Chapter 152 - Chapter 132: New Avenues of Trade(1)

Chapter 132

Gula POV

"Yes. It's very important."

I opened my eyes to reveal a stone wall. Orange firelight played across grey rock, the wood table, and trio of chairs in front of me. A second of mental calculation told me Sally's voice was to the left where a bare oak door lay in the wall. Dozing off before a major meeting was a failure I thought myself incapable of since seven winters old. Fortunately, unlike those young years, such failings weren't truly my fault. A quick turn to the immediate right showed my husband twiddling his thumbs at the head of the table.

His grey hair was a bit longer now, reaching down to the brown cloth face covering. The quad mage was wearing a white shirt and brown pants that played well with his leather coat. Those green eyes, my green, were looking at me with amusement. An impression reinforced by raised cheeks above his brown cloth face covering suggesting a smile.

"Has it been that difficult? I would have thought getting the smuggler who saved everyone comfortable would be top priority." Eli asked innocently.

I swatted his left arm, feeling the constraints of my white shirt and red coat as I did so.

"You shouldn't have let me fall asleep." I reprimanded with as serious a scowl as I could manage while rubbing my right eye.

"You should have seen how cute you looked. If I was going to do anything, it would have been to wrap you in a blanket. Maybe with a pillow to hold your neck up."

Heat came up my cheeks. A library of profanities danced on my tongue. Then I looked upward to the ceiling.

"Ah!" I groaned at the pain shooting along the back of my neck.

Pulling myself up in the chair, I adjusted the red coat as I made myself presentable. When a large, calloused hand enveloped the back of my neck and started rubbing along the spine, I couldn't stop myself from leaning into it. I closed my closed eyes as tension flowed from tired tendons and muscle.

"It appears they're ready to start." A sarcastic voice rang out.

I somehow forced my left eye open to see Sally standing in the doorway. A Bishop by trade, the older orc woman sported short grey hair, more of age than natural color, which had no hope of reaching her small nose or sharp chin, much less the black shirt with a white square in the collar. Her golden irises in black eyeballs looked down to dust off something from her coal pants matching the shirt.

"She's a beautiful woman. And my wife. Be grateful this is all I'm grasping. Especially with all the headaches you've been giving me." Eli grumbled with another squeeze.

Thankfully, I was free of any accusations of impropriety as he continued the massage. If the three priests coming in behind the Bishop had an objection, they were too confused by his presence to notice.

"Can't say I've seen this one about." A thin woman with a black dress and head cover mused as she followed Sally's hand gesturing the trio to the chairs in front of me.

"You wouldn't." Another voice called from behind the three coming in.

It was the plump priest Cassie ushering the last new priest forward, her short nose sniffling at the stale air. She had the same dress as the newcomers, though her golden eyes were filled with enough mirth that her smile almost hid the mole under her left eye. As she closed the door behind her, a slight sneeze came through the woman's short nose.

"Sit," Sally ordered with a sweeping hand to the three chairs opposite mine.

The newest members of our conspiracy did as they were bid and were soon waiting across from me. Between the small frowns and scrunched eyebrows, patience seemed thin among the group. Something Sally picked up on as she took the head of the table to the left.

"Well, you wanted to know what we were basing all those load assumptions on." The Bishop said expectantly as she looked at each of them for a second before turning to Eli.

Nods from all three were the only response before they followed Sally's gaze.

"They came from me." The quad mage announced ominously.

At the same time, his hand loosened its grip on my neck. I, however, had needs. My right hand caught the elbow of the retreating arm and moved the limb back into place with a pointed look at its owner. Eli got the message and resumed his kneading against tired muscle.

"Gula," Sally intoned, her voice carrying the tone of a mother dealing with a quarrelsome toddler.

"We've done this three times already." I, admittedly, pouted back at the Bishop. "At least the other times I wasn't in the middle of setting up a rather pertinent meeting. Something urgently needed, unless you think you can steal enough from my husband's farms to feed everyone."

"Husbands' farms?" A confused priest to the left asked, her red eyes now fixed on Eli.

Sally and Cassie hesitated for a second, so I took it upon myself to plunge the newcomers into the deep end.

"He's the plant scion. The scion who erected all these walls, laid down all this stone we've been digging into, and is growing most of the food we've been eating. And the one who needs to go a little higher." I finished with a pointed look at Eli, who appropriately raised his hand.

"What?!"

"He's your husband?!"

"Are you with child?!"

Darkness took the world as I closed my eyes and left the others to walk the priests through the world shattering revelation. Why I was needed here still escaped me. Did these women need the orc smuggler to explain the situation? All Eli had to do was summon some rock and any questions over his identity would be resolved.

I was vaguely aware of Sally going over something about how we actually acquired all the new crafts. From there, I let the meeting flow through its regular paces. The first portion of which revolved around my womb.

No, I wasn't pregnant. Yes, we absolutely were going to have some in the future. Yes, that does mean they would take on his magical abilities.

It was rather remarkable. Of the four times this conversation has happened, including the first after Eli killed those mages, no one's first impulse was gratitude to Eli for saving them or fussing over some insignificant matter like what was going to keep us all alive.

Nope.

The only thing anyone cared about was his seed in my garden. I knew the why, of course. Nor could I deny that I might be of similar priority if I was in their position. Still, seeing what an unyielding stranglehold the Bastard's designs had on our minds from a near outside perspective was no less jarring for the understanding.

That was the only portion that even remotely stuck out. Everything else played out to the same script. Despite the incredulous proposition, the newest additions to the conspiracy soon found out why the mage leader of this land wasn't going to crush them, what would happen to all the orcs in Eli's domain if he should fall, and where the food keeping them upright actually came from.

And blah, blah, blah.

They liked being alive, they liked all of their fellows being alive, and they loved all the children here in the new Underground being, yes, alive. Like all those before them, the newcomers came to accept the position they were in after a half hour of prattling. As they moved through the door to the left, Sally and Cassie gave us both a respectful nod before shutting it behind them.

"Another successful conversion." Eli intoned with a coy look to me.

"It was an extremely successful night," I responded, a smile playing across my face.

The ultimate mage nodded, some mischief shining through the green eyes.

"There's another way it could be even more successful. Now that I think about it, we never had a special massage session. Maybe the sores from this enslavement can be soothed in such a rendezvous."

"Massage session?" I asked with a puckered lip and raised eyebrow.

"Me and Salamede have, at times, laid on the bed with each taking turns rubbing and pounding any sore spots. It just takes a few hours but we typically fall asleep as soon as we're finished."

"Fully clothed?" I asked, the answer already apparent from his tone.

"At first," He answered, innocently bobbing his head back and forth.

"So, sex. With extra steps."

"Very agreeable steps." Eli casually rebuffed.

"And did you not receive your portion of me two days ago?" I accused, fighting down a smile as I did so.

"My gluttony knows no limits, it seems," He offered with a casual shrug.

Despite my interrogation, the answer was going to be yes. Still, yes was a thing of degrees.

"Oh?" I asked with a small smile. As I did so, my white shirt just so happened to pull downward with my stretch towards the floor. The way his eyes immediately went to the opening, the hunger in them….

Well.

If it was hours of him looking at me like that, then that yes was the highest level of agreement.

"Sounds fun." I offered casually. "But it will have to wait until I choke whoever's been taking all the food."

Getting up from our chairs, we both pushed away from the table. As I turned to the exit door, I made sure to stick my bum a little out towards him. A lure, cast without thought or planning.

Come on-

A sudden slap across my cheeks sent me a step forward. I turned to see an unrepentant Eli standing out of his chair casually stretching to the ceiling.

"A fly," He offered with a shrug.

"Bastard's beard, it must have been a beast to merit so much force," I said with a raised eyebrow.

"It was a fearsome monster. You should be grateful your husband was here to slay it." Eli finished, putting out his arms to me as he did so.

Somehow, I found myself wrapped in those strong arms. That I was now at his section of the table was a fact acutely ignored. As punishment for trapping me, I pressed my breasts against him. Eli's chest started heaving enough that I felt it through my own. Looking up revealed eyes of green, my green, starving for what they beheld.

It was a good thing Eli was holding me, as the shot of adrenaline and warm buzz was so strong my knees threatened to buckle.

Teasing the mage to make him more aggressive tickled my brain in a way simply doing the act didn't. Something about tempting him, making him more feral, made me feel….. It was hard to fully pin down the emotion and I doubt I could properly convey such feeling if asked to share. To think even after all these months, I was still discovering new aspects of this marriage and myself.

Of course, this shot of love drug wasn't free. We spent a few more minutes perusing each other's bodies and mouths before I was permitted to leave. A final parting nod was given as we went through opposing doors, with me taking the only torch in the room by the left of my exit.

Closing the door behind me, I turned to the stone tunnel illuminated in orange light. It was a shaft only a dozen or so feet long which ended in a hole. The smack of leather boot on rock followed my trek down the tunnel, only changing when I hoisted down onto the ladder. It wasn't a deep thing; someone of considerable athletic ability could probably make the jump, but that person wasn't me or any of the priests.

