The sunless green sky of the approaching storm created winds that rocked the Klonoa left and right.
That didn’t deter Kaidan from staying on deck, trying to learn how to operate the Synchronization Rings left by Uroa onboard.
He moved his fingers, trying to copy Anton's movements back at the lake, and a formless agglomeration of green dust moved frantically across the boat, going too far, or not moving at all, independent of Kaidan's movements until it eventually collapsed back to its neutral state.
He took a deep breath, steadied his legs, and activated the first Ring once again, allowing it to Interlock after a couple of seconds of vibrations. The dust surrounding him shifted from its neutral colorless state to purple and stayed like that, frizzles of electricity occasionally sparking between particles or towards the boat.
He tried to activate the Second Ring, and the colors began to shift towards Blue. Suddenly, a spark of electricity flew toward the antenna atop the bridge, and a thunderous sound echoed across the emptiness of the ocean. Another string connection between Rings had snapped.
Unalu ran outside of the bridge shaking his hand in denial.
“Oh no, no, no, mister. I need that to reach a shelter,” said the young Captain, not in reprimand but with the joviality of a person speaking with a kid.
“I apologize for it. It seems I broke your friend’s tool even further,’ he said, as half of the dust surrounding him returned to its normal color, and the other half fixated on blue, the second Ring interlocking.
“That is ok mister. But out here now, too dangerous, please go -”
“You did it again?” scolded Ayane, bursting from the decks below in a simple, yellow dress, the strong wind swirling it around.
“I’m sorry, I just wanted to try again, it is so easy to use the Maglev gun and my knife I just -”
“Sorry miss and mister, but I need you two to go down, very dangerous here,” Unalu interrupted, his words now carrying the tonality of an order, without actually sounding like it.
“Aya aye cap,” Kaidan followed, pushing Ayane back into the boat. The blue dust vanished from sight, as it returned to its original neutral color.
“Once shelter is visible, I’ll call to come up,” he screamed, as the two vanished inside the ship.
“Kay, we might be able to get some resources about how to use it once we hit some civilization, internet, whatever.
Unalu already gave you tips.”
“I know, but, damn, I just…. I don’t want to lose time. You really don’t know anything about this?”
“I’m sorry, I've been free for two years now. I’m learning just as much as you.”
“Sorry, sometimes I just forget who you were.”
A giant double door bursts open, as a man stained by oil from top to bottom walks out. Dylan stared at the two in the hall, perplexed.
“Were you being a wizard again sir? Firing Thunder from your fingers?” He said jokingly.
“Find Tom,” said Kaidan, ignoring the comment, “and get dressed up for, whenever we reach this shelter. It’ll be our first meetup with the empire.”
“Should I dress as a Minsho? Or put on the uniform” Ayane wondered.
“I’ll let you decide,” Kaidan replied, finally noticing the girl had a flask with a yellow liquid on her hands all this time.
“Any progress?” Dylan asked, pointing at the flask.
“Not without a proper lab,” she replied, “and people that understand things. I’m just glad we managed to extract this from the juice and the arrow in the first place.”
“And why are you walking with it around then?” Dylan asked, “Glass, stormy boat, rocking…”
Ayane seemed flustered about the question, and without a reply, walked into her room.
“Gezz, I just wanted to joke.”
“Let her be. Get dressed and check on Tom. I’ll drop this off,” he said, looking at the Rings with snapped strings.
“Yes sir,” replied Dylan with a quick salute.
“Oh, I almost forgot, we are soldiers here. But our training was far too outdated.”
----
When Unalu mentioned a shelter, Kaidan expected something similar to the ones described in Eric’s biography, shallow, simplistic, cubes to hurdle people inside during a special storm.
But this wasn’t it.
The inverted U-shaped shelter boat extended for miles to no end, its top, flat, almost seemed to touch the sky. It was obviously made of revested steel, as every shelter should, but you could not notice it, for the coating of paint was a strong black with occasional green strips to add contour, hiding the true nature of the construction.
From the distance, the top section seemed to be filled with buildings, a small city perhaps, with small Towers surrounding the outer perimeter, shooting beams of cyan light skyward, revealing the location of the neutral dust between it and the green contours of the dark clouds by turning it dark blue.
“Are we going underneath it?” Dylan asked, the five of them were inside the bridge, all dressed in uniform save for Ayane with her usual white dress and braids while Unalu wore a large blue coat. He clearly hated it, but it was the most formal thing he had.
“I can’t spoil it, mister,” Unalu said with a smirk on his face.
“Cyan light turns it dark blue and the second type of ring turns blue - urgh, I need to stop thinking about it now.”
As they engendered underneath the shelter, the waves crