They had arrived at last. Isaac, Lily and Chloe. Jonah still wasn’t there, but I saw him approaching on the edge of the horizon. He would be here soon. Everyone appeared to be in good shape. I beat up Isaac quite badly, but not enough to irreversibly injure him. With his naturally good physique and a little help from his friends standing beside him, it was easy to see how he had regained his full strength.

They were heavily armed and prepared for battle. Every single one of them wore a leather armour covered in grey ivory scales. Isaac had a sword fastened to his side and a spear in his hand, Lily was already brandishing a new set of twin swords, Chloe donned a tunic over the armour and held in her hands a highly elaborate bell.

Their equipment released the typical scent of the manufacturing of The Black and was also engraved with few but efficient etheric glyphs to enhance their performance. It was the first time I saw them, but I had heard about a pool of well-made weapons hidden in the Epsilon. They were indeed made with a high degree of proficiency. Now that the genai workers of the Epsilon were under Faye, good things could be expected.

Jonah finally managed to reach us. He was wearing a similar suit of armour, but much better adorned with various motives. His proud side was still apparent, even at the end of the run. The only thing that mattered to me was the performance of his equipment and with just one sight I confirmed his bow and arrows were appropriate for the mission.

Jonah peered at me from head to toe.

“Is this everything?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. He was eyeing my casual attire and looking around for any weapon I might use.

I kept my mouth shut. I simply straightened my posture and subtly modified my countenance. The change was imperceptible to the eye, but everyone immediately stiffened and Jonah immediately broke out in a cold sweat. I relaxed once again, making sure there was no force expressed in any fibre of my being. They managed to calm down.

Jonah gulped and nodded, finally understanding there was no need for me to fret over the equipment. Everything I needed was already attached to me. He already knew of my victory against Tobias, but it was the first time we had interacted me in the flesh since the event.

“Are you ready?” I spoke calmly. Everyone was visibly tense.

Isaac nodded and the others followed suit. He and Lily barely looked at me, while Chloe avoided my eyes. Jonah had returned to his usual deferential indifference. I could perceive his newfound admiration for me as a mature archuman, but he hadn’t gotten over the dislike he held for me due to how it had ended with Faye. I thought he had gotten over that matter long ago, but his proud side continued to show in childish form.

I approached the vessel. Its architecture was significantly different from those of the Last Harbour. It mimicked more closely an actual ship instead of a submarine, with three sailless masts releasing a soft hum that affected the surrounding space in ways for now imperceptible. Inside the pathway, it would create a bubble for its passengers to inhabit.

I hit the ship with my hand and an engraved ladder suddenly appeared on the side of the previously smooth hull. I gave them a nod to get on board, while I finished saying my goodbyes.

I approached Faye and Hector, who was standing to her side with eyes filled with venom.

“My sire, let me educate them,” he spewed out enraged.

“Calm down, Hector. There is no need to get so riled up,” I patted his shoulder.

“They dare!” he shouted.

Faye’s eyes narrowed at his sudden yell. A mortified look appeared on his face and he bowed down his head in shame for having bothered her ears. She gave him a simple nod to tell him it was fine and then turned to me.

“I agree with Hector. There is something strange going on. Be careful”

“There is no need to worry. They are just little kids,” I caressed her cheek.

“Isaac gave you a lot of trouble if I remember right,” she teased me with a smile.

“He did indeed, but now he won’t,” I smiled back at her.

I finally turned around and approached the ship. Hector followed after me, still boiling, and jumped on board. I instead stayed on the ground, circled around it until I reached the back, put my hand against the ship and started pushing. The ground gave way, unable to support the abnormal pressure exerted by my feet, but by thrashing my legs around I still managed to accelerate the vessel forward.

As the bow of the ship neared the portal, a tugging force began to act on it. I stopped my endeavour, gently tapped my feet and jumped on board. I turned around one last time to wave Faye goodbye and then the darkness engulfed me.