Once my soles touched stone, I turned around to see the still open bookcase serving as a hidden entrance almost within arms reach. A few steps forward and I was back in Sally's office. A bare thing of grey stone wall and floor with a desk and chair to the left and a door to the right through which torchlight poured through to mingle with the light coming from the one in my hand. For now, it was more abundant in priests than furniture, with the newcomers and my two fellow conspirators huddled together in the middle.

"Well, it's not a lie if they never ask." Someone in the crowd mused.

Glad to see sense finally prevailing, I moved to the door, intent on leaving Sally and Cassie to finish soothing the newcomers.

"Could he provide some skylights? All these torches can't compare to actual sun."

Oh. Right.

I forgot about this portion. As sure as the rest of the conversation, asking Eli to do more was always going to come up. And why wouldn't it? Why wouldn't some dumb, ungrateful bitch spew out some nonsense about-

"I assure you," Sally quickly put in, "Everything that can be done, has been or will be."

The way she was looking between the questioner and me made it clear my thoughts were on full display. Cassie was on her left and quickly moved to my right.

"Come, Gula. It's been a long night, and this last bit need not be any longer for you." She offered with pleading gold eyes that were roughly at the same level to mine.

Some scant wisdom must have been filtering into me, because I turned around, set the torch in its holster by the door, and took the chance to leave before my tongue allowed unsaid words to escape. Surprisingly, Cassie accompanied me out into the stone hallway. Being the only entrance to Eli's home, Sally's office was at the end of another long tunnel that took an immediate right. The plump priest followed on the right as I went to the door at the far end, where yet a lantern lay beside it. Good, there was a conversation that needed to happen besides the usual fare. A discussion Cassie unknowingly started as she casually walked on my right.

"Them asking for changes always seems to get you the most upset." She mused with a sideways glance that revealed the mole under her golden left eye. "Personally, I thought them interrogating your womanly parts like a farmer's livestock was going to produce the most friction."

"PFF!" I scoffed. "It's because those parts of me will get us all killed if used wrong. No. They haven't asked me any questions I haven't asked myself. Of course, there have been a lot of questions concerning my husband and me. And most of them have to do with his skills more than anything else." The last sentence I made sure to emphasize by stopping to face her.

She came to a standstill almost immediately and turned to me, chubby face unflinching with her short nose raised and wobbly chin as firm as it could be.

"Yes, we've had him help us with a few designs here and there. The man's skill in building, even putting aside magical talent, is….Incredible from what I've gathered in conversation with the architects. He's saved us days of work. Something our already overburdened-"

"Burdened?!" I hissed out between clenched teeth. Without thinking, my upper half leaned forward to bring her closer. "No one. Not a soul in this city, this country, is more burdened than he is. Yet you dare foist more on him?"

Dark green came up her puffy cheeks.

"There are many exhausted women sleeping with their crafts, not even moving from their designated spots. Perhaps we should gather their opinions. Or better yet, let's ask the daughters they haven't seen in weeks."

Defiance shot up my spine, setting my teeth against each other in a snarl.

"And they're doing so because that's what will keep them alive. He has no allegiance to our kind, yet he toils for his wife's, almost certainly, misguided loyalty to her people. No matter the work, he has the choice to leave this all behind and sip wine on a bed of beautiful women. They don't have that option. So no, he is fundamentally giving more than anyone else."

Cassie raised her right eyebrow, gold eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"So it's not our lives or the lives of our children that move him. He's just here so he can sate his loins with his preferred woman."

My right hand was more than ready to acquaint itself with her face. But I knew if I took this to the physical level, I wouldn't stop until I was ripping her hair out. Instead, I mentally perused all my verbal options until one that matched my fury was found. A deep breath, and the payload was delivered.

"Men are best motivated by their loins, as I'm sure you know. This Christ fellow, he must be quite the bed fiend. Having all of you for wives. A big task just with you lot. When you think about all the…. Bastard's beard, millions of priests he's had over the years….. He must be making a new kingdom in heaven just from his vigor alone."

That did it. Dark green went up to her forehead as her right hand twitched. A solid half-minute passed with her biting her lower lip before words finally came from it.

"Ours is a union sanctified in spirit and soul. Not with our bodies." She stated slowly.

"And if you put my husband through another long night, you're going to feel the full sanctity of my marriage. Understand me?" I demanded, eyebrows pointedly raised at her.

Cassie stood still as a statue and made as much noise for a second before sighing.

"We are all quite tired. A night's rest is due." She offered, face still simmering in rage.

I nodded, taking the unspoken truce.

We continued our walk until the door was within arm's reach. This time, I opened it for her and let the priest leave first. The gesture was appreciated with a nod before she left. I followed behind to find myself between two orc guard standing on both sides of the door in leather armor.

In front of me lay another corridor with doors leading to various persons of interest in the church and logistical guts of the Underground. I knew beyond the hallway on the immediate left lay the storage area, some knowledge acquired only because my cover as a smuggler demanded it in order to trade or deliver goods. There were almost certainly more important areas in the church's abode, but the one the left and the exit directly ahead were the only points of concern to me.

As I walked ahead with only a lantern at the end for light, I had enough time to take in the crudeness of the stone workmanship. Rounded edges near the floor and ceiling made it clear that time could not be spared for even those little niceties, to say nothing of the occasional rough spot in the wall where a worker must have hastily adjusted their magical craft.

A minute of walking brought me to the end of the hallway where a pair of oak doors stood in a little alcove in the left wall, totally bereft of hinges or purpose. Beyond the unobstructed doorway in front of me was a properly open space marking the end of the church's official domain. A deep breath, and I left the day's last item behind.

I stood near the centern of a large cavern sporting open holes on the sides. The flat ground was uncaring stone sporting a few puddles on the sides from all the moisture in the air. Cleaning for these pools born from sweat and humidity was relegated to teams bearing buckets and towels. A shoddy solution but it was all that could be spared amidst the dozens of other patchs being applied to this new home.

Seeing as the church was the one holding all the magical crafts and the architects using them, they were prioritized in the construction crews efforts despite being near the center of Eli's domain. The constant banging and yelling from the six other entrances around the cave said the other sports were now getting their due.

Memory beckoned me to the north-eastern hole. As I moved near the center, four Kelton guards bearing steel chest plates came up behind me with one moving to the front. The priests didn't care for having them in the heart of their operation. Something I only yielded on because Eli was so close to any dealings I would have in them. The profound stupidity of assuming he'll always be ready to help me only presented itself after I agreed to the arrangement, but going back on it days later would be too awkward a conversation.

'My husband is a scion, so don't mess with me.' Was perhaps too convenient a club to have at hand.

Unlike the tunnels in the Underground resting beneath Crasden, these were far shorter and only wide enough for foot traffic. After only eight or so steps, we were in another cavern. This one was properly unfinished, as opposed to only being halfway like the church.

The edges of the circular walls and ceiling were still being made into an open space with only a clear walkway along the right wall. Orcs bearing wooden boards swung their planks along the left side only a stone's toss away. It would have been a ridiculous display if the rock in front of them didn't smooth or twist with each push by the green women.

Whatever Eli's crafts abilities, they couldn't simply banish natural stone into nothing and there was only so much that could be condensed or molded. Huge blocks were being broken down into smaller pieces by hammer and pickax. For those freed bits, the only transport for them was cart or sturdy back.

After a minute of walking, we finally got into a tunnel wide enough for two lanes of traffic or a large cart. The scene of rock, toil, and yelling workers continued in several sites our group had to trek through. A few were more rounded, like the one outside the church, but most were longer, serving as future housing districts or market centers.

Stopping beside tunnels or walking past them made the place seem like a maze awaiting completion. It was only the fact that I had two destinations that allowed me to remember the rights and lefts needed to reach the main tunnel connecting this new home to the dying old one. Upon entering the longer section just before reaching the cavern road that nearly saw me killed, I saw what the end product of all the construction I had walked through would produce. Along the left and right were long walls sporting doors along the floor and stairs at intervals to allow those residents of the upper three floors to reach their abodes.

Here, the traffic was a mix of playing kids and cooks bringing items for the big pots around tables near the empty far walls which had been left bare of shop or home. The sweaty laborers were, of course, present here but some of them were eating near the makeshift kitchens, and the only stone work going on was the bits of rubble being brought through the big tunnel directly ahead. That shaft was far closer to its mature siblings in Crasden, with a decent walk to its other side and a gaping maw allowing two carts in opposite directions and some foot traffic to spare.

As I approached, it was hard not to pick up on the general mood of the place. The children played about with big smiles as mothers watched on. And the fathers. A few human men were about on break or adjusting to life beneath the soil as they had officially written themselves out of Crasden life. The way one little orc girl was scooped up by her father, sending her pigtails of black swaying, almost made me stop in place to take it in. Adorable beyond words. I allowed the mood to soak in as I approached the tunnel, for it was probably the last bit of good feeling I'd have on this trip.

