"AH!!!!!!!!” Jua screamed as he awoke.

He looked himself over as his heavy breaths filled the air and saw that he was naked. His body covered only partly by his blanket.

He was covered in sweat and his head ached incredibly, something I could see via the pulsing of Life Energy in his temples.

He crawled onto his feet and groggily slipped into his clothes before stumbling out of his room.

A maid was walking down the corridor and she gasped upon seeing him.

Jua, whose expression was stuck in a wince, gave her a nod, allowing her to pass him.

He then made his way to the bathroom where he promptly bathed before changing into some fresh clothes.

He noticed that all the maids were giving him a peculiar look but it looked like the only thing he could focus on was his headache.

He gently rubbed the sides of his head while making his way to the living room where Heziyn and Pele awaited him and they also wore concerned expressions.

“Good morning.” Jua yawned while sitting by the dinner table, where a bowl of porridge sat.

“G-good morning, sir.” Heziyn and Pele greeted as Jua ate.

They then suddenly stiffened as Ua entered the room wore a silky white nightgown and held in her hand an apple which she took greedy bites out of as she sat opposite Jua.

Heziyn and Pele then watched as Jua’s face twisted with disgust.

He then curled forward and vomited what little he had eaten prompting Heziyn and Pele to dash to his side.

They helped him sit upright all while Ua loudly bit into her apple with half-open eyes.

Heziyn and Pele escorted Jua out of the room just as a few maids entered it to clean up the mess.

Ua eventually finished her apple and was eventually joined by a handful of Shangazi who sat around her.

“Ma’am, we have failed to reach any fruitful conclusions regarding the soul.” One of them said.

“However, we propose a shift in focus. Perhaps we should look for the exact moment a soul comes into being.”

Ua raised a brow.

“Go on.”

“Using two gazelle, we are going to observe and hopefully determine the point during pregnancy when the soul inhabits the infant’s body. If it is at the early stages to the beginning then the only way for us to store a soul would be to transfer it into a zygote but I think you know just how difficult that would be since the soul thinks it’s dead as soon as it leaves it’s body.”

Ua looked up in thought.

“I see. Well, you have my support, as always. Head down to the Slaughterhouse and conduct your tests. I will join you all in time.”

The Shangazi all nodded before leaving the room. Their destination was a highly guarded house in the town at the foot of Mount Kupumzika. This was where they conducted their bloodiest of experiments, although they had yet to try any on humans.

The Shangazi, for having to do all these things, were compensated highly, being given so much Glass that they didn’t even bother taking it home and chose to instead leave it in the vault beneath the palace.

Ua let out a sigh as she finished her apple, placing it on the table afterwards.

She then traced the path her food took with her middle and index fingers. From her lips, down her throat and to her stomach. She then rested her hand on her belly and her hair started glowing dimly green.

I watched as she carefully circulated Life Energy around her womb and it seemed as though she was keeping the sperm within alive. I assumed that she was going to do this until she ovulated.

I shifted my focus to Jua who was weeping in Heziyn’s arms. The two were on his bed which Pele stood next to with crossed arms and a furrowed brow.

“Shh.” Heziyn sounded as Jua whimpered away.

Pele’s face twisted and although it looked like he had many things to say, he remained silent.

.

..

Jua eventually gathered enough of himself to be able to sit up on his own.

Heziyn had gotten him some tea and he tightly held his mug while staring at seemingly nothing.

“Pele…” He whispered.

“Yes?” Pele asked with eyes that were on the verge of tears.

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“Go to Abanafash. Tell Uncle Thabiti to build one hundred ships using my latest design.”

“What? Why?” Pele asked but Jua didn’t respond.

Pele glanced at Heziyn, who didn’t bother holding her tears, allowing them to cover her face.

He took a deep breath before nodding and leaving the room.

He closed the door but stood completely still for a moment as his eyes quivered.

He then blinked a few times before leaving the palace and making his way into the town at the foot of the mountain.

It was built atop the old Umande village and was where the high-ranking warriors and Shangazi lived.

He gathered a few men and began his trip north.

His journey led him through South Central which, unlike the town at the foot of the mountain, was poorly paved and maintained. The buildings were much smaller and the smell of piss and shit filled the air.

Pele tried to keep his eyes locked ahead but he couldn’t help but glance at beggars who sat along grimy street sides. Men, women and children who were either homeless, injured or both.

They begged for Glass since even a palmful could get a person enough food to last a month. The problem was that Ua controlled the trade of Glass and although anyone was free to go to a Blessed Sister, a Shangazi specifically since they were in charge of the distribution of wealth, Chofumah were given less in return for whatever Glass they brought.

The justification was that the Glass they brought was impure but this didn’t make sense since Glass was always pure, regardless of where a person found it.

