“May I ask why you’re curious?” Palin Zoc’uraghets asked slowly. “It couldn’t be that... you’re interested conquering the Dungeon because of your constructs?”
She gave him a silent stare. She knew why he was asking. He obviously thought that with her going too, there was a much higher chance of something being done about the Dungeon. Unfortunately, she had to disappoint.
“Zoc’uraghets, after your actions in refusing my goodwill where I granted the opportunity to be a Squad Leader, I don’t believe you’re in any position to presume help from me,” Adrianna replied indifferently. “I gave you that chance and you wasted it. I won’t be offering the opportunity again.”
“Of course, my apologies.” He bowed and backed away, looking awkward.
‘Adrianna Riftmire’ may have no interest in that Dungeon, but Lucille Goldcroft does. It’s an opportunity to undermine the Hero’s plans in a way he could never expect.
The risk would be that he’d take more notice of her real identity, but she already had a plan to give him proof that her ascendancy to Commission Head was a butterfly effect of his own actions.
As the demi-Atlantean of their crew approached, Zoc’uraghets looked up at the overhang. “Captain Riftmire, could I ask why you let Officer Griffin’s team leave a day earlier than you first said? I would’ve thought you’d force them to stay and prepare longer.”
“Officer Griffin seemed sure of his plans, so who am I to order the new Squad Leader and his team to take extra caution when they clearly want otherwise?” she stated lightly, a hint of mockery in her voice. “I wouldn’t have selected Griffin if he hadn’t had the strength needed though, so we’ll just have to see how it goes.”
“If we’re talking about Griffin, I can’t believe he didn’t take the extra healing potions I offered!” Caspian complained, marching up to them. “What does he mean, ‘They’ll only weigh him down’! Does he want to meet the Judge of Tartarus in the flesh?”
If only Caspian and even Griffin knew that he already had...
“We need to move.” Adrianna swept up her staff that had been leaning against the ship’s side wall and stormed over to the other end of the ship. “Everyone! At the ready! Griffin and his team are about to alert the Gargoyles. Be prepared for them to notice our presence.”
“Hey Captain, how could you know that-”
Thousands of ear-rending screeches sounded in unison. Lynell Baervad grimaced as he was knocked off balance, clapping his hands to his ears. Adrianna only gave him a flat stare. “Less talk, more movement.”
She shoved her spyglass into the half-demon’s hands with a curt order to keep an eye on Griffin and then slammed her staff end onto the centre of the warship deck. “Catastrophic Phenomena Sensor: Ice Element!”
A barrier of fractal glyphs exploded out, increasing in size until the edges of the dome were just out of sight. Adrianna sighed and ran the back of her hand against her forehead, feeling drained. “That should do for the moment.” She walked off, ignoring the stares of everyone else. “I’ll be in my cabin. Don’t call for me unless it’s urgent.”
Confused gazes focused on Caspian and he gave them a weak smile. “She, uh... cast a barrier to alert us off the ice eruption an hour before it happens. It’ll be maintained until she needs the mana for something else...”
“An impressive example of spellcraft, yet it brings a question to mind.” Mingxia gained a faint frown as she viewed the pale grey island, its peaks capped with blue ice and snow. “Does our Captain believe we are in danger?”
“I asked her when she told me she was going to be doing this, but...” Caspian put his hands on his hips, gazing at the ship perched on the overhang. “All she said was that ‘anything can happen around ‘him’’.”
“Hmm...” Zhang Mingxia watched the six dots in the distance trek up the slanted overhang, her eyes focused on the one in the lead the most.
_____________________________________________________________________________
“We’ve almost made it to the base of the overhang, guys!” Conlan called out, looking back at his team. “Liao, put some more effort into those cultivator legs of yours!”
The man who delighted in bringing his fan to every occasion, including the trek they were on, glared at Conlan. “My talents are in the spiritual arts, not in the base plebeian act of cultivating my martial prowess and gaining unduly levels of hulk-”
“Someone still has the energy to talk!” Catherine interrupted cheerily, hopping past Liao Tengfei with cat-like nimbleness. “This reminds me of all the hikes I went on with my dad.”