Going through took almost a solid minute of boots hitting stone. At its end was an even greater tunnel that widened around the edges to allow some working of carts or perusing of the maps splayed across various tables on the left as a grey-haired orc overseer tried to keep going what was almost certainly the biggest operation of her life.

Looking it all over, I found the spot on the floor ahead where my side became acquainted with a mages knife. Such pleasant memories probably shouldn't be dwelt on in the middle of traffic. I soon left behind the place where the entire city changed forever. This time, at least, walking down the massive throat of stone didn't result in a prison of magical water or threats on my life.

This section bridged Crasden and Eli's domain and was so long that it required the occasional torch fixed into the wall to provide light as opposed to ones in its destinations. Being so close to the surface, most of the whispers I'd heard were hoping that natural sunlight would be used in this section. Sally, however, had made it clear that the priorities of construction put such niceties dead last as long as the air still flowed.

Minutes of walking ticked by until we came to the end. On each side were steps enlarged to allow the placing of beds. Any residual indications of the concrete mixing I had seen on my first visit were gone. Seeing as how this project was going to keep everyone alive, the workers were kept as close to the site as possible, with those having families being given priority for the new housing, and the rest making due here. It was a large, cavernous space, and my wholly insufficient estimation placed a few hundred of my kind in and around the beds.

I left them all to their lives and went directly ahead to the main portions of the Underground. Following my mental map, we went through the caverns bearing houses, shops, or more staging areas for the construction site we had come from. The occasional ray of sun filtering in from above did nothing to change the mood. An air of desperation hung about every face, orc or human.

No matter the speed of the progress or assurances from the Council, it didn't change the fact that they were all living in what was to be demolished rubble. Most had already gotten a letter assigning them to their future abode currently being dug out. Of course, a piece of paper promising a thing wasn't the same as having said thing.

In the meantime, word of what new section would be getting the executioners' ax filtered between gossiping groups and market stalls alongside talk of another food shortage. The new governor seemed to either have sense or someone whispering in her ear who did. Murdering the Underground outright would result in an open war that would no doubt mar her new acquisition. Instead, every week or so, some street or entire block of the peasant quarter was demolished alongside any underlying structures which were replaced with solid stone. Whatever justifications or face-saving excuses the humans above ground were using, the plain fact is that we were being allowed to leave with our heads on our shoulders.

And I suppose the new flurry of ships visiting let them think we were leaving on them. Either that or they were unaware of all the digging currently going on. Whatever was going on in Crasden, it was going to be of little concern to me or my kind soon enough.

On one of the turns in the maze, I saw a pack of orc guards moving through the traffic with a familiar bob of brown hair flecked with grey. I can't say I was surprised when the head of the council walked up in a clear line towards us, but that didn't make the older orc's golden eyes locking on me any less grating. After a few seconds, both groups of guards moved to the right and formed a semicircle around a small alcove for us both to talk.

She wore a dark green sweater and cream pants, all as immaculate as her face, with not so much as a blemish on the small nose or equally small, sharp ears. Despite how proper she looked, there was an irritation in the pursed lips, and the chest of that green wool seemed to heave a touch more than needed. When an electric buzz came to my shoulder, I tried to get the first word in. And failed.

'Have you brought on another shipment?' She asked politely, the edge of exhaustion and anger being mostly kept at arms length.

'As much as we could deliver. Between the shifting storage areas and scant few hands left to do anything, your people aren't able to handle our typical volumes.' I responded evenly.

The roll of those golden eyes was bordering on offensive. She then closed them and sighed so loudly I heard it over the river of stomping feet to the left.

'We're taking in enough for us. It's just not enough for us and the third party.'

I stared at her with as much patience as could be scraped together. Despite the spirit connection, our conversation played out in the eyes as it had with words several times before. She knew of my suggestion to simply block the new purchases. I knew of Nersa's insistence that such a move would upset the merchants to no end, undermine confidence in their economy, and project desperation at a time when the utmost belief in leadership was needed. Demands of the moment, I would say to any questions. She disagreed. Whatever other words were to be spoken on the subject, we had filled the air with them enough times already.

'And what has the third party said about direct purchases?' Nersa pressed with a slight lean forward.

'They mostly spouted off some flattery about us being able to move so much product in the letter. All the details are for a meeting tomorrow.'

'How much will they be demanding? Will it compromise our own intake?' She pressed further, that raw anger and desperation moving from arm's length to elbow.

'All details, tomorrow. And right now, it's things on your end keeping my food floating on the sea instead of cooking pots.'

She nodded, those shoulders coming an inch or two down with her lean backward.

'Then we will have to straighten out the wrinkles. I don't suppose their visit could suffer an….accident? Some unfortunate slip resulting in a broken neck or impaling on sharp rocks beneath the ship?' Nersa asked with a small smile, a tease in her mental voice so small it bordered on cover for the inner sincerity.

A smile forced itself onto me.

'But what would the precious markets think? Besides, there's no way this much food is getting gobbled up by one person.' I answered with as much restraint as I could manage.

She puckered her lips for a second before sighing.

'Indeed. Well, I don't pretend to know who of us is busier, but I assure you time is like gold for me these days.' Nersa finished with a nod before walking off.

I returned the gesture, noting the spike of disdain for her well put-together manner. For all the world was throwing at her, she still had an essence about her. A power, a female….something that so clearly outshone mine.

It took a second before I realized I was scowling at rock wall.

However, she never had a legend, an actual living, breathing myth spoken of only in grand tales as a husband. Like bandage over a fresh wound, I relived all the times Eli had been made into a ravenous beast as he devoured me. Whatever Nersa's feminine prowess, it was my parts that drove an Ultimate mage feral. A fact I applied again and again until I felt the poison had been finally rendered inert. I turned to the Keltons and motioned for them to continue our trip.

At the turn of a cavern bustling with traffic, I almost made for the warehouse near the river. Then I remembered that I put it back under the city's jurisdiction. Overwork from managing two places and a fat compensation for having to move all my goods out left me with just the ship for a home. Which, with all the varied and fascinating ways this place was falling apart, was perfectly acceptable.

"Please!"

The barely heard word only just filtered through the mental exercise of navigating this lived-in maze. By the time I was fully aware of my surroundings, I turned left to see a mother grasping her young daughter's hand as she was blocked off by the Kelton guards. Most had since learned that begging me for housing on the ship wouldn't get them anything. That didn't prevent the most desperate among them from trying. Worse yet, those who were driven to try tended to be mothers. Emotionally, I wasn't prepared for such a confrontation, and it was at these moments that the Keltons were more valuable than their weight in gold.

Eventually, we were allowed to go on our way and it took only a few more minutes before arriving at the big empty tunnel leading to the rocky plains outside Crasden's walls. Torches lined the rough stone walls, their fires shifting from the wind brought on by our approach. For the first time in hours, silence crept in with only the smacking of boots on stone to interrupt. At the end were the stairs leading to a door and an older orc woman on the left. She nodded to our passing group with a pull of her thick coat as the first Kelton guard opened the entrance.

Black night filled with stars replaced what had been stone ceiling as I stepped past the door. Gravel and sand greeted my boot with a loud crunch that matched the Keltons moving to my sides. It took only a few seconds longer before the last man was out, and the entrance molded to fit below the stone slab was closed.

We trekked right towards the shore. With the dead now acting more like they should, I was allowed thoughts to wander during the walk. Pondering over my time with Eli, and the lack of it with Salamede, took up most mental space where the need to move around a boulder didn't demand it. When the sound of ocean hitting rock finally registered, I looked ahead towards the beach. Sure enough, a boat was waiting for us with more sailors to get us to the big mass of wood anchored beyond.

My vision was better in the dark, allowing me to get into the boat with only the usual difficulty. The Kelton guards, however, took a few extra minutes to accomplish the same. No matter how long, we all eventually arrived at our own spot on the dinghy. Oars were worked into the sea, and the land was getting distant.

Being on the ocean proper was a decidedly ambivalent experience. I was the captain of the now approaching ship, yet the great love many shared for it hadn't taken root. Though I was doing better than some of the Frojan and Lokan, so perhaps lukewarm was good enough. When ropes were thrown over the side of the ship to tie around the hooks on the ends of the boat, I felt bile rise in my throat. Any feelings of neutrality faded rather suddenly when our dinghy was pulled into the air by the strength of unseen men. This time, like all the others before it, we were not dashed against the side of the ship as we were lifted into the air.

That did not leave me any more appreciative when I climbed off the boat and onto a more solid mass of wood. I gave the men who hoisted us up a quick nod before turning left. Stairs led up to the door near the middle of the raised section of wood where the captain's abode stood. No resistance was offered to the beckoning. All this time playing captain had given sturdy enough sea legs to endure the lurch of the ship as I was halfway up the stairs. After that, the world allowed me a clear shot up and to the door.