The people who weren’t begging and were instead commuting from their jobs in the fields or mines glared at Pele and his men with eyes lined with nothing but malice. The only reason they didn’t try attacking them or rioting was that the warriors of Hatua were fearsome giants, some of whom could wield magic. The cost of revolution was an excruciatingly painful death for all parties involved.

Pele eventually reached North Central Hatua and although it was far cleaner and well-maintained than South Central, the buildings weren’t as large as those at the foot of the mountain. Another key difference was that the population of North Central was a mixture of relatively high-ranking Chofumah and Umande individuals.

The people Pele walked past here greeted him with deep bows as his reputation as a great warrior was something told as legend. He was one of the original Fire Breakers, after all.

But Pele didn’t feel as though he was so great.

He saw himself as a failure and spent every day trying to atone for what he considered to be his greatest sin.

.

..

A day of constant travel eventually passed and Pele eventually reached the coastal city of Abanafash. It was believed by the Chofumah that this is where the ocean or Father God, Aviyv, laid his head to rest after spewing everything into existence.

It was the home of a large port where countless ships were moored.

These ships served all kinds of purposes from fishing to surveying the coast and a large number of them had been designed by Jua who shared his father’s fascination with the ocean.

He wanted to know what was beyond the horizon but any efforts to venture beyond the shore were hampered by the creatures which called my oceans home.

The worst of which was a certain species that instilled dread in sailors every time they set sail.

The waters near the southern continent were home to a stingray-like creature which used gravity magic to speed through the waters. It also used magic to shoot out of the water and grab unsuspecting sailors with its wide mouth which was lined with countless shark-like teeth.

After dragging its victims into the ocean, it would then be joined by its kin who would chew through a full humanoid in a few minutes.

Their top halves were lined with HCT but the sneaky bastards only ever used Gravity Magic upon swimming close to their chosen prey.

They were otherwise invisible in the waters of the coast which were filled with vast swaths of coral and seaweed.

They were a problem with that alone but they also had a habit of striking and sinking ships by charging into their hulls with their heads.

One hit usually wasn’t enough to damage a ship but they often travelled in schools of hundreds and so, bit by bit, a ship’s structural integrity would weaken.

The ship would then fall apart and the sailors would be eaten by the monsters below.

Pele eventually reached Thabiti’s office which was a three-storey building which overlooked the city. It also served as his home and his son could be heard whining on the second floor.

The two sat in silence as they digested all that had happened.

Thabiti was in his forties although years of training warriors and sometimes leading them into battle made him appear twenty years older. His hair was styled into countless thin braids that messily hung from his head and draped over his shoulders.

“I...” He began.

“I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I joined Mlezi in exile all those years ago.” He said as the pale grey light of the early morning sky washed over his face.

“Mmm... Do not your eyes turn to the past for long lest you stumble and fall in the present,” Pele said but this made Thabiti softly scoff.

“You know, I wouldn’t judge you if you were a little more...”

“Resentful?” Pele asked.

“Anything would be better than that infuriating look of content.”

Pele bit his teeth.

“So, what am I to do? Bite the hand that-“

“Even a dog barks at those who beat it.” Thabiti snapped making Pele frown.

He took a deep breath and sighed out his next words.

“Regardless of our feelings, we have duties to fulfil.”

“What is needed of me?”

“Jua has asked that you create a fleet of one hundred ships.”

Thabiti’s eyes widened a little.

“Does this have anything to do with what Mlezi told you?”

“I think he reached the same conclusion on his own,” Pele said with crossed arms.

“But his mother would never allow it.”

“You will have to discuss that with her yourself,” Pele said while standing up.

“And what will you do?” Thabiti asked.

“I’m going back to his side where I will continue to look after him.” Pele weakly smiled before leaving.

He bumped into a little boy on his way out.

The teary-eyed boy was then promptly picked up by his frustrated mother who deeply bowed before Pele before stepping aside, allowing the warrior to leave.

Upon exiting the house, which sat atop a hill, and overlooked the city of Abanafash, he placed his hand above his chest and winced a little.

He had since learnt that his heart was beginning to weaken, a commonality among Life Magic-enhanced warriors.

Their bodies were far too big and were too taxing on their hearts which would eventually give away.

Pele made a determined expression before regrouping with his men and returning to Hatua.

.

..

Pele was informed that Jua was by his usual spot in the farmhouse and so he made his way there where he found a weary eyes Jua healing people in the living room.

Pele walked up to him and reported what had happened in Abanafash.

“If we are unable to have any new ships built then we will make use of old ones.”

“To do what, Jua?” Pele asked with a face twisted with concern.

“For True Exodus,” Jua said without turning to Pele whose brows knotted further.

“On this matter, I will accept no quarrel, Pele. You will take your people north-“

“What if there’s nothing there?” Pele asked.

“I will work on finding out what’s beyond the horizon. I just want you to focus on the purpose I am giving you...”

Jua turned to Pele, showing him his eyes, which were swollen.

“That which you were given by Sav’ta herself, since it has relentlessly followed you to this moment.”