Leaf walked behind Xanchil in silence. Helbram and the others stayed behind, but the hunter knew that his companions were counting on him to figure out as much as possible in this small window of opportunity. He also knew that he was terrible in long conversations, so he kept silent as the Zechanil led him past their camp and to the stern of the airship. They circled around that and ended up portside, which was identical to the starboard portion of the vessel aside from one key feature: a massive door that led into the side of the ship from the bottom.
Its size would have been tall for even troll, and it was wide enough to fit at least three wagons side by side through its breadth. Though Leaf had never really seen an airship up close until very recently, he knew that this was most likely where any cargo may have been loaded. What Saputan cargo could consist of, he had no idea, but he wasn’t about to ask Xanchil what it could be. The merchant was most likely going to show him anyhow.
He produced a key from his robes, one that mirrored Kali’s own. After twisting the base a couple of times to adjust its teeth, he slid the key into the panel that was to the side of the door. Light pulsed from the panel and through the metal pieces of the massive entrance right before all of those irregular shapes slid out of the way to unblock the entrance. He still couldn’t get used to how little noise all that sliding actually made, even to his sensitive ears. The ramp that slid out from the entrance was even quieter somehow, and had managed to plant its corners against the ground, even with the ship’s slight tilt.
Xanchil motioned for him to follow, and disappeared into the ship. Leaf took a moment to organize his thoughts, then walked into the cargo bay. What awaited him was a large, spacious chamber that appeared to run along across the length of the entire vessel. Its ceiling was even taller than its door, and from this distance he could see a large, cylindrical shaft that led to an upper level of the ship. It was much like the tubes that he had seen at Kali’s portion of the vessel, but sized to fit people instead of the orb shape of a Shell. There was no lack of the Saputan constructs within this chamber, either, as Leaf saw many piles of the inert orbs set towards the side of the door. They were large enough that Leaf had to be impressed by just how many Shells that Logan’s men were able to take down. They may have had a rough appearance and smelled like they hadn’t showered in at least a week, but underestimating them because of that would be foolish. The state of the Shells was further proof of that.
This chamber was filled with a pale white light that hummed from the grooves in the walls and ceiling, casting its glow over large rectangular containers. They were stacked into cubes that must have stood at least a story tall. These cubes lined most of the cargo area, and were spaced out evenly from one another. The containers themselves were tall enough for a person to walk through and were made of a smooth, black metal with a textured finish that Leaf could only compare to basalt. Most of these were sealed by double doors with no handle and a panel that held a keyhole much like the other doors he had seen. The few that weren’t, however, were towards the bow of the ship.
Xanchil led him to those containers, but stopped and held a hand out in front of Leaf right before he could see what lay in them.
“You have seen quite enough for free,” the zechanil pointed out, “before moving further, we require details of what you have planned.”
That was only fair, but Leaf did take note of how relaxed the merchant was. There was no tension to his stance, no flicker of power that signaled some spell was waiting to be unleashed. Leaf wasn’t sure if it was hubris on Xanchil’s part, or if it was part of some scheme. A darker, colder part of the hunter’s mind told him to take the risk to eliminate the problem now, but he ignored it. He wished that it would have been due to his principles alone, but caution had also played a part in holding the leash over that particular desire.
Xanchil continued to wait for Leaf’s response, betraying none of the impatience that he’d shown before. He was clearly looking for a deal, and all Leaf had to offer was a threadbare idea. He needed some way to stretch these discussions, and his usual way of talking wasn’t going to cut it. The only references he had for any sort of negotiations were his parents, who were too generous for their own good, and Helbram, whose way of speaking was the direct opposite of Leaf’s. Still, the man knew how to be subtle, and Leaf needed some of that saviness now.
“We’re lookin’ to contain the manticore,” is what he settled on.
Xanchil waited for more, but Leaf just crossed his arms and waited. Neither of them said anything else until the zechanil finally lowered his hand.
“You are a shrewd one,” he said before walking over to the container.
Leaf let him get a few paces ahead before following. The merchant stood to the side of the container now, standing almost like a vendor that was about to hawk their wares. The hunter’s eyes narrowed as he peered inside, spotting rows of inert Shells that lined the container’s walls. They were held by shelves specifically designed to hold them in place and there was just enough room for someone to walk between them and further into the container. Leaf couldn’t see much of what was behind those shelves, but he spotted a few different figures towards the back.