Pushing it open revealed the quarters that had become my home. On the left was the bed, while on the right lay a new wardrobe. The opposite side of the room had a desk and chair, beyond which rough seas endlessly rose and fell. I had seen to the night's preparation on my trip into the Underground. Eli forcing his tongue down my throat and…. other such activities didn't undo any brushing of teeth by my estimation, so I immediately took off my coat and boots before slinking beneath the red blankets.

True darkness took me almost as soon as cool pillow touched the back of my head.

A knock on the door relayed two facts through the morning grogginess. Tomorrow arrived too soon, and preparation for the awaited meeting was at hand. Nothing else would compel-

"Miss!" Sharn yelled through the door.

"Come in." I groggily responded.

Through the door came the elderly orc. She sported a plain brown dress over a thin frame. Wrinkles almost covered the woman's face up to and including her angular cheeks. Those gold irises in black spheres immediately went to me.

"The morning wash is almost ready."

I nodded as I lifted myself up.

Sharn was my secretary, but my offer to spare her the mayhem of the Underground had made her more of a personal caretaker. Not that I would ever complain. The load of paperwork she was now taking off my back alone made her accommodation worth it. Given the secretive nature of my dealings, the old Orc had the good sense to never pry into the goods' origins.

She left with a close of the door, an act that didn't quite cover her unsteady movements. Despite the relative peace out here, the sea didn't seem to agree with her. I heard she had claimed a special spot on the left side of the ship where she could send her meals overboard when the time came.

By the time I had gotten myself fully out of bed, the steaming bowl of water was placed on the desk along with a grey towel. It was a simple routine from there, ending with me putting on a white shirt and black pants with the ever-present red coat. Breakfast was a warm bread and fish stew which was enjoyed at the desk.

The dishes were taken away and replaced with far less welcome items. Papers going over various agreements for services and goods for those taking our cargo to sell elsewhere. All of which were lies. These orders were signed under names that someone somewhere probably had, but certainly not the signers.

Illegal professions such as smuggling often involve little to no paperwork, but when passing between smugglers, some accounting was still needed for the moving of leather, ores, and food. The last was actually a bit harder to pawn off than I had anticipated. It turns out smugglers typically don't dump all their ill-gotten gains en masse into the local markets. No, they squeeze it into compartments in crates, hid them in sacks, and fudged accounts to make their wares unnoticeable even when they do hit the stalls.

Going legitimate was impossible, considering our crew had many members who were sworn enemies to all humanity and the complete inability to fake our goods' origins. Still, these intermediary sailors were barely taking on a fifth of what we usually unloaded. Which, to be fair, was about the size difference in our ships. We were still making coin, enough to make the old me in the swamps salivate at the prospect of such wealth. Sadly, moving enough to make coin and moving enough to keep everyone alive were two different things.

"Was something wrong with the orders?" Sharn asked from the right side of the desk, her bun of grey hair staying upright despite her looking down at the papers.

"No. No, I was just thinking over some things." I refuted with a shake of my head and pull of the chair forward.

"Good. I would hate to have the great mood you've been enjoying these weeks ruined."

Damn it!

How are people still able to tell when I've been with Eli? Does the bruising last for days….

Weeks?

"Weeks?" I repeated, looking up at her.

"Probably longer miss." She nodded sagely. "I must say, with how much of a disaster everything's been recently, it's rather nice to have the boss so…. Above it. All that humming and such."

I was humming?

Thinking back over my wash, the memory came at me like a brick. I had indeed been humming a tune as I cleaned up. Further perusing of this past week didn't reveal any such memories, but what did stick out was what had been lacking. When was the last time I felt a stab of jealousy over the girls being held by their fathers? Bitterness at the couples enjoying each other's company? Even then, some intuition of my inner self said these feelings all those months ago weren't as sharp as they would have been in previous years.

I was happy when I woke up this morning. As I had been the mornings before. Yet I couldn't think of any specific thing that caused it.

….

Could someone be happy by default?

The second feeling that rolled over me was indignation.

Was that it?! All those years fighting in the swamps to save my people, this grand quest to solve the great divide between my species and our sires, to correct the Bastard's cruel design, and all I actually needed was a man to slap my ass and call me beautiful?!

Well….No.

That pain was still riven into my bones. It was just…. Kept out of my face, moved to some dark corner where the daily doings wouldn't brush against them. Of course, there was always the possibility these noble aims were never the true goal at all, and the real reason for this struggle had been achieved. The last thought was banished to oblivion just in time for Sharn to cough.

"Any problems, miss?"

I pulled away from the staring contest I had been having with the papers.

"Just trying to figure out what's going on in my skull." I offered with a weak smile to the old orc.

"I abandoned such a venture many years ago. But who knows, maybe if I spent more time agonizing over inner thoughts, I would have a ship of my own. Seeing as how I don't and you do, however, that does bring the pertinent item up." She emphasized with a bit lip.

"Right," I said, straightening myself in the chair as I did so. "Have they bought any more food since we've agreed to this meeting?"

"Several tons of grain at least. Almost all having been sourced from you. The exact amounts could be obtained with a few bribes."

"No, I was more curious than anything else." I lied with a casual shake of my head.

The fact that all my offloads were being gobbled before the citizens got a chance was actually quite infuriating. These past weeks, someone with coin had started buying every piece of grain, stray carrot, and solitary potato at a considerable markup. Just in time for this already arduous transition to Eli's domain.

And I couldn't even be properly upset. I was a smuggler, after all. Them sucking up all the food left my purse fat as they took all I could provide the merchants. Thankfully, they had gotten so greedy that they set up a meeting with the source of the food, courtesy of a messenger waiting for our offloading crew some days ago. If I could stuff their fat faces enough for them to leave the Underground market unmolested, this little bump in the road would finally be put to rest.

"Well, if you had any questions for them, they're here to answer them," Sharn announced with all the urgency of a waking babe.

Spit shot down my throat.

"Why have they not been brought in?" I demanded with pursed lips.

Sharn raised a grey eyebrow.

"The meeting was agreed to be just before noon, which is still a few hours away. God, their bellies must be quite empty. But no matter how desperate they are, that doesn't give them the right to demand any of us move before the appointed time."

Right. I spent a good minute ordering my thoughts. Jumping from romance to trade and every other subject under the sun wasn't good practice. This meeting needed my full attention, and it was going to get it.

"The reports. We need to go over the books to get a rough idea of what we can give them. Between them, the new partners, and our regular shipments to the underground, we may finally be pulled beyond capacity."

She nodded before going out the door. Now alone, I went over everything true and false that would be needed. Smuggling was a business built on deception yet I still needed to make sure the operations had consistent restraints lest the new partners start asking the wrong questions. The story of us picking up food from northern smugglers meant I couldn't instantly increase the intake.

Well…. Maybe I could say we had a large backlog. And I can then ask these non-existent smugglers to bring in more. Given the Base was just dumping them at several locations, no one would ever need to see those bringing the food in, and the illegality of the operation meant I'd never need to show that lie of a fleet to anyone.

Of course, the Base wasn't an ethereal being that could spit out a mountain of food on a whim. Which meant Eli might need to help expand their farm and give them more equipment. A groan escaped my lips as I leaned back in my chair. After that talk with Cassie, could I really tolerate asking that of him? Lives were at stake and all that but….To be so utterly shameless was still a daunting ask of my pride.

The needed pages were swiftly delivered by Sharn, who proceeded to wait on the right as I went over the figures. We had twenty tons or so of various foodstuffs to reliably offload. How and in what amount of time they could take these goods would be another issue. Until such figures were provided, there wasn't much of anything else I could do. Something I finally accepted before nodding to Sharn.

"Bring them in," I commanded.

Sharn gave a slight bow before walking towards the door. A few quick adjustments of my white shirt and red coat was all I focused on for a good minute. When the door opened again, I was putting the last few touches to the black bang near my right eye.

A kelton guard in steel armor moved through the doorway. Behind them came a tall, heavily tanned man in a green robe that protected his leather tunic and black pants from ocean spray. His brown eyes immediately went to me. The thick nose on his tan face twitched, and that wide chin stretched with a bit lip.

This display of emotion brought back the smells, tastes, and desperation of swamps and battles. It was hidden as well as it could be, but the eyes held thoughts too familiar for me to not recognize: This man really didn't like being in the presence of an orc. After so long, I felt like I was back home in the worst way possible.

"Morning, Captain…." His rough voice announced as he moved to the center of the room, clearly forcing each step. The Kelton guard moved between us while slightly off to the right. Not in the way, but still capable of stopping any moves from the human.

"Gula," I responded with a stiff smile. A bad mood bubbled up from my gut, but until the man allowed me an actual reason to throw him headfirst into the ocean, it would go no further. He gave a slight nod, only as low as manners demanded and not a hair more.

"Percy. I was told you have a substantial amount of food on hand and a consistent supply for more." He asked with a smile faker than most dolls.

"Both true. All salted and preserved for proper shipping. Of course, I imagine the man currently emptying the larders of nearly every stall in the market probably wouldn't have them last long enough for that to matter."

"My backers' needs are immense and immediate." He confirmed with another careful nod.

So, he's just the middle guy handing it off.

