The energy in the air was high and contagious as the Serenity’s Song pushed through the space where a centuries-old Level 50 Barrier once crossed the sea and sky. A multitude of islands dotted the horizon, a league away. They were now in the waters of the Shimajima, but the Captain’s job was not yet finished. The distance between the Shimajima’s northernmost and southernmost points was about 215 leagues, and between its westernmost and easternmost points was roughly 150 leagues. Now it was time to find a suitable landing spot.
“It’s a small island, that one over there,” Manisha said, holding a large, dated map over the ship’s wheel while using her head to point at the landmass in the near distance. “Relatively speaking, though. The islands overall ain’t all too large. It’s called Yakuramoto and apparently had a population of 11,000 back in the year 90 AFI. I’m thinking we land there.”
“I didn’t know you were such a history buff,” Rohan chuckled. “Sure, we can land there if it’s suitable enough. But not with this big hunk of a ship. We need to anchor and send boats out.”
“Of course,” Manisha landed. “I reckon we send an advance landing party first. After speaking with the Islanders, they can send us a signal for the rest of us to head out. Easy as pie.”
“I’ll tell Ivan, Stefan, and Anwen for you!” a juvenile voice called out with glee behind the two veteran sailors. To their surprise, Ilias had been with them the entire time.
“That would be a great help, honey. Go ahead.” Manisha sent her son on his way to collect the three northerners.
“Smart fella, that boy is,” Rohan complimented with a chuckle. “You didn’t even ask him to. Ya raised him well.”
“I try.” Manisha reciprocated quietly, before turning her neck to hide her rosy face.
“Celebration time’s over?” Ivan sighed as he was flanked by his two younger compatriots, whisked over by their younger relative a minute later. “Damn it.”
“If celebration time means holing up in a hold below deck while everyone else is out here actually enjoying themselves, then yes, it’s over,” Rohan explained while rolling his eyes. “Ivan, we’re sending an advance party to contact the Islanders. Choose who you’ll take.”
“M-Me? Wait, am I leading this thing?” Ivan wondered, confused.
“Obviously. You’re the leader of our contingent,” Anwen shook her head. “I doubt they’d take some random little boy and girl seriously.”
“I mean, the random little boy here did just take down the largest Barrier that’s even possible to create.” Stefan chuckled under his breath, prompting Anwen to reach around Ivan’s back and flick Stefan on the back of his head.
“Sorry.” Stefan spoke with remorse.
“If making a party’s what I gotta do…” Ivan stepped forward, ignoring the children’s childish outbursts. “Okay, you two are with me of course, and… you. Captain Rohan, I’d like you to come with us.”
“Fantastic,” Rohan nodded. “The crew should already be preparing a boat to launch, so we’ll leave immediately. We’ll bring a flag so when we raise it, that’ll be your signal to have everyone board the other boats and join us. Manisha, I can trust you with that.”
“Aye, Captain.” the woman sailor nodded.
The boat was several meters above the foamy waters as it was suspended off the side of the Serenity’s Song. Anwen peeked over and watched the patterns rapidly shift beneath her. Seeing them move so fluidly yet with enough force to drown a grown man made her shiver.
“Fuck.” she muttered, before a hand pulled her back into the safety of the boat.
“Don’t let those waves scare you,” Stefan said. “Now’s a bad time to get cold feet.”
The boat was lowered into the water with a splash. With Rohan’s powerful arms that had rowed boats for just as long as he had been sailing on great ships, the coast of Yakuramoto was no more than a 10-minute ride away from where the ship had anchored. As the island got larger and larger, so did three other shapes, which grew at an even larger pace.
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“Looks like we’ve got company,” Ivan said, recognizing the shapes as boats but were very different from the ones made of wood that he was used to. They were not as sleek or aerodynamic as the Crafts introduced by the Titanians, but their iron hulls made typical northerner and southerner sea vessels look amateur in comparison. They were faster than their man-powered boat, and steam billowed from columns fixed on the sterns. “Anwen, get ready to talk for us.”
