Amara stepped tentatively into his dorm. It looked better than she’d last seen. The slightly disheveled look to his room was gone. The place was tidy now. His armor floated in the corner, gently spinning in a slow circle in place. Curiously, the target in front of his bed was still there. She needed to ask him about that.

“Hey.” He said, breaking the silence. Akamori took her in and gave her a nod. “You look good. The robe over the armor suits you. Even the book.”

“The book has a name.” Rozien groused.

Akamori blinked, laughed, and gestured for her to take a seat. He turned to pluck a towel from a rack and wiped his face with his back to her. She couldn’t help noticing the scars from the injuries he’d sustained over the past few months. It was like his whole body had callused over. She only hoped his heart wouldn’t.

“The Captain has a new mission for us.”

She blinked in shock. “And you want to go?” She privately had doubts about charging back into the thick of it for the Federation. She’d seen a lot of ugliness here on Eryn. She got the impression the nobility had mistreated the legacy they’d been given. It was hard to want to honor her initial commitment after having seen what she had so far. And yet, his body language told a different story.

He sighed, shoulders and head both drooping in reluctance before he finally nodded. “Yeah. Something big is going to happen here. Something stronger than we are now. If we don’t go into the Abyss looking for some planet in the dark for mysterious power. This place dies.”

Amara shook her head, stunned. So many questions. So little time. “We can’t stop it?”

“Not at our current strength. The prophecy was pretty clear on that. Failure to leave meant the death of this world.”

“And if Aeryn falls, the Federation will crumble. The Brotherhood of Man has no love for mages. Honshu would just be the start…”

“Well, I’d be a little ass mad about not having mages either, in an all magic war.” Akamori said.

She smiled at that. He always tried to see things from a different perspective. It’s what made him so cunning on the battlefield. He fought with a kind of focus most would envy. “And the Captain wants to take us into the Abyss to find this mystery world so we can return and save the planet.”

He shrugged and nodded. “Worked for Hidros.”

He had a point there; she had to admit. “True. It sounds easy enough. I just wonder at the cost.”

“All I know is the cost of inaction is far greater than acting.”

“Alright. I’m in. Though I’m not happy with how Command wants to just rob us of our awards and shovel them at Rayshe as if he were there.”

Akamori sat down on his bed heavily. The springs and frame of the mattress creaked under his weight. He heaved a short sigh. “Yeah. I’m not happy with it either. But she’s committed to doing this on our own. They’ve made it clear they want to split us all up and play slap ass political games in the middle of a war. I’m just here to make sure the bastards that flattened my home don’t get a chance to do it again to any other world. Including this one.”

She noted the hesitation before he added Eryn to the list. She, too, had developed some doubts about society here. The treatment of non nobility, and the war slaves being prime issues. She wondered if Aeryn had intended for things to go like this. If Maetraya would have been ok with it. Her thoughts returned to Luffa. The one real friend she’d made in her time here.

“So what’s the plan?”

“Get your gear and meet the Captain. She’s sorting our ride out. Once everyone is ready, we take off.” Akamori said. He marched over to his armor and pressed the mind rune. The armor going pink and translucent as it partially phased out of reality before hardening around him.

She canted her head at him, curious about what he was suiting up for so soon. “What are you going to do?”

He rolled his arms, windmilling them and limbering up. She’d recognized the routine, but it was more detailed now than it had been previously. He was definitely stepping up his physical fitness routine. “Me? I’ve gotta go take an assessment test to gauge what I’ve picked up.”

“You have to go fight the head master don’t you?”

“Yep.”

She giggled softly at the frankness of his affirmation. “They’re consistent at least. Hopefully, you’ve been learning something.”

He frowned and offered an uncertain shrug. He wore the armor well. He filled it out differently than she’d remembered. Funny how just a few months of effort could change things.

“I guess so. How to get stabbed and not bleed out so much?”

Amara winced at that. “Ouch. That good, huh?”

Akamori sighed, leaning back on the bed, propping himself up. He kicked his feet back and forth the way he used to idly in the streams back on Honshu. “There just haven’t been a lot of lessons, really. It’s frustrating that I’ve got all these gaps in my knowledge, but I don’t feel like they’re being addressed. Most of what I’ve been training is my body.”

“Surely that can’t be all of it?”

“Small stuff I guess. Cenin took me out and taught me piloting. Sort of.”

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

“Oh? That sounds fun.”

“It was more, more painful than it sounds.”

Amara’s brow furrowed, trying to imagine how learning to pilot could be painful. He held a hand up, stopping her from asking. “It’d take too long to explain. I need to get going to my review. We can catch up then, okay?”

She nodded, “Sure. I’ll let you know which pad to be at once I find the captain.”

Akamori gave her a thumbs up, and she returned it. She headed for the door to excuse herself when he called out to her.

“Oh, and Amara? It’ll just be you, me, the sarge, and Captain Morwen.”

“What about Sala and Yasiin?”

“Yasiin’s family is visiting. I thought it was best if he stayed with them. I have nothing left, but if I did? I’d want to spend more time with them than I did.”