"And I've been given certain leeway in making decisions in obtaining said goods." Percy continued. "I was told I would not be allowed below deck."

"As a matter of security, yes," I responded with a firm raise of my chin.

He took a deep breath.

"Then could I inspect your goods on the deck?"

I pondered for a moment before nodding.

"A few crates, but we're not bringing the entire hold up."

"I would not ask for such." He said before turning around. The power behind his every step made it clear it was more to get away from me than any eagerness to inspect carrots. I said nothing as he went through the door, only nodding to the Kelton guard who followed him out.

Several minutes passed with nothing besides bad memories to keep me company. When he came back with a pondering gaze, I was inexplicably relieved that he was seemingly more focused on the goods he had seen than any disdain for me.

"If that quality represents the others, I will make a full purchase." He said with a smile and brown eyes that looked off in the distance.

"Full?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, all of it."

I blinked twice, looking him up and down.

"In what quantity?"

"All of it." He emphasized with an annoyed puckering of lips.

"The entire hold? There are at least twenty tons of as of food to move."

Percy's smile broke out further, now showing teeth. His chest rose and fell with heavy breathing.

"And I'll take every potato, grain, and cabbage."

It took me a second for my thoughts to straighten out.

"So, where is your ship to offload them?"

Those brown eyes pulled back to me, now filled with calculation rather than disdain. Raw greed was overriding previous hostility, and I could only speculate what commission his backer had guaranteed him.

"Bringing a ship here is….out of the question. It goes without saying that advertising such a relationship is undesirable to my sponsor. Could you bring the cargo to Crabs Pinch?"

I almost asked where that was, but the words refused to leave my mouth. This man clearly didn't like me or my kind, and giving him any satisfaction from instructing me was unthinkable. I motioned the Kelton between us closer.

'Find out where Crabs Pinch is.'

He nodded before turning to another at the door, who immediately went out the door.

I went over the next week's schedule, as scant as it was. Since they had to unload their untaxed goods in the hidden crevices of legitimate wares, the few smugglers I had been working with didn't work on a schedule, and the Council was too busy for its usual meetings. Word would still have to be sent to them, of course; however, right now, all I was doing was looking for places to offload, and doing it all in one spot was tempting. If it was safe, of course.

Tomorrow was the earliest we could leave since the airship above needed to accompany us. I couldn't conceive of a reason why Percy or his backers would ever want us dead, but that could be a lack of imagination on my part, or their intentions are straightforward and pirates meeting us halfway is just a bout of bad luck. A few minutes passed before the guard came back and relayed his information to the one by my side.

'It's a small island on the northern inner part of the Thousand Screams Toad's territory. Typically used for dealing and exchanging with the north as it's the closest section to the frozen lands.'

'Inside the King Beasts' territory? Is that safe?'

'A few sailors with more southern experience all said as much. That spirit connection it uses around everyone apparently keeps the pirates away and it's very hard for them to get to that section outside of it. Safer than the trip to the southern Waveborn, at least, and only about three days one way.'

Great.

Another day or two of being uncomfortable was a small thing. Nothing compared to what those in the Underground were enduring. Doing this would also help alleviate the recent food shortages. God, starving children are just another spear in the back pushing me forward.

God.

Now, when did I start taking on the local tongue?

The early morning sun was coming through the back windows, which made the sense of tiredness already setting in seem all the more absurd. I felt I knew little of the world and readily admitted as much. Having little understanding of myself was harder to accept. The outer world, however, was still waiting, no matter the unfathomable workings in my head.

"Will there be any delay getting your ship to the meeting point?" I asked with a lean forward.

"It's always there. Or one of its siblings is. This is just one of several ventures being undertaken, but only one ship at a time is permitted to go to the actual buyer. Maybe you can advise us on a few good spots in the area. Frojan have a way with water none have been able to match, and those under your crew might be able to get some extra coin for the effort." Percy offered with a smile, those brown eyes still looking elsewhere.

That the frogmen's presence had been compromised to the point of being open to any and all who arrived in Crasden was an irritating notion that still pricked, even if it was insignificant.

"Tomorrow morning is the earliest I can go." I offered with a shrug.

Percy raised his eyebrow in surprise.

"Most would say a week and consider it a rush."

"Our ship is far larger than any other I've seen here and carries more than most can handle these days. It's others slowing us down." I offered with a smile.

He then bit his lip, looking more mentally present in the conversation.

"My own means of travel are more tied down at the moment." He mused with a pointed look downward.

His sudden approach was closely watched by the Kelton guard still standing off to the right, who now moved closer to stand directly by the desk.

"I have some authority in this scheme." Percy intoned before reaching behind his neck with both hands. The clinking of metal chain preceded the glint of previously hidden copper being pulled up and over his head. "We're at the tip of the claw, though Captain Jonah lets the anchor out at different areas around it. Offer this to the ship bearing a flag matching this signet, and he'll know I sent you. The prices have already been set higher than what they were selling at the stalls, so there should be no problems there."

Copper links shined in the orning sunlight, though the disk beamed the brightest. It had two standing swords above a grain field, all enveloped by sun rays around the outer edges. The way he was holding it said the jewlery was precious, so I very carefully placed it in the left drawer. No matter his true feelings about green women, coin to repair such an item was going to come directly out of my personal purse, so all care would be taken to avoid such an exchange.

"Is there any other issues? The territory hasn't been visited in a while, and I can't say I have a firm hand on the situation further south."

Percy shrugged as he pulled back towards the door.

"More smugglers in the toads' territory recently, but no one likes staying in it for long. I've heard some routes have been worked out to get goods through both sides, so the traffic's been dying down. We don't own the spot on Crab's pinch, of course. The ship is a long thing of two floors with red wood, if you see any others present on the island."

His manner made it clear he was eager to leave, a goal I shared.

"I don't want to commit to a timeline, but we should be there in five or so days. Fickle winds and other needs keep me from any firm deadlines." I offered, giving myself as much leeway as possible.

He nodded before moving out the door. When it closed, my shoulders went down of their own accord. Morning was still early, and I considered contacting the Council for input. Then I discarded the idea.

They would get a notice of my impending absence and whatever could be offloaded in the remaining sunlight. The Council, Sally included, made it clear getting over this latest hurdle was the highest priority and mass dumping food at Crab's Point was the best way to get this Percy fellow out of the markets' larders.

Time flowed by with no further interruptions. As captain, my part was largely done. Sending letters, preparing the cargo, and the thousand other little things needed were all several levels of command below captain. That didn't stop me from overlooking most of them in an attempt to make myself feel more like the real captain I was pretending to be.

Beaton, however, still ran the daily tasks with his usual efficiency. The burly man commanded a respect among his former crew. More than that, our newest addition of orphaned orcs were seemingly pulled to him for advice, inspiration, and such, even if they didn't understand why he seemed to have so much authority. A fact I was rather grateful for, considering all that was being demanded of me elsewhere.

A blanket of night soon fell over orange sky as I was putting away the last few items. The Council had given its unneeded consent, the last few deliveries were made, and I went through the motions of retrieving the radio from under the floorboards and relaying the plan to mother. She agreed with my decision, but I was only half mentally present in the conversation. The suggestion that the Gula that lived in the swamps wasn't the me in the captain's chair was getting a bit loud and tortuously going over every detail seemed to happen whether I consented to it or not.

Night passed without fuss. Morning came without its usual demands, save the early waking from the first officer, Geoff. He wanted to have my official order to send off, which I gave while beneath red blankets. A slight tug from the ship leaving Crasden finally got me up.

The morning and afternoon went by with nothing of note happening. Sharn probably had the most to do with her regular bookkeeping and consistent need to visit her spot on the back of the ship. I spent the free time pondering over inner thoughts and past conversations. By the next day, such thoughts were disposed of. It seems not even personal revelation or finding life's true purpose could outrun boredom.

The third day woke me up to a warmth not felt save around the weak fires of the Underground. Most of the morning was spent cleaning various bits of my white shirt and brown pants until a knock came at the door an hour or two before noon.

"Captain, Gula!" A young girls voice called through the door.

"Yes?" I called back with a straightening in the chair.

The wooden slab opened to reveal a small green girl with a red headband and clothing that matched mine, if far smaller.

"Geoff want's you to know we'll be approaching the Screaming Toads territory soon. Didn't want you caught unaware and all that." She said with her red eyes looking around.

"I'll keep that in mind," I responded with a nod.

She closed the door behind her with a small bow. Taking a deep breath, I slowly released it. A minute of waiting passed before a buzz suddenly enveloped my skin.

"Shit!" A voice screamed from somewhere beyond the cabin.

The sentiment was fully shared. I raised an arm and the sensation one got from walking across a carpet suddenly clung to the inner armpit, setting my teeth against each other. A few more minutes, and I adjusted to finding it merely grating. At least we were now in the general area.

Some notion of going out to see the sights came and was immediately dismissed. This was the closest thing to a vacation I was going to get for a while. Long treks across stone were taking their due from these feet and they weren't going to accept a single second of standing more than was absolutely needed.