He moved to get a better angle, and gave Xanchil the side eye upon approaching. “I’m assumin’ you want to know how we’re gonna contain the beast?”
The merchant gave him an impassive stare. At least, Leaf assumed it was impassive. “Indeed, do so and we shall let you peruse the rest of this container’s contents.”
“Right… I’m plannin’ to put a barrier around it, somethin’ to keep its movements limited. We’ll have to keep it fed, though, which means plenty of huntin’.”
“Why feed it? Would it not be better to let it starve?”
Leaf remained silent.
Xanchil sighed. “You may have a look.”
The hunter nodded, but before he walked into the container he motioned for Xanchil to step in. “ You first.”
The zechanil’s eyes moved in what Leaf could only guess was him rolling them, but he acquiesced and walked into the container. Again, he had no guard raised, and Leaf let curiosity take over just enough to let a sliver of Ether into his eyes. There was a curtain of energy that emanated from Xanchil’s robes, draped over them like a mantle but swaying to an unfelt wind. Defense was its most likely function, but Leaf was not about to try and confirm that. He blinked away the power in his eyes, removing the mantle from his sight at the same time, and followed after the merchant.
When he stepped past the Shells at the front of the container, he saw shelves of a different kind, holding constructs of different shapes. To his left were smaller Shells, orbs that were the size of his head. They filled less space, but he could already tell that they were more numerous than the ones that were now behind him. In front of him were larger constructs. Where the Shells he fought before stood only up to his chest, these were his equal in height. In addition, these constructs were not of the orb shape of the other ones.
Their torso still held an intentional curviness to it, but more in the fashion of a breastplate. Its limbs were not the spooled wire formations of the other Shells, but rather like the other pieces of armor, complete with pauldrons, gauntlets, greaves, and plated boots. A helm sat atop these Shells’ torsos, giving their full body the shape of a knight, though its armored pieces still held the same aesthetic of organized chaos to them. In addition, he could still see some coiled wire peaking through the armor’s gaps, mimicking the shape of muscles. Leaf likened them to the Golems they had fought back in Goldshire, except those were made of stone and clearly statuesque in design.
To his right was a final, different Shell. It stood alone, racked on a display that was more a stand than a shelf. This one matched Helbram’s height, maybe even taller, which made it a good head taller than Leaf. Like the ones he just examined, this one held the shape of armor, but it was far more protected in this regard. No underlying wires could be seen due to the interlocking plates between each piece, and the armor itself was thicker in design without sacrificing maneuverability. The helm that served as its head bore two horns protruding from its crown, formed by fragments of metal twisted together. A single horizontal slit served as its visor, no doubt the place where an “eye” of Aether would show itself. Thankfully, the Shell remained inert in Leaf’s presence. Even when it was still, there was a tense air about the construct, and the hunter didn’t know if that was due to just its size, or some other magical phenomenon that his enhanced senses were unable to detect.
“Why aren’t these movin?” He asked.
Xanchil remained silent.
Leaf frowned. Smart man.
“The balance of nature can be a fragile thing, especially when it's at its most brittle durin’ the winter. The manticore may be as ugly an inbred hog, but it settled here naturally. We kill it, and who knows what kind of impact that will have on everythin’ else. Not to mention my previous point. Those are ferocious beasts, an’ I’m afraid that not even a rifle is goin’ to do much. Killin’ it now would be a needless risk.”
“And feeding it is a waste of time.” Xanchil’s three dots flashed in Xanchil’s eyes. Leaf tensed when he felt the hum of magic around them, ready to spring at the merchant’s throat in case he tried anything. No spell was cast, but Leaf did see lines form between the dots to form a simple triangle. The positions of the dots, and lines, shifted with every blink, and the Aether around Xanchil shifted each time. “We know a spell that will lull the beast to sleep, and when it is slumbering, we can strike.”
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“Or, it pretends to sleep and attacks us all when we get close.” Leaf may have never fought a manticore before, but he had heard of them during his early days on the road. “Manticore are crafty buggers and resistant to magic. We shouldn’t risk anythin’ if we don’t have to.”