Liliana just smiled. Drew grinned and chased after Catherine, his competitive spirit ignited. At the very back was Charlene Junem, the healer. She was struggling with the climb and stopped to breathe heavily, leaning against a rock with a pale face.
Conlan saw it as a moment to gain brownie points with her. In case something went wrong... well, it was always good to have someone as selfless as her on hand.
“Charlene... is everything okay?” he asked, kneeling down with a worried look on his face. “If I’ve been pushing you too hard, I apologise. How long a break do you need? Half an hour? An hour?”
Catherine stuck her head out from behind him with a frown. “The Captain only gave us three hours to get back, you know...”
Conlan just smiled at Charlene, waiting for her answer and ignoring Catherine. He knew she was only jealous of the attention he was giving another girl, but Catherine didn’t need any coddling with her personality. He could treat her however he wanted and she’d still like him.
“N-No, half an hour is too much,” Charlene said, hastily waving her hands. “I... I think I’m alright. Let’s keep going.”
“Only if you’re sure you’re fine-”
“She said she’s fine, so she’s fine!” Catherine said. She stormed up to Conlan and grabbed his arm, irritation on her face.
Conlan smirked, shrugged, and walked up to the front again. He glanced at Liliana.
Does she... like me yet? This was around the time I could tell she had begun gaining feelings for me... but if things turn out like last time-
The thought made him pause but he quickly put it out of mind.
That was my one mistake, and I have enough experience to not repeat it again. No, we’ll stay as only friends.
Although it worries me that she’s changed enough to not seem interested in me...
Maybe I should make her like me more, just to prevent changes happening that I don’t know about.
“Griffin, watch out!”
Drew held out an arm to stop Conlan from sliding on a pile of rocks and losing his footing. He sent the man a grateful nod and continued walking. “Sorry, I’m just busy thinking of strategies for the fight.”
“Well, you better start using those strategies quick, because there’s a gargoyle heading our way!” Catherine yelled.
They all looked up to see the stout, knobbly kneed monster clumsily flap its wings. Bulging eyes and a fixed snarl on its face screamed violence. Fangs sprung up from under its curled lips. It spotted the six of them and let out a screech which soon turned out to be an alarm call. The ground beneath their feet began to rumble as the horde was summoned, letting out thundering roars.
“Everyone, draw your weapons.” Conlan lifted up his longsword and narrowed his eyes at the approaching enemies. “Our first fight has started.”
...
“How many more of that group remaining?” Conlan yelled over the sound of ringing metal and collapsing stone. He blocked the jagged claws aiming for his neck with the handle and slammed the pommel of the blade into the monster’s eye. It screamed out in pain and tripped over the narrow ledge, shattering into pieces on the sharp rocks below.
“Liao just killed the last one! It’ll be a few more minutes until the next batch arrive!” Liliana replied, taking an arrow and notching it in her longbow. Blue water mana swam about its tip in preparation for a high-pressured attack.
“Great! Let’s get a move on!” Conlan shouted. “We’ll aim for the base of the ship!”
“The base of the ship?! I most certainly will not be aiming for such a distant location when I am already under immense stress-”
“Ready? Go!” They bolted forward with Conlan’s command, leaving Liao Tengfei in the dust. His eyes widened with anger but he picked up his dusty oriental robes and tried to keep up.
“The gargoyles are readying an attack!” Liliana called out.
Conlan looked up and gritted his teeth. “Back up!”
The group skidded to a stop as corrosive acid melted away the stone mere inches from their feet. The stony monsters circled them in the sky, ready to fire at them as soon as they took another step.
“What do we do?” Charlene asked in a hushed voice.
Conlan looked from side to side and nodded to himself. He turned around. “The five of you, stand in a defensive formation with Liliana and Charlene at the back.”
“What are you going to do, Conlan? Where are you going?” Catherine spoke up.
“Me?” He smirked and rolled his shoulders. “I’m going to go get that flag.”