The effect was similar to the last time I entered the noospheric space. I felt the Veil wash over my body, but the ichor in my veins impeded its progress, perfectly shielding me from its effects. I would be able to fight at full strength. By knowing this alone the outcome of the battle was already clear.

Furious streaks of mana raged around us, aiming to break our vessel into thousands of pieces. The hum emitted by the masts grew in intensity until it became a roar. It perfectly matched the frequencies of mana until only silence and a spherical shielded bubble remained.

Finally free from the bothersome noises, I began to sightsee. Distant stars, inaccessible worlds, unformed potential. All these and more flashed around the immensity. Curious looks passed over us and I gave them a cordial nod, now finally capable of standing in front of them as an equal, even if a young one.

Hector’s breath had gotten ragged. The weight of the Veil was taking its toll on him. Unfortunately I had no way to relieve it from him, so he had to endure. The rest of my companions were still in good health, the Veil simply caressing their body without bearing down on it.

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I flashed them a wide smile in response to Isaac’s and Lily’s sharp looks. I changed my stance and the pressure of my presence manifested. Jonah showed confusion at the sudden change in demeanour, while Chloe vainly tried to hide her internal conflict and feelings of guilt.

“Sooo, are you going to attack me now?” I spoke while showing my teeth.

Although they had worked really hard to do so, and I had to admit they had done a remarkable job, there was no way they could hide their hostility towards me. Since they had arrived, both Isaac and Lily had appeared keen and ready to pounce on me at the first possible occasion, while Chloe hadn’t managed to cover up her troubled mind.

“I must admit, I’m extremely disappointed. And even a little bit hurt,” I mumbled under my breath.

“What?” Jonah looked around for an explanation.

At least one of them was not a complete moron. It was delusional to aim at an opponent order of magnitude your superior.

“Your siblings are aiming at my throat,” I explained to Jonah who was entirely out of the loop.

“What?” he repeated like a broken record.

The other three stiffened.

“You knew?” Isaac spoke for them.

I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head.

“Of course I did. You had it plastered all over your face”

Lily sighed.

“Told you a surprise attack would surely fail. He may be even more receptive than my dad,” she turned to Isaac.

Isaac grabbed his spear with both his hands and started to circulate his power. I felt his annoying pure aura prickle my skin and inhibit my physique. She completely hijacked The Candor’s power aeons ago, so I couldn’t simply resist it, not annul it. It was truly bothersome.

The righteous Isaac opened his mouth and pronounced his sentence against me.

“John Doe, you are too dangerous and ruthless to be the ruler of the world. For your crimes, you will be stripped of your strength and detained”

“You dare!” Hector roared. He swiftly drew his sword but immediately fell to the ground exhausted. He couldn’t be of any help until we remained on this ship.

I chuckled at Isaac’s solemn demeanour. It made me want to break his legs.

“What about you Lily? Do you also wish to punish me for my crimes?” I humoured her, knowing fully well she wasn’t so righteous.

She tightened her grip on her twin swords and her electric-blue aura rose from her body.

“You are completely off-the-rail. And I’ll never forgive you for what you did to my dad,” she gritted her teeth.

I chuckled once again. It was amusing how much anger they were rasing in me.

“If only Tobias knew what you were doing…” I murmured to myself.

It would be useless to try and dissuade her. She was too hot-headed for that. The only way to teach her some sense was to beat it in her.

“Hold on everyone, stop right now! What do you think you are doing? Despite how you feel, John Doe is Patriarch of the Gamma and has already been recognized as the highest authority, you can’t just do as you like!” Jonah positioned himself between us, his arms stretched wide on his sides.

“Step aside Jonah, it’s none of your business,” Lily’s eyes twitched.

“I cannot!” he proudly declared.

Although it wasn’t necessary, I still appreciated his help. He wasn’t exactly a pleasant person but had his suit of redeeming qualities.