After a few minutes, another knock on the door came.

"Captain!" A girls voice called. "We've found the area."

"Good." I told the door. "Have all orcs wait below deck. These people are not Waveborn or members of the Underground and it may cause some problems if our kind are spotted so freely associating with them."

"Yes, Ma'm!" The petite voice responded before footsteps sounded off her retreat.

I absorbed the rocking of the waves outside as the world of wood tilted back and forth. Not making problems was a good reason to not show up personally for the deal. A lesser reason, if I was being honest with myself.

Seeing that look in Percy's eyes, that loathing of their species daughters, it hit in a way that didn't quite settle the same now that I personally experienced the love humans could give us. As I was shaking my head at the stupidity of such a weepy sentiment, I also made a mental note to visit Eli again. The blatant contradiction of those two sentiments was ignored as I leaned back in the chair.

Time passed for another hour or so before the ship came to a gradual halt. A look behind revealed a long beach along the left and more endless ocean on the right. Though, the beach here had palms and grass tufts instead of lifeless rock. The water also seemed to have a little something extra, whether it was from the white sand or warmer sun.

Content to let first officer Geoff and the humans sort it all out, I stretched in place with only the Screaming Toads spirit connection along every crack and pore to keep me company. The boat was silent for ten minutes or more before I started getting worried at the lack of noise outsidet. As I was getting out of the chair, a chorus of stomping feet and yells from officers finally told of the coming offloading.

Wooden ceiling filled my eyes as the southern heat wrapped around me like a blanket. Not so warm as to sweat but enough to make the freezing north a bad memory. I let memories snow and freezing rain slide away along with my eyelids as black curtains fell over the world.

'Come.' A voice suddenly boomed.

The word made me jolt in place. I looked to the door, then behind me to the windows, feeling the sluggishness of the nap slow me down as I did so. A second passed before the hairs on my neck stood on end. The word hadn't arrived through the ears.

'Come.' The voice pressed again. I couldn't catch the tone used the first time, but there was no mistaking the hard authority now bouncing around in my skull.

To further emphasize the point, that all all-enveloping spirit connection retreated from my feet and gradually left the skin going from the heels up until it formed a circle at my left cheek. Turning my head in the direction of the spot, it moved to the center of my forehead. A right turn and, sure enough, the dot remained consistent in its direction even as it glided across nose, cheek, and eye.

Without thinking, I dashed towards the door and opened it. A blue sky streaked with white gave off an almost painting-esque perfection above, but I could only look to the left past the ship's railing. Beyond another ship of red wood lay the direction of the dot, though only open ocean could be seen. Then I picked up what my ears weren't hearing.

On both ships were men that had been working crates, ropes, and boats. All of them, even those mid-lift, had stopped dead. More than that, they were all staring in perfect unison past the other ship, with those on the red vessel also still as statues as they looked further beyond their domain. The eeriness of the scene might have registered if that buzzing dot on my forehead hadn't demanded all the attention.

'Come!'

Any pretense of suggestion was now stripped away; in its place was expected obedience, demanded with crushing force so loud it would burst eardrums if they were being used. Every man jumped in place at the same time, my female self included.

Some of the quicker-witted started running about, which finally pulled the rest out of their stupor.

"Captain!"

A desperate voice called out from the deck below. I couldn't place its age or sex but every face currently looking at me had equal measures of fear and desperation.

"Don't panic," I announced.

It wasn't an order, but most still nodded like it was. Scant few immediately got to work putting things in order, while most immediately turned to their fellows to barrage them with questions. I did a sharp turn back into the cabin.

A chorus from the deck started getting properly loud as I slammed the door closed behind me. An immediate sprint towards the desk came to a dead stop after three steps. Could the King Beast detect me using the radio? It knew where to move the dot, so it probably knew where the rest of me was.

Sweat dripped down my forehead. Getting the radio was the only chance we had to escape. One quick pull on the false floor board….

I shoved the panic down. No, we were trapped. If it looked like we were going to get away, the beast would just render us unconscious on the spot, if the stories were remotely accurate. And we would only save a few people anyway while risking the entire future of my species. Raw need for survival screamed again, so I tried placating it. Giving away the presence of the radio might rob the airship of the advantage of surprise if things should come to blows. When I took a second to control my breathing, the door opened again.

In the doorway stood Geoff, my most immediate subordinate. Behind him was Sharn in a blue dress, looking appropriately terrified. The old man had sweat coming down his leather skin to moisten his white shirt and ragged brown shorts. Not even the bald cap above his ring of long grey hair was spared the glistening beads as it dripped past green eyes and onto his sharp chin.

He didn't move or say anything, only staring at me for a second before looking past the desk, then back to me. The old man then turned to Sharn and shooed her away with a hand wave. After a second of hard staring, the old orc walked off to the left. Geoff's head shot back to me after a moment, signaling our privacy.

"Should we try contacting….someone?" The old man offered as his chest heaved like he had sprinted for minutes.

I stuck out my chin and gave him a hard stare.

"There are more important things than our own lives. We can't risk bringing anyone else into this."

Green eyes went wide as chapped lips were crushed between his teeth before being released with some drops of spit.

"Risk? I'd say it's our necks closest to the dagger right now."

For all my inner doubts, it was clear this moment demanded me more than anyone else among the human crew.

"Right now, we're more soldiers than smugglers. There are a LOT of people who will be hurt if we bring in help and they fail. No. We'll see this thing to its conclusion on our own."

I couldn't properly explain how the airship might get to kill the beast if given the element of surprise, given what techniques the Thousand-Screams Toad might be employing to monitor us, air magic or otherwise. Geoff seemed put off by the words, smugglers not being the type to envision valiantly falling on swords for glory, but he knew of Eli's long-term plan and what it meant for orcs. After seconds of staring at me with dripping skin, he nodded and went back out the door, closing it with his exit.

The trip across the room was completed with me sitting down in the chair. A few minutes of idling passed before the ship shifted leftward. Regrets of unsaid 'I love you's', wondering where the failure that led to this came from, and what I could possibly do to survive flooded in like they always did under pressure. They could do me no good besides make whatever else was coming more painful, so I pushed them aside. No matter how freely we could move or sail, the fact is our necks were under a sword.

Tension couldn't hold up forever, and as minutes became hours into late afternoon, I felt a sense of impatience set in. Wherever the dot was directing us, it was taking too long to get there. Sharn may not have agreed, something we might have discussed if she could have been coaxed from her bunk. The chefs weren't relieved of their duties despite the events, and as I was washing down a fish fillet with weak beer, Geoff came back in. Sticking his balding head just outside the door, the sweat previously drenching him had since disappeared.

"The other ship is signaling for a night's stop at one of the smaller islands."

I raised an eyebrow at the suggestion.

"I remember some mention of the deeper parts of the territory on my tavern visits, where people get their heads scrambled if they go in. How long till we arrive in that section?"

A grimace stole over the leathery face.

"That border was crossed a good hour ago, miss. Save the dot and visible rocks, we're sailing blind since…. Well, we're the first sailors in these waters for as long as any of us has been alive."

The smile I gave him had all the cheer of a damned at their execution. Something he took as dismissal.

With a spot of constant buzz on my skin, there was some doubt I could get comfortable enough to sleep. Something that permeated the washing and changing. The big red blanket and mattress made a counterargument that won the debate. Less than a minute after getting wrapped up, I felt sleep push past the constant buzz at my foot and finally relieve me of the day's stress.

*Knock*

*Knock*

"What!" I yelled. Waking just in time to see Geoff poke through the door.

"We were wondering if an early leave would be appropriate." He asked mildly.

Looking to the back window beyond the desk, the sky was mostly black with only a faint whisper of the sun peeking through. A choice profanity danced on my tongue until I felt a buzzing dot on my side. Yesterday came back in a flood of memories and worries.

"Yes," I answered. "We don't want to seem like the invitation is unwelcome by lazing about."

He tried to fight down a smile, but a smirk still came through the leather skin.

"Yes, captain," Geoff said with a slight bow as he retreated.

Looking upward, I gave mother some unspoken words of love before throwing the sheets down. Morning preparation was a bit dull considering where we were going. The lack of heated water for the bath, only bearable by the southern heat making it merely lukewarm, was the first standout. The second occurred when I paid attention during the donning of a white shirt and black pants.

When a tune came up my throat, I could only sigh at the stranger I was sharing a body with.

Soon, the wooden room shifted and shouting outside matched the sounds I knew to be the crew getting ready to sail. A slight dip told of our trip continuing. Despite the circumstances, there was nothing left to do but ponder. My inner workings, this marriage thing, what living inside a toad's stomach was like. All of which passed by in a few hours before the buzzing dot suddenly disappeared. No grand proclamations or warning, just the flicking of a fly at my shoulder and suddenly the partner on the right side of my forehead was gone.