Xanchil let go of his power and the shifting shapes disappeared from his eyes. “Fine, but if this proves to be too tiresome, we will put an end to the beast.”
“It’d be much easier to manage if Logan and his men helped,” Leaf prodded.
“It is your idea, is it not? We don’t see any purpose in taking part in it, unless you have something to offer for sharing the burden?”
“I have a feelin’ you’re about to make a suggestion of your own.”
“How astute…” Xanchil leaned in. “Kali’s key, provide us with that and we shall gladly assist with the endeavor of keeping the beast mollified."
“You don’t waste any time…” Leaf muttered. “The answer is no, and I think you could have already seen that comin’. That’s a shite deal through and through.”
Xanchil didn’t look at Leaf. He started at his fingers instead, as if the act of rubbing them together was a more worthwhile use of his time. “Your counter offer?”
“Don’t have one, don’t need one,” the hunter answered, “Besides, you still need to answer my previous question.”
Xanchil clicked his teeth, or whatever else lay beneath his facial gills. “The Egos within these Shells have yet to awaken because they have not been primed by the proper activation sequence.”
“And you don’ have that, do you?”
Xanchil said nothing.
“Because if you did, I have a feelin’ you would have woken one of these things up already.” Leaf almost slapped one of the Shells, but stopped himself from doing so. “And let me guess, what you want is that code in exchange for your help, right?”
He could see the merchant’s arms tense. “Yes.”
“Well, the answer is still no, we can take care of it on our own.” Leaf turned to leave.
“We can offer you much in payment, if you do what we ask.”
Leaf almost kept walking, but stopped. “What are you offerin’?”
One of the gills on Xanchil’s face quirked up. “We have much to offer, namely in funds.” He motioned out of the container. “Many Shells lie within this vessel, many that, if they could be activated… controlled, would be valuable to a great many people.”
“You mean the Orellians, right?” Leaf asked.
The merchant’s face didn’t change, but the air about him did. “Yes… the fee we could charge increases exponentially should we have the code that awakens them. Should you grant us that, there would be quite the sum paid your way to you and your companions.”
“How much?”
“Enough for you to live the rest of your life in comfort, and many lives after that.”
Leaf flashed him a grin, which made the merchant lean in with anticipation.
“About that… I don’t really care much about money, but thanks for the information.”
Before Xanchil could say anything else, he walked away.
“Well, there goes any further offers,” Helbram said.
Leaf scoffed. “What? Would you have accepted any of them?”
“That depends, enough money to buy and airship would be quite-”
Elly smacked him on the shoulder.
He laughed. “No, I would not have.” He saw that Kali was looking at him from across the table. “I never will.”
The scholar gave him a dubious look, but then again, she had that face when he went to get them right after Leaf went to speak with Xanchil. When she didn’t say anything, he shrugged and motioned to the sketches that were laid out on the table. Elly had drawn them out of a mix of memory and Leaf’s descriptions, but he could see the four different Shells in ascending size. “So, what are we dealing with?”
Elly pointed towards the smallest of them, “First, we have Node Shells. These have the ability to fly, and they can be quite irksome to deal with in large numbers.”
“How do they attack?” Leaf asked, “Firin’ bolts of magic at us?”
“Yes, actually. They are not as powerful as something that a Mage can conjure up, but when they are firing at you en masse, how powerful a single shot is becomes the less important issue.”
“Given how the larger ones were, a simple shock to a Drone would disable it, right?” Jahora asked.
Elly nodded.
“Well, we have that, at least.”
“I’m sorry, but why are you talking as the Shells are bound to wake up?” Kali asked.
“Because it is better to hope for the best, but prepare for the worst,” Helbram answered.
“And we’ve been gettin’ the worst for a while now,” Leaf muttered.
“But, back to the matter at hand.” Helbram tapped the second Shell in the order. “We have dealt with these, but the name is escaping me right now.”
“These are Assault Shells,” Elly explained, “The name is self explanatory, and we have seen what they do.”
“Which brings us to these.” Leaf tapped the third image.
“Those are Soldier Shells,” Kali answered, “They don’t have the free form limbs that an Assault Shell may have, but they can take many more blows.”