She gave him a pained smile. She understood his feeling there. She wished she could see the temple priests just one more time. It didn’t feel right going about her day without them in her life.

“Well, all the more reason for us to pull off another save, then.”

“For Yasiin’s family,” Akamori agreed.

“For Yasiin’s family.”

With that, she let herself out, and back into the pleasantly warm summer afternoon outside. Singing birds and a faint buzzing of insects filled the air. She paused and took a deep breath, drawing it in through her nose and letting it out slowly through her mouth. The soft warm breeze tasted of honey.

She needed to let Erlaut know she’d be leaving. She wasn’t sure how he would take the news and wasn’t sure how to bring the topic up with him. She needed help. It was time to link back up with the captain. She looked at the horizon towards the star port in the adjacent quarter. Weaving a few simple fire and mind signs, she cast a seeker spell. The magic swirled into the form of a small songbird with long feathers breaking away from its tail, making it look like it had two long tails. It flapped its glowing fiery wings and chirped merrily at her. A beat later, it spun and flew off to find the Captain.

A short walk later, Amara found herself at the star port feeling lost. Her seeker spell had taken her to a landing pad with a rusting freighter parked at it. Unease set in as she feared she’d taken a wrong turn, or maybe she’d been misdirected. She nervously chewed at her bottom lip, debating about turning back.

“Ah, Amara, welcome. I take it Akamori sent you?”

“Captain?” Amara said. She spun and saw the Captain wearing her Federation dark blues. Less the full captain’s rank following her demotion. She quickly averted her eyes trying not to make it obvious she’d been staring.

“It’s ok Amara. There’s no use in beating around the subject. Yes, I’ve been demoted.”

Several things hit Amara all at once. First, she’d addressed her by name and not rank. Second, she wore her demotion proudly. Like a badge of honor. Amara wasn’t sure she’d expected that.

“You’re proud of it?” Amara asked with a nod towards the gold bar on Morwen’s uniform collar.

Morwen brushed a few fingers over the rank as she glanced down. When she looked back up at Amara, there was something there in her eyes. A wistful look she hadn’t seen from the normally stoic Cap-er lieutenant. “It’s a reminder that this war has costs. Every action a price. Some are small, some large, but there is always a cost. It simply falls to us to decide what we’re willing to pay. I sacrificed my pride and ego to win us the battle. Though I fear it may have cost us the war.”

Morwen’s lips twisted into a slight frown as she finished her thoughts. Amara placed a comforting hand on the beleaguered commander’s shoulder. It was strange the captain never wore armor. Amara found the benefits absolutely outweighed the deficits.

“Well, that’s what we’re here to prevent, right?”

Morwen refocused on Amara and smiled. “That’s right. If what I’ve seen is any sign, we’ll have our work cut out for us yet again.”

“Another vague prophecy with few clues pitting us against an impossible situation to overcome with few resources at hand to do it with?” Amara asked.

“Akamori said you were the sharp one. I’m pleased to see how sharp. Yes. Quite so.”

“I cheated.” She admitted sheepishly. “He told me about what we’re up against and what the odds were.”

Morwen waved the thought away dismissively. “He was only doing what any good commander should. Prepping his team.”

Amara thought it was odd that she designated the mages to Akamori and not herself. Maybe the Ca-er… lieutenant felt herself outside of that group. Or above it? She made a mental note to ask about that when things seemed less life and death. The idea the commander was under some burden only she intended to carry worried Amara.

“Speaking of preparations, I trust your training in the Weaver school has progressed?”

“Oh! Yes. Elder Weaver Erlaut felt confident in referring to me as a Spell Weaver finally. He said it was a momentous achievement for a lowly priestess.” Amara said dryly.

“Yes, he always was one to cut you down while praising you. It appears to be a talent many learn here. Come along then. I’ve been trying to build a library to study while we chart our course into the unknown.”

“A library, you say?” Rozien floated free of Amara’s robe, blinking up at Morwen owlishly.

Morwen did her best to stifle her curiosity, Amara could tell from the slight twitch of her left eyebrow up. “I see you’ve gotten a head start.”

Amara retrieved Rozien, wrapping a protective arm around the enchanted tome as she laughed nervously. “Yeah. It’s a long story.” She did her best to bite down the panic, but she trusted Morwen. And Erlaut had given his blessing to take Rozien free of the library. Deep breaths.

“A story I’d be interested in hearing. Come, let’s see what we can find out.”

Morwen ascended the loading ramp, and Amara followed her. The tangy smell of lubricants and the acrid bite of charged ozone tickling her nose as she stepped into the ship.

“It’s not much, but welcome to the Rusty Raven.”

“Is this safe?” Amara asked, clutching Rozien a little tighter who gave disgruntled muffles beneath her arms.

Morwen chuckled, “As safe as we’ll get. I’ve no promises. No debts to call in. No secret resources or trump cards. We’re at rock bottom here, facing an absolute mountain of a challenge. I wouldn’t begrudge you wanting to back out.”

Amara shook her head steadfastly. “No. I want to help.”

“Very well,” Morwen said, stepping beyond a doorway into the ship.

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