Taking it as a signal, I donned the red coat on the bedpost and fixed my sword around my waist more as a matter of comfort than defense. Going out the door, the day greeted me with bright sun and blue sky. Such beauty might have been noteworthy if I hadn't immediately registered every head on deck looking rightward. When I followed their gaze, I couldn't argue with anyone not attending their duties.

Before us lay a vast open land with palm trees and white shores. Minor notes to the huge half ovals serving as roofs sticking out in a heap the size of a city. A few seconds of trying to find the streets and structures beneath passed before I realized the roofs were the buildings. A giant forest of thatch canopies rested on top of each other, with small rivers running out of the bigger ones. I took in the sight for a second before the spirit dot reconnected with my forehead.

'Come, and bring the leader of my kind with you.'

I nodded to the unseen beast.

"You heard him!" I yelled over the dead silence. Most looked askance at me while some continued staring at the mountain of canopies.

"What?" Geoff asked from behind me.

I turned to take in his torn white shirt and abused leather shorts. My first answer was a furrowed eyebrow.

"We wouldn't want to anger the Screaming Toad with defiance this late into the journey, would we? Do what he said."

Geoff looked down to some of the crew, then stared at me for a moment.

"Captain….The beast didn't say anything to us."

My heart slammed against my ribs as it tried to burst out.

Eli.

The beast must….

No. Eli's never been anywhere near here. And if it was about him, of what use would Baloo be? Wrestling with which portions of the universe revolved around the quad mage, I cleared my throat to relay the command.

"He wants Baloo and me to come to him."

A few men moved to relay the information, leaving the deck silent enough for me to hear Geoff's cough.

"Alone?" He asked with worry coming clear through.

I stared at him for a second until those green eyes rolled, the pointlessness of an escort finally remembered. A minute was spent taking in the various roofs and streams when I heard a loud groan of wood on the lower deck.

Waddling up to the railing facing the city, the green toad man was dressed in a light blue robe that helped show off his darker backside. He was a big specimen even for his kind, bigger than the humans without contest. The spear in his right hand only just fit with his size; any shorter and it would look like a toy despite the metal point. I moved forward and down the left side staircase to be beside him. Those large amber disks took me in for a second before the deep bass voice rang out.

"I hope you haven't forgotten the forms."

A smile came to me despite the churn in my gut.

"That's like asking if I forgot to breathe."

The frogman set aside his spear to rest on the railing.

"Have you forgotten how to swim in gear?" I prodded.

Those big shoulders beneath the blue robe rose with his shrug.

"Considering this is seawater, it will ruin any we bring. It might be worth it if the weapons did us any good. With all that in consideration, I'd say it's my memory that remains most intact." He said with a pointed look at the sword on my hip.

A few of the sailors raised eyebrows at the conversation, with those working the boat behind Baloo looking the most confused. I could only sigh as I released the sword holster from my side and placed it on the stairs. Baloo put out his arm, which I went under.

With the sun now blocked by frojan chin, motions too practiced to ever be forgotten saw us slide onto the railings like a single being. Immediately, Baloo's muscles tensed enough that they told of the next move, as did his grasp of my stomach. Powerful legs put all their strength into the wood below with a pronounced groan before snapping like a whip to launch us both off the ship.

Wind pulled at my face as the city went down, then up, and finally the ocean filled the world as it rushed up. The covering of my face and positioning along his stomach came as naturally as breathing. I trusted him with the journey as I always did in a life gone by. Dark void filled my eyes as water pushed against every crevice until I felt an air bubble form around my head. Any movements by me would only slow him down, so I kept my legs straight down to reduce the drag and keep out of his swimming strokes.

Only a minute or so passed before the water slowed. I stuck my hands forward for a second before sand filled my palms. Baloo lifted off of me just as I felt the top of my head splash with ocean before again touching air. I was around waist high on the beach and quickly moved to the dry white beach ahead.

Once we were both on proper shore, the frojan used his magic to pull water from our clothes. Now fully dry, we took in the city in front of us only partially blocked by a wall of bushes. The canopies stretched on for as far we could see, which admittedly wasn't a great distance at this angle. Small streams flowed out of what I could now see were stone floors. That was as much as I got to take in before I noticed a boat to the left making its way to land.

We made our way to their intended beachhead and arrived just as they were a stone's throw from shore. Which a group of the city's inhabitants also arrived at. Out of the shrubbery to the right came some of Baloo's cousins.

They were all donned in plush cloth midriffs that barely went down to their knees. Unlike those in the swamps, they had almost midnight dark skin as a base. Not to be consigned to only one color, they sported bright, eye-catching arrays of yellows, purples, and pinks in splotches and stripes. Their overall build was also slimmer, with their limbs not as muscular, which fit as they were only slightly larger than a human. However, the spears and blow darts arrayed about them still had the needed bits.

"Greetings," One of them said as….it stepped forward. They were almost entirely black, though that only emphasized the purple splotches on their back. One thing that hadn't changed since the swamps was my complete inability to distinguish a frojans' gender on sight or voice alone.

The sailors came forward off their boat with an older man, mid-forties at most, stepping in front. He had a red bandanna and a tanned face that couldn't hide his brown goatee. Those brown eyes darted to me for only a moment before turning back to the frogmen.

"The great protector's mind is here and there." Our host continued. "Yet his sight rarely falls on anyone. Being brought for a personal audience is a great honor. He has also made it clear that you will be leaving here. No matter your audience's outcome."

Amber eyes darted to the men's weapons before moving to us. I couldn't be certain, but I wanted to say there was a glint of approval in those big disks watching us.

Some annoyance played across the other captains face. He was still fully aware of where he was and merely nodded as the guide motioned us towards the bushes. The humans went first as they were closer. No matter the order, each of us got about two guards on either side.

Turning the corner revealed the bushes were merely side decorations for a red brick road that snaked further upward. Following the local Frojan brought us straight up the path. The journey involved only a few curves, so my attention soon went back to the structures.

It was impossible to tell from shore but there were indeed roads throughout the city. Mentally going over the placements and inner walls, it seemed rather sparse on defensive positions and choke points. Speed and convenience seemed to be the more important aspects. Considering the Thousand-Screams Toad called it home, perhaps military concerns could be sacrificed.

The inner portions of the buildings were left open without doors or large walls, making the canopies resemble open mouths with only the backs having proper walls. Occasionally, I could get a glimpse of their contents, which were either floors of water or workshops sporting various metal and wooden tools. The rhyme or reason of why some were one or the other eluded me, though the jade or amber eyes that would peer back from various corners didn't leave me wanting to ask.

We continued on with a constant chorus of waves to accompany our trudging under what now felt like a proper southern sun reaching its peak in the sky. It certainly didn't help that the path was only going upward. Twenty good minutes passed when my thighs started suggesting a stop. Thankfully, ahead of us was an open space at which the red stone seemingly ended in nothing but blue sky.

Coming to the top revealed a sharp drop into a wide bowl of trees and vines almost as large as the city we had trekked. It took a second before I saw the sides had stairs that went into holes drilled into the dirt. As I followed the guide down our own stairs, a closer inspection revealed that the entire bowl was stone, with only a few patches of dirt for plants that had covered up this fact with their growth.

One of the holes waited below as we descended, a gaping maw of grey rock slicked with green mold and drops of water on the sides yet kept immaculate on the steps themselves. We passed into the tunnel with a slight hiccup from the humans ahead of us who slowed down for a second before taking the plunge.

Going in deadened the sound of ever-present waves. Instead, my ears filled with echoing drips of water and shoes on stone. A minute of walking down passed by with the only sunlight filtering through slits in the wall to light the path. There was enough moisture in the air to match the swamps. After another minute, the humidity typical of swamps gave way to something far thicker. Any space between my shirt and skin seemed to moisten. Another minute passed before the white shirt and black pants clung to me like we were in an unseen rain, and I felt confident I could drink with only an open mouth. We eventually neared the tunnel's end with the humans ahead of us stepping onto a wide floor of grey stone.

Coming down onto that same floor, a wide cavern opened up sporting more vines, moss, and shafts of light from above. The overall size was comparable to a small valley of such distance that I doubt a bow could send its arrow to the opposite side. Yet my eyes went to what lay directly ahead. In front of us were stairs that sloped down at the same curve as the ones before. These lead onto a giant stone disk of smooth black.

It was the mass of white, green, and grey flesh beyond the disk that demanded any further attention. Beyond the sheer enormity, it was the smattering of eyeballs that made skin crawl. Massive, red irises the size of carriages dotted the small mountain. A good second went by before the entirety of the frojan finally dawned on me.

The head was near the ceiling, eye sockets plastered over with smooth white skin, while the underside of his belly was grey. Dotted along his sides and at the joints of the arms and legs were red eyes, though the symmetry involved in their siblings on the darker green back escaped me.

A breeze flew through my hair as the mountain suck air in through nostrils between the white sheets, stretching the field of loose grey skin of his belly before releasing it in a deafening gale. The storm that blew over us sent two of the humans stumbling while the rest of us shirked back, myself included. Everyone took a few seconds before standing straight again. Only the soft patter of our guide moving to the right drew me away.

