The southern waters of the Gulf of Ae was calm that night.
Moonlight stretched endlessly across dark waters like silver paint poured over black glass while cold winds drifted from the northern currents carrying traces of salt and distant storms. The sea breathed quietly beneath the ships, gentle waves lapped against the hulls of three Aerthos vessels with rhythmic splashes.
Unlike traditional warships, these vessels were smaller, narrower, and built for speed rather than overwhelming firepower. Their black sails remained furled halfway to reduce visibility beneath the night sky while enchanted lanterns along the decks glowed dim blue instead of gold to prevent detection from afar.
The ships of the Royal Fleet of Aerthos, or rather—one of its many specialized divisions. Emma Gable stood near the prow of the lead ship with his arms folded behind his back while silver-streaked curls shifted lightly beneath the night breeze.His white Enforcer uniform was immaculate despite the salt spray and his sharp eyes remained fixed on the coastline visible in the distance.
Veridian, the self proclaimed land of the free.
It was a foreign shoreline which meant every second spent here was dangerous.
Behind him, sailors moved efficiently across the deck adjusting ropes, checking artifacts, and maintaining course. Nobody shouted. Nobody wasted movement. Even the sea itself seemed quieter around Royal Fleet personnel.
Emma preferred it that way.
Discipline was efficiency.
Efficiency preserved lives.
A woman lazily approached from behind carrying two steaming metal cups.
"You've been standing there for almost an hour."
Emma didn't turn.
"We're nearing the moment of extraction."
"And?"
"And vigilance is necessary."
His vice-captain sighed dramatically.
"You're exhausting, its not like the coastline is gonna run away from you."
Emma finally accepted one of the cups from her. Warm tea.
Vice-Captain Pihla Korhonen leaned against the railing beside him with casual ease utterly opposite to his rigid posture. She was tall, bronze-skinned, and wore her white Enforcer coat open over a sleeveless black undershirt. Her blonde hair tied in a loose ponytail at the side of her head. She was everything Emma was not. Relaxed where he was rigid. Warm where he was cold. Carefree where he was controlled. Unlike Emma, she acted like rules personally offended her.
"You know," Pihla muttered while sipping tea, "most people relax before operations."
"Most people are irresponsible."
"There it is." She pointed at him. "That exact thing. That's why everyone says you're too uptight."
Emma ignored her.
The coastline ahead gradually became clearer beneath moonlight.
Sparse cliffs.
Rocky shores.
Abandoned structures near the waterline.
The designated interception point.
"We are entering foreign waters. Veridian is not Aerthos. Their patrols may not appreciate our presence."
"They won't notice us."
"They might."
"They won't." Pihla grinned. "Because we're too fast, too quiet, and too good."
Emma's jaw tightened.
"That is not how naval strategy works."
"That's how we work. We've done this before."
"We haven't done this when a sea beast has escaped the confines of the whit wall and is lurking somewhere around here."
The White Wall.
A massive natural wall of ice that seperated the civilized waters from the horrors inhabiting the Northern Continent. Most people living inland barely understood how terrifying the northern waters truly were. The Royal Fleet of Aerthos and the Nordhelm Navy existed primarily because of that reality.
Pihla groaned remembering that part.
"So basically we need to finish before the monster arrives, because if the Head Hunter catches it nearby he'll turn the ocean into a battlefield."
"Correct."
Lyra rubbed her forehead.
"I hate this job."
The Nation of Nordhelm also had a navy and back in the day both they and the fleet of Aerthos used to clash but ever since that treaty had been signed thier roles on the continent were redefined. Aerthos was charged with naval defense of the west as well as overseeing the White wall while Nordhelm handled the east and that was about it. Somehow Aerthos got stuck with the most dangerous job. The mission given to the Enforcers seventh division which Emma was leader of involved the transport of a specific artifact connected to terrorist activity within Aerthos territory.
Pihla pushed off the railing.
"Oi, the men are getting restless. Go say something inspiring."
Emma did not move.
"I am not inspiring. They should just make sure they operate by the parameters of the mission."
"You sound like a handbook."
"I am correct."
"You can be correct and annoying simultaneously," Pihla replied.
Several sailors laughed quietly. Emma ignored them all though a smirk played at his lips. His gaze returned toward the coastline. The operation itself had originated from an Inquisition investigation weeks earlier. The Inquisition had apparently inserted agents deep within revolutionary cells operating throughout southern Aerthos. Those agents uncovered fragments of information regarding the usage of a version of the narcotic Black Dandy and incoming artifact shipment originating from Veridian territory.