Their eyes widened and shouts of disagreement sounded, but he was already off. Conlan summoned his pseudo-Battle Aura, the aura having been strengthened as he practiced it. His speed shot up and he dodged the barrage of attacks from the ferocious gargoyles.
One last sprint and he was able to touch the rotten wood of the wreck. The wood was soft enough that his fingers splintered the planks on touch and he dug them in to grip onto the ship wall and clamber up. He hauled himself over the side but dived into a barrel roll to avoid the jagged stone shard peppering the deck right where he had been.
More flocks of gargoyles climbed out from below the deck and cabins where their nests had been, but Conlan dashed for the mainmast and gripped the threadbare rope. It barely held his weight and the beams creaked as he used two hands to climb up the rope, struggling to get to the crow’s nest.
A shudder ran through the boat and he looked around, trying to find the source of the force. He had thought that the Lair Boss has arrived, but the gargoyles had been thrown into a frenzy, hastily trying to fly away from... something. Conlan lifted his eyes and grimaced as he saw the spray of ice bursting from the mountain. It was erupting, and one he had focused on his senses... he could tell it would be a massive eruption. The mana pressure was building higher and higher, so tense he could almost feel it on his skin.
Below, his team had clearly felt it because they were looking flustered. The only thing he could do was get the flag down.
Conlan scrambled up to the crow’s nest and sliced through the damp, rotten wood of the flag pole. He snatched the flag but there was no time to celebrate. The ship below his feet began to tilt and he leapt off of the crow’s nest.
He ducked into a roll to break his fall just as a second series of tremors rumbled through the overhang. With a massive creak and the screeches of the gargoyles within, the severely damaged wreck slid over the edge and tumbled into the ocean below, sending towering waves sky high.
Conlan ran past the others with the flag clenched in his fist above his head. “Quick! We need to get out of here now!”
There wasn’t a word of complaint. They scrambled down sharp rocks and avoided icy shrapnel as fist sized hail pelted the island. The mana felt like it would explode any second.
Then the ice volcano finally erupted. White light blinded them for a few second and when the thick mist cleared, it was like the entire ocean had turned to frosted glass. Massive waves were locked in position with no room to move, and the M.W.S. Dawnlight was sealed in by solid sheets of ice.
Drew frowned as he heard a quiet rumble and turned around to see an avalanche descending on them. "Conlan!"
Conlan spun around just in time to see the snow crash into them. They tumbled down the grey slope slick with frost.
Instead of jagged rocks, they landed on cool scales. The six opened their eyes to find themselves on the back of a bronze wyvern with smoke escaping from its nostrils.
A roar attracted their attention and they saw a second wyvern blazing the ice in front of the Dawnlight with the fire from its mouth. The powerful mana engines on either side of the ship were ablaze, shunting the ice plates fractured by the attacks of the crew.
The bronze wyvern disappeared when they flew over the ship and they safely dropped to the deck. Conlan smirked and walked forward to show Adrianna the flag. “Captain Riftmire, I have returned with the flag.”
Something about her reaction made him pause. It almost looked like she was amused, but there was no reason for her to be amused. He followed her gaze and frowned when he saw the unsatisfied looks of his team members, either eyeing him with envy or embarrassedly turning their eyes from the gazes of the rest of the crew.
“Congratulations, Officer Griffin’s team. I’m sure you all worked together to collaboratively bring the flag back to the ship,” Adrianna stated, making Catherine turn red and Liliana look away. “You’ll all receive an equal reward when we return to the Fortress.”
“We didn’t do anything...” Charlene murmured.
Adrianna walked off like she hadn’t heard it. “If any of you still have mana left, help us at the front of the ship. We have many more miles of ice to melt through.”
And more than enough time for Griffin’s team to stew on their apparent ‘uselessness’ to him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I apologise about the really late chapter! But hey, a very fun few chapters will start soon!
Comments
Orange Thistle
Felt that this chapter was the best one so far at showing Griffin's true side. Even if I feel we will see him grow worse as the story progresses, and he becomes more desperate.