"If you would." They intoned with a hand wave, beckoning us forward.

That human captain with a red bandanna took the first step down. Not to be outdone, I quickly followed with Baloo on the left. Our groups slightly merged as we descended. Taking in the rest of the room, I saw more lights filtering in through slits in the ceiling where the vines covering most of the stone didn't obstruct. When I looked to the left, I almost stopped.

Along a free-standing wall, bereft of the vines and moss at the end of a pathway from the black disk, was a display of faces etched into the grey rock. All arranged in neat lines, though any further details were too obscured to make out at this distance. Just past them was a statue of a man. Any further perusing was cut short by our arrival onto a flat bit of stone floor before coming onto the obsidian disk proper.

"Captains," Our guide intoned as they moved further to the right. "To the center, if you please."

Having faced death on the battlefield more times than I could count, my feet didn't wobble from the steps forward. Rather, it was the prospect of ruining Eli's plan to save my entire species that made me walk with a chest heaving like it was a sprint. In times past, potentially dozens would die from any mistake I made. Now, it was millions. Hopefully, the beast couldn't tell the difference between that fear and the one of him.

When the human captain and I were at the center of the disk, the Screaming Toad took another breath. Whether it was a method of intimidation or simple natural function, the gale that blew over us was no less intimidating than the first. As the last of the wind blew past, all the eyes on the mountain suddenly turned to me just as a spirit connection enveloped my body.

'Name,'

The word pressed against the inside of my skull like it was trying to punch through the bone. I could only grit my teeth before answering.

'Gula.'

'How long have you known my kind?' The male voice rumbled in my head.

'Since my first years. We're from lands where orcs and frojan work together.' I replied as calmly as I could.

Those red irises turned to the human captain.

Seconds of nothing passed.

Then back to me.

'Those healing crafts on your ships frojan, could you secure more?'

Obvious questions came as quickly as they were choked down.

'Ones for your kind or yourself?'

'The difference?' He offered, his voice as casual as a deafening thunder could be.

'A few of them wouldn't be a problem. Healing crafts for dozens or yourself brings another issue. Discretion is our….My….. My source wouldn't want them associating with me to be well-known. Keeping such large or numerous crafts well hidden would be a challenge, forget getting them in the first place.' I said, ignoring the mixture of sweat and ambient moisture cascading down my brow.

'They're maker is not on the ship, then?' The mountain in my head pressed again.

'No.' I shot back as steadily as I could.

Another inhale.

Another storm.

As the winds blew over us, this time they ended with the words coming out of his cavernous mouth.

"I have allowed you to traverse waters protected by me without tax or compensation. As I have for centuries past. But never to such large or persistent crowds.

From this day forward, no ship is to stay inside my domain for more than a week. Any more than that and they will feel my prodding. Make this fact well known to your associates, Captain Reiner."

The red bandanna almost fell off the human's head from how hard he nodded, a small rain descending from the movement.

Huge red eyes turned to the man. The captain immediately ran back to his group, which the rest of the humans soon imitated by scurrying back up the stairs under a guard of black frojan. When the last of them made it back up to the tunnel, the group came to a halt and turned back to observe. Just as I turned back to the Thousand Screams Toad, he shifted in place. It took a second before I realized he was moving to lie on his belly, which was emphasized with a stretch.

'Tell me, Gula, what compensation would your backer require for a craft fit for me?' The rumbling voice in my head asked, now more deep than skull-crushing. There was still an undercurrent of strength behind it to inform me of my weaker position, if his being able to swat me like a fly didn't suffice.

Still, when I looked into the smooth skin where his eye sockets should be, my heart wasn't threatening to explode anymore.

'A single enchantment on a paper cloth the size of my hand would be possible. I'd imagine that wouldn't be sufficient for your purposes.'

'Our imaginations are quite similar, despite other differences.'

It was hard to tell if he was joking or making a straight forward observation, so I went with the safer interpretation of the latter.

'My source will have to deal with those other differences. Just the small patches in the robes were considerable investments. The project for you….I'm afraid there's nothing in a thousand of my holds that could buy it.'

It was a dangerous move, pleading poverty before a mage's greed. But I wouldn't endanger the project with suspicious lies, even if it got me smeared under his foot. No, he was going to have to convince the bottomless greed of an actual mage.

Another breath came, though this one was released slowly.

'What is coin compared to defeating time?' He demanded with thinned patience.

Every eye closed along his sides and back for a second before opening again.

'I am old, Garren's daughter. A life well lived and extended by the feasting of a plump metal worm and then more besides. Yet, I am not content that it should end with thin bones and weak knees. There is yet more to see and….'

My eyebrows furrowed as he lay silent, his multitude of eyes shut.

'You do not care for your sire?'

Sense said this was not the argument to be having. Rage was faster.

'We are his newest, most terrible creation. Made us a blight on our actual fathers. What care should I have for he who threw away his children?' I responded with heat despite my best efforts to keep the words in.

He took another breath and released it through his snout in a whirlwind smaller than the previous storms.

'I admit, the centuries blur together. But I can confidently say that when he dropped off the beastmen in my domain, it was quite a bit past your birth into this world.'

'You saw him?' I asked, breath leaving my lungs.

Then the enormity of what he said registered.

'The-' My mental tongue refused to work as I felt a tingle run up my spine. 'The beastmen are Garrenspawn?'

'His statue lies beyond the memory wall with a stone etching of his note for them, if you want to confirm.'

Everything in my head; fear, worry, plans, deceptions, all of it, melted away, leaving only numb shock. The carriage-sized eyes lining his body opened all at once to take me in. Not even that fully penetrated. On my left was a statue of….

Curiosity pushed past the shock, but something kept me in place. He was a monster. An evil man with children he spewed throughout the world without care for their well-being. Yet….

Without asking the Screaming Toad, I took reluctant steps to the left. The unasked-for leave produced no rebuke from the mountain. Even as I moved off the black stone and onto the path towards the statue, I couldn't get my eyes to look at it. Instead, I took in the faces lining the walls. None of them I recognized, which was unsurprising considering how old they probably were. After a few seconds, the square grey base of the statue peeked out in the left corner of my eye.

I took a deep breath and forced my neck to turn.

There was no color on it, save grey. Garren sported a stubby chin, thick eyebrows, and a sharp nose, all expressing a look somewhere in the distance. A breeze blew his shoulder-length hair over his plain jacket's collar. The rest of his clothes consisted of a seemingly benign shirt beneath the jacket, pants, and boots. It was surprisingly lifelike, but stone could only convey so much.

Taking everything in, I stared at the face for a second, trying to find… something. I couldn't quite say what exactly was wrong with the statue. After a few seconds, revelation hit me like a lightning bolt.

He didn't have a beard.

Of all the things I could be thinking of, it had to be that. However, his face was indeed bereft of a single hair, if the big toad's handiwork was accurate. Well, I was either going to focus on that or try to grind it to dust with my bare hands, feet, and spite. Some odd feeling said every eye in the cavern was looking at me. I ignored it as I leaned down to read the letter etched onto the square base of the statue.

The top left corner had the words 'Level 3', though a tear in that section ripped away what I wanted to say were other words. In the main body were lines below the words on which the Bastard rested his words.

'The yurids share a common biology with humans, but caution should be taken when in prolonged contact. Genetic flaws couldn't be scrubbed in time. Instead, I have used a web of tissue to periodically disperse healing magic to make up for the defects. This precludes them from using any magic.

May God forgive these slack hands.'

I stared at the words for a second before turning back up to the statue. As much as I didn't want to, I committed every inch of my species sire to memory. Once I was confident I got his features down, I reread the note to sear every word of the putrid man's words into my soul. After the third re-reading, I turned back to the mountain of frog patiently watching me.

'The yurids? What about the beastmen?' I asked the Thousand Screams Toad in the spirit connection.

'Their first name. No matter how or why it changed with time, that was the title Garren gave them.'

I took a deep breath, making sure to not bite my lip as I did so.

'That is quite a hateful breath.' The mountain mused in my head.

I met the swarm of eyes with two of my own.

'The healing mage will no doubt be interested in what they could get from such an exchange. If I had some notion of what could be offered, that would help things.' I offered.

Red eyes stared blankly at me for a second before the giant stretched again.

'I think the traversal of my domain is a good treat. Sadly, my lands are not as rich in mana as other places. A probable reason the yurid were dropped off here. Of course, the time limit in my space wouldn't apply to any vessels involved in our arrangement, and sparse mana does not mean there are no good bits around.'

'A tempting offer. One I can only convey.' I offered with a nod.

The eyeless head mimicked my gesture before he took another breath and vented the gale through his nostrils.

'Then do so.'

I took that as a dismissal. Making my way past the black disk was uneventful, as was the trip back up to the tunnel where the humans waited in a ball. Our ever-present guides moved us up to the surface. All the while, that constant buzz covered my skin. If I hadn't just seen the face of the Bastard himself and found out that there was indeed a full, real sibling species to mine, I might have the mental presence to be annoyed.