“They are also faster,” Elly added, “and are capable of, to a certain degree, analyzing their opponents move to adapt.”
“Have you fought them before?” Helbram asked.
“Yes, but just a handful. They usually deploy an arm blade of some kind and wield a shield of pure Aether. It's not as strong as pure steel, but deflect many light blows. In addition, they are capable of firing bolts of Aether themselves, from their palms. They are about as strong as a fully grown man on top of that, so I would not take a single one lightly.”
“Solider Shells are also able to coordinate much better than Assault Shells,” Kali said, “From what I’ve been told, at least, I haven’t engaged with any myself.”
“You are correct. I never fought more than three at a time, but they were a right pain to deal with…”
“Your master never helped you?” Aria asked. She was seated on Kali’s bed, the cubs at her feet.
Elly snorted. “She told me that it would be a good learning experience.”
“...suddenly, I am not so envious of your position,” Kali remarked.
The scholars shared a small laugh at that, which gave Helbram some relief. Whatever Elly had said to Kali had a better effect on her, even if she still regarded him with bitterness.
“So, watch out for them like we would a trained fighter, then.” Leaf pointed at the final image. “What about this beast?”
“That… is a Sentinel Shell,” Elly said with a heavy tone, “I have never engaged with one, but from what I have read of those that have, I do not wish to.”
“Enlighten us, if you will,” Helbram said.
Kali spoke up first. “Think of the Soldier, but amplify everything to a far greater degree. Superhumanly fast, extremely strong, and able to wield weapons just as well as the finest knight. One of these would be like fighting an Awoken on the cusp of being an Expert.”
“That is indeed unpleasant, which is why we need to make sure that Xanchil does not get his hands on that activation sequence. That merchant will most likely try to use it to take control of the Shells in some way,” Helbram said.
“Is he capable of doing that?” Jahora asked.
“Normally, I would say no, but my knowledge on Zechanil magics is threadbare,” Helbram admitted, “Always assume the worst, in these cases.”
“It was damned strange, I’ll tell you that,” Leaf said.”
“I can only imagine, but thank you for gathering the information.” Helbram smirked. “Consider me impressed, I thought you would be more blunt in your conversation with him.”
“I can be witty when I need to be, and charmin’.”
“But of course.” He looked back at the sketches. “Given that we have only fought the Assault Shells, we do not have much experience to go off of here. I shall have to sleep on it.”
Everyone nodded along to that, but Kali didn’t. The scholar was clearly confused, but didn’t raise any questions when no one else did.
“I’ll help Leaf with the barrier around the manticore tomorrow,” Jahora said, "It's a good thing that we have a lot of crystal dust saved up, because we’re going to be using quite a bit of it to make sure that shield stays in place.”
“And I’ll need to be makin’ regular trips into the forest… the damned beast is massive and could probably go through a deer a day.” Leaf turned to Aria. “I’ll be borrowin’ Snow and Shadow for a while, if you don’ mind.”
She shook her head, and the cubs themselves seemed excited at the prospect of more hunting.
“Kali and I will work on the door in the meantime,” Elly said, “We only had a little bit of progress with it before you came to get us, but this new method of ours might be getting somewhere.”
“Excellent, then we have a plan.” Helbram tapped on the table. “So, we have a beast to sate, a puzzle to solve, and a greedy merchant wishing to subvert us to have access to an army of constructs. There is an adventure if I have ever heard of one.”
“A bloody pain in my arse is what it is,” Leaf said.
Helbram clapped him on the shoulder. “Ah, but that is what makes it fun.”
Author's Note: And I have finally fought off the sickness to bring you another chapter! Apologies on the delay here.
A lot of set up in this chapter, and I understand that revealing what enemies do before actually fighting them can kill some of the mystery to these encounters, but at this point I think its clear that the party will always take the chance to discuss these things when they the can. Especially given the events of the last book.
And as some more middling news, I will be focusing on rewrites for the upcoming week. I've been delayed on them far too long recently so I need to make some actual headway in getting Book 2 finished. Sickness and life can only keep me contained for so long! You will be getting a lot of updates, but it will be for Book 2, just so I can finally get it out of the way and knock out the hardest of the rewrites.
Till next update! Have yourselves a wonderful time!
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