Stillwater says "Understood."

"Once Brightfire returns and confirms that the city is clear you can send some teams to scavenge for anything you people need."

Stillwater says "Alright. I will let Sheraf and Silverstream take charge of that."

Silverleaf says "What can I do?"

"You can lead the scouts in checking the rest of the island. We need to see if there are more enemies. We also need to see if there are any humans left that haven't been corrupted by the demons."

Silverleaf says "Alright. Am I reporting to you or to Brightfire?"

"To Brightfire. This is her operation. She is in charge until the end."

Silverleaf says "Got it!" and leaves.

Stillwater says "What are we going to do if we don't find any clean humans?"

"Simple. We will claim this island for our nation. It will serve as a good base for Athena and also be a good place to launch attacks from."

Stillwater says "Understood."

Lin says "What are we going to do while we wait?"

"Well, I had an idea, but I need to ask Seronia's permission."

Lin says "Oh no, what did you come up with this time?"

"A tattoo using divine runes."

Lin says "What effect will this tattoo have?"

"Self-healing."

Lin says "Ooh! Good idea! But how will it be recharged if it is using divine runes?"

"Prayer. Hence why I need to check with Seronia first."

Lin says "Alright. How can I help?"

"Well, if Seronia approves, I will teach you the runes needed and then you will need to design a tattoo around them."

Lin says "I can do that!"

"Alright, give me a minute to talk to Seronia."

Lin nods and I close my eyes, quickly enter meditation, open a soulscape, and invite Seronia. I only have to wait a couple of minutes before she appears with a smile on her face.

Seronia says "Inviting me again so soon? Did you miss me, Ash?"

"I wanted to ask your permission for an idea I just had."

Seronia says "Uh oh. I hate it when you have ideas! What craziness did you come up with now?"

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"I want to design a tattoo using divine runes that will allow the bearer to heal themselves. The heal will work once and then they will need to pray to have it recharged. What do you think?"

Seronia says "Oh, that's not as bad as I was expecting. It could work, as long as the tattoo bearer is one of my followers."

"Well, the elves all have levels, meaning they should all be your followers, right?"

Seronia says "Yes, the elves are all my followers, but I doubt you will stop at just the elves."

"Well, that's probably true. So, as long as I limit it to followers, do I have your permission?"

Seronia says "Yes, you do. Just don't go too crazy, my powers are still fairly limited. If more than a thousand try to recharge at the same time I won't be able to handle it."

"Don't worry. I plan this tattoo to only be for warriors. I doubt it will hit those kinds of numbers anytime soon."

Seronia says "Alright. Well, let me see the runes you plan to use and I will check them for you."

Hearing Seronia's request, I think for a minute and then draw a set of runes in the air. She takes a look and studies the runes for a minute before she smiles.

Seronia says "These are good. No, in fact they are perfect. It looks like you have mastered the divine language."

"Not all of it, at least not yet. I have used the healing runes a few times."

Seronia says "Alright. Is there anything else you need?"

"Nope, that was it. Thank you."

As usual, Seronia gives me a passionate kiss goodbye and then I end the soulscape. As soon as I open my eyes, I draw out the runes needed in the tattoo for Lin. I trust her taste, I am sure that she will come up with a cool looking tattoo.

Lin says "Ash, can you make me a pen like the tattoo gun? One that doesn't run out of ink and can change colors at will?"

"Sure! That's easy!"

Lin says "Thank you. It will make drawing out ideas for tattoos much easier."

"No problem. I should have thought of it earlier. I will make one for Bella as well. Where is Bella?"

Lin says "She should either be resting or tattooing one of the elves."

Brightfire walks up and says "The city is secured. We took no casualties! The scouts are out checking the rest of the island. Any other orders?"

"Nope. You are doing a good job."

Brightfire says "Thank you!"

Lin says "What's next?"

"We wait for the scouts. If they find more enemies we deal with them. If not, we take over the island and connect it to the peninsula."

Stillwater says "How are you going to connect it to the peninsula?!"

"I will build a bridge."

Lin says "Isn't the peninsula still a good distance from the island?"

"The closest point between the island and the peninsula is about a mile from what I understand."

Lin says "A mile?! Isn't that too far for a bridge?"

"Not really. In my world there were bridges that were several miles long."

Lin says "Seriously? Where would you find enough wood for a bridge like that? How would you build it without magic?"

"Actually, the bridges are mostly made of metal. Although, for this bridge I plan to use stone. Instead of magic we used technology, but I don't want to get into talking about that."

Lin says "Well, okay. If you say you can do it, then I trust you."

Stillwater says "What is the point of building such a bridge when we have the ship?"

"Because the ship won't always be here. The bridge will allow trade and keep the island connected when the ship is away. If Myria followed my orders, my people should already be working on a road to connect to the bridge. If there are no untainted humans here, then this island will become a part of our territory."

Brightfire says "Alright. I will inform you as soon as the scouts have checked the rest of the island. If we find more enemies, I will engage them without consulting you. Is that alright?"

"Yeah. This is your command, you make the decisions."

Brightfire nods at me, then she and Stillwater leave. Lin and I sit down and have a meal, not sure if it is lunch or dinner. Once we are done eating, Lin goes to find Bella since they have more tattoos to do.

Suddenly, I find myself with nothing to do, I am not needed until the scouts finish their work. So, I decide to walk around and interact with the elves while I wait for news. It is apparent that even though I have dragged them into a war, the elves are really happy.