What do they bring with them? Stefan wondered as he saw the iron boats coming to a rest about 20 yards from their own. Good news, or trouble? We just destroyed the Barrier that kept them protected for a thousand years. If they choose the second option, will I be able to use Gareth’s dagger? Our mission is for peace, but my duty is to protect Anwen. I might have to make a choice here.
The boats stopped within 20 yards of the Yeupisian boat, and from the centremost of the three Shimajima vessels, three men exited from a hatch on the top. Their clothes were made of beautiful silk—garments that flowed like elegant robes. Their sleeves were long, reaching to the wrists and were broad. Detailed pictures painted each garment, depicting flowers, birds, and other motifs. Yet despite all that, it was only the man in the middle who seemed to hold any power among the three.
Before they spoke a word, the three Shimajimese bowed, their heads reaching down to their waist-level. It took a microsecond for Anwen to process it. Guided by the drawings and sample passages in her book of vocabulary in her memory, she reciprocated the action of greeting.
“Konnichiwa.” the man in the middle, whose hair was set in a high bun and chin which was covered with a thin, long beard.
“K-Konnichiwa.” she said, taken aback at hearing the native Shimahjima accent for the very first time. Rohan, Ivan, and Stefan hesitantly did as she did, but refused to butcher the first non-Yeupisian word they had heard in their lives. She carefully waited for the foreign men to raise their heads before she did.
Despite the fact that Stefan only knew the few words Anwen had taught him, he already knew something was off. Why were they not cautious when they first approached the four foreigners who had come from half a world away, with a massive ship looming in the back? Had it been so long since they had seen war themselves that they had forgotten basic survival instincts?
“My name is Yakuramoto no Genichi, mayor and daimyo of the island of Yakuramoto. May I know your names, my dear guests? At least one of you speaks our language, which makes communication less difficult.”
So at least they understand me, Anwen thought. I can understand them, too. That’s good.
It took a few moments for Anwen to translate to the men with her that the man called Genichi before them ruled both the island as a daimyo, or governor, and one of a small handful of villages on it as its mayor, both named Yakuramoto. After feeding their host’s request to the Yeupisian men, Anwen made the introductions on the entire group’s behalf.
“We are honoured to be in your presence, Genichi-san. My name is Anwen Koppel, and my companions with me are Captain Rohan, Ivan Hout, and Stefan Laine. We are part of a joint convoy hailing from both North and South Yeupis.”
I don’t know what she just said, but she’s a damn natural at it. We really are nothing without her, Ivan noted.
Meanwhile, one of Genichi’s guards snickered at the other, mocking the Yeupisians for having a woman as the spokesperson for their group.
“And I am pleased to meet you as well, my dear guests. But before we continue this very important discussion, I must tell you that the news of your arrival has spread like a fire across our nation. If we may, we will take you ashore before any of the other governors or their people catch wind of us finding you. You all must be tired and hungry, so please invite the rest of your group over.”
Anwen translated, and with a confident grin, Rohan turned around and raised the red flag he had brought with him, signaling for Manisha to bring Ilias and the crew of the Serenity’s Song ashore.
--
The buildings that lined the paved roads were short, almost all of them one or two stories high, but each floor tended to be sprawling, with plenty of space for the people inside. The cars on the road contrasted deeply from the boxy, mechanical, leather-seated ones in south Yeupis like the one Anwen had driven to get to Chitran. They were more similar, in fact, to the vehicles that Angels used on Terra, with their sleek designs and digital equipment. Only these ones did not hover, but also traveled on the ground by way of rubber wheels. Sprawling green fields took up the space outside of the built-up areas, meaning that a lot of the population took part in agriculture, not different from either part of Yeupis.
These houses look paper-thin. How do they even hold up? Stefan noted as a convoy of vans carried him and the rest of the Serenity’s Song entourage to the governor’s residence. Images of the Anbieter’s manor in Shargara flashed in his head. Both were stately residences, but it seemed that Genichi’s was simpler. Other than its larger size and a stone wall surrounding it, it did not differ too much from the buildings in the surrounding neighbourhoods. Shimajima architecture seemed to be very uniform, a sharp contrast from south Yeupis’.
However, Stefan could hold his questions about the island later. It would soon be time for Genichi to ask questions of his own, which would lead the direction of the Black Shield’s mission.