A powerful artifact intended for revolutionary use.
Then—
The agents went silent.
No further communication.
No bodies recovered.
Nothing.
Which usually meant death. The only surviving information pointed toward the Gulf of Ae. Thus— the Royal Fleet had been tasked with transporting the Division Seven strike team to intercept, recover or if possible destroy the artifact. Emma's expression hardened slightly.
"Twelve minutes until landfall."
Immediately the ship became more active. Sailors moved toward positions. Artifacts were checked again. Weapons quietly unsheathed. Pihla stretched her arms overhead lazily.
"You know," she muttered, "I still think this whole thing smells strange."
Emma glanced at her.
"Elaborate."
"The silence." She tapped the railing thoughtfully. "Inquisition agents disappearing completely isn't normal."
"They may have been discovered."
"Maybe."
She narrowed her eyes toward the coast.
"Or maybe somebody wanted us here."
Emma remained silent, then chuckled and shook his head.
"There you go again with your conspiracies again."
Pihla opened her mouth to retort when—
One of the watchmen suddenly shouted.
"CONTACT!"
Emma's eyes sharpened instantly.
"What?"
The sailor pointed toward the shoreline below.
"Combat!"
The coast erupted with flashes of firelight.
Explosions illuminated the darkness while cannonfire thundered across the bay. Emma immediately activated a viewing artifact attached to his glove.
The battlefield became clearer.
Three large ships docked aggressively near the shore.
The ships had red sails and thier flag was an open maw with two bones crossed behind it. There was no mistaking it, these were the infamous Red Maw Pirates.
Pihla cursed loudly.
"Oh you've got to be kidding me."
Below, armed smugglers were actively fighting pirates along the shoreline while smaller explosions tore through nearby buildings.
Emma frowned.
"They discovered the shipment." He deduced.
"Wha-how?" Pihla asked.
A nearby officer looked uneasy.
"Captain Gable…our ships aren't designed for direct combat against vessels that size."
He was correct. Their interception galleons prioritized speed and maneuverability. Against full pirate warships, direct confrontation would be costly.
Emma thought rapidly.
He did not know how the Red Maws got the information but the artifact could not fall into pirate hands. Nor could they risk blowing thier cover exposing Aerthos involvement openly within Veridian waters and cause an international incident.
Then he spoke.
"We improvise."
Pihla immediately grinned.
"That usually means something fun."
"We disguise ourselves as a rival pirate faction."
Several officers blinked. Emma continued calmly.
"We create confusion while Strike Team Seven retrieves the artifact."
Pihla laughed.
"Very fun."
"Deploy disguise artifacts immediately."
The crew moved without hesitation. Flow pulsed across the decks as illusionary artifacts activated simultaneously. Royal Fleet uniforms distorted instantly into rough pirate garbs while ship insignias twisted into fabricated markings.
Within moments—
The Royal Fleet vessels resembled pirate ships entirely.
Pihla admired herself.
"Oh I look fantastic."
"You look unhygienic."
"Authenticity matters."
Emma stepped toward the edge of the deck.
"Strike Team Seven with me."
Six figures immediately approached. Only Emma and Pihla were Saints, the rest were Vortaries but with thier experience and artifacts in thier posetion they could somewhat bridge the gap in power.
Emma was a Saint with the same Trait as Alaric Dukker. The Wheel of Fortune. meaning he had the same thre resonants which enabled him to slow, stop and steal time.
He could stop time outright so his team could be in and out in a flash but he also needed to take into account the fact that there could be a Saint out there of the Cognitive class, a Trait class contadictory to his own. In order to maintain the covertness of the operation he slowed down localized temporal flow surrounding his team. The air thickened.
Sound deepened unnaturally.
Time itself dragged like heavy chains.
"Move."
Seven figures vanished from the ship.
They crossed the shoreline like ghosts.
Below, pirates and smugglers continued fighting completely unaware as the slowed temporal field distorted perception around Emma's team.
Bullets crawled.
Explosions bloomed sluggishly.
Falling debris hung unnaturally midair.
Pihla whistled softly while moving.
"I'll never get used to your Trait."
Emma remained focused. The designated structure stood near the docks. A large warehouse was the point of extraction thier intelligence pointed to.