The first person who dared to take a step in this tense atmosphere was Chloe. She timidly approached Jonah. He beamed.

“Finally someone reasonable,” he nodded satisfied.

“... I’m sorry,” she mumbled under her breath, her guilt palpable.

She grabbed Jonah before he could react, pulled him away, forced him to the ground and completely immobilised him. Surprise appeared on Jonah’s face as he vainly thrashed around trying to free himself. He was swift on his feet and had a good battle sense, but he lacked physical strength when compared to the others. He had devoted more of his life to commanding others rather than fighting on the front lines, and it reflected on his talents.

With Jonah, Hector and Chloe out of the equation, only Lily, Isaac and I remained to resolve the situation. I cracked my fingers and stretched my neck. It was completely unnecessary, but it expressed my mood well.

“I can’t believe you are this stupid. But, oh well, come at me. We don’t have much time and there is much to do, so let’s get moving,” I told them.

Lily stormed at me without a second thought. His swords danced over my skin, accompanied by powerful electric arcs. Several cuts appeared all over my body and my attire was completely trashed. I didn’t bother trying to defend myself. Although her spell didn’t hold absolute anymore for me, under the effects of the candid aura it was still effective.

I contended myself with grabbing her by the neck. She croaked as her body came to a sudden standstill. At the same moment I slammed her against the unyielding floor of the ship. All the air left her lungs and her twin swords scattered in two different directions.

I turned to the incoming Isaac and avoided each thrust of the spear onslaught by a hair’s breadth. I slapped him in between his attacks, his eyes going white for a moment and his body falling to its knees.

“Do I need to continue?” I looked down at them with a bored expression.

“How…” Isaac mumbled under his heavy breath.

“It’s simple. The gap has grown. Please, stay down, I’m saying this for your own sake,” I turned towards Chloe. Her eyes trembled, but she continued to keep Jonah immobilised.

“I just told you not to ruin your second chance,” I began to step in her direction.

Lily grabbed my foot.

“Where do you think you are going?!” she roared.

A powerful electric current sprung from her body and travelled through mine. I kicked her away. I didn’t remember her being an eel. She rolled on the ground and went to recover her twin sword while Isaac kept me busy and strengthened both of them with his fiery aura. Once she had them in her hands, she resumed her attack.

I grabbed both their heads and smashed them against one another. They both stepped back disoriented but immediately carried on as if nothing had happened. We continued like that for a couple of minutes. Although they managed to injure my body, they could only inflict superficial wounds, while I continued to teach them a lesson while taking care of not hurting them too much. I was extremely angered, but I didn’t want them to be completely defenceless while facing the genai king.

Their momentum finally died down. They were full of bruises and their aura had dwindled significantly. The candid aura still adhered to me like glue, slowing down my recovery, but I was almost in pristine condition. My clothes had suffered the greatest damage.

I looked at both of them. Lily was panting on the ground, while Isaac still stood, although unbalanced.

“Surrender!” he and his aura roared, as he squeezed out the last of his strength.

He lunged at me in a straight line and thrust his spear at a speed incomparable to what he had done before. This time I needed to exert a little bit of effort to stop his attack as I grabbed his spear. The back of my head itched and I took a step to the side.

I wobbled. A cold wave travelled through my body. I heard my blood trickle on the ground. I lowered my gaze and the sight of a grey wooden stalk piercing through my back and chest, half an inch from my heart, entered my vision. Branches grew from it and began to slowly dig through my flesh.

Both Isaac and Lily appeared bewildered. They were surprised. Not at the fact that I had been attacked, but at how severely I had been wounded. I weakly turned my head and gazed at the one who was standing behind me.

“Forgive me, sire,” Hector’s broken expression entered my eyes.

Half of him was apologetic, while the other was grinning like a maniac.

“It appears I was taken” - “It appears you were careless,” two voices escaped his mouth as his body began to morph.

A golden hue filled the space around us.