They entered. CLICK. Emma's eyes narrowed. It was a trap.
The warehouse doors slammed shut behind them. Flow barriers erupted across the walls. Figures emerged from the darkness surrounding them immediately.
Not smugglers.
Waiting combatants.
At the center stood someone wearing a smooth porcelain mask painted with a permanent smile. No features, only the smile.
The masked figure calmly lifted a metal box.
Then turned and ran deeper into the structure.
"After them!" Emma ordered.
Instantly the warehouse exploded into violence. A massive armored figure lunged toward Pihla swinging an axe.cShe grinned wildly.
"There we go!"
BOOM.
Her spear intercepted the strike directly while another operative unleashed burning chains across the room.
Emma ignored the broader battle entirely and pursued the porcelain-masked figure deeper inside the warehouse corridors. Something moved ahead causing him to stop. A man stepped from the shadows, at least it resembled a man. Tall, thin, clad in black robes with glowing blue eyes.
Then Emma felt it. His thoughts distorted momentarily.
'So this person has a Cognitive Class Trait?'
The figure raised one hand and eality bent strangely. Emma suddenly perceived multiple corridors simultaneously. Up became sideways. Distance warped unnaturally. It was mind manipuation and since he was affected to this extent, the person he was facing was a Saint with 'The Tower' Trait.
The thing tilted its head mechanically as he manifested his Grosse Messer.
"You interfere."
Its voice sounded wrong almost, artificial. Emma immediately accelerated forward through slowed time.
The figure reacted instantly.
Invisible pressure slammed into Emma's mind attempting to fracture concentrationand pain exploded behind his eyes. Yet Emma continued moving, stealing time from the space between moments, compressing his recovery into an instant. The pain faded.
The enemy extended both hands.
Mental waves distorted space around them violently.
Emma's temporal field cracked and he was thrown back into a wall. He realized something in this short period. His opponent lacked rhythm. That and he hand managed to slice through its clothes, exposing patchwork skin and pipes runing though its side.
Emma's expression darkened.
"What are you?"
The man smiled unnaturally.
"We serve."
Then attacked again. Emma vanished sideways through slowed temporal flow, swinging his blade. The automaton pursued with impossible movements bending through distorted perception. Their battle tore through the warehouse interior. Emma sliced through the construct's arm. No blood emerged only more pipes. The automaton smiled wider.
"You cannot prevent inevitability."
Emma responded calmly.
"I disagree."
The Wheel of Fortune turned then Emma reached deeper. Simply cutting this thing wouldn't be enough to kill it. All his bows so far were aimed at vital points. So, Emma decided to steal time, the concept of now that the automaton existed in and the notion that if that now was cut apart, the automaton could not exist from now.
Emma applied this and slashed at its body. Cracks spread across its artificial flesh like reality itself forgot to continue processing its existence. Then it collapsed into temporal dust that was blown away by non-existent wind.
Emma exhaled then straightened and looked around.
The porcelain-masked figure who was observing from a hidden spot turned and attempted to run. Emma noticed and accelerated again toward it.
The figure turned suddenly revealing another blade. Too slow.
Emma's sword pierced directly through its chest.
Again—
No blood, only patchwork machinary.
'What is going on?'
The mask cracked apart revealing no facial features beneath. Another automaton. Not wasting time, Emma slashed upward then followed up with two verical downward cuts from the left and right.
The metal box slipped from its grasp as it broke apart into chunks.
Emma caught it immediately. Then activated temporal theft again. The moment he acquired the artifact vanished from localized existence and the box disappeared completely, stored outside conventional temporal continuity.
Emma returned toward the main chamber. The other Enforcers had finished their opponents. Pihla stood over a pile of bodies.
"Everyone alright?"
Pihla gave him a thumbs up and a wide grin before turning and kicking a body that suddenly twitched. They regrouped quickly at the center of he chamber.
Emma frowned slightly.
"What exactly are these things?"
One operative shook his head.
"Dunno."
Pihla nudged a broken corpse with her boot.
"Creepy bastards."
Emma crouched beside one examining exposed machinery beneath false flesh. Just as he reached out to touch it—
BOOOOOOOOM.
The entire warehouse exploded sideways.
Walls shattered instantly as massive cannonfire tore directly through the structure.
Emma's eyes widened.
Outside—
The Red Maw ships had turned their cannons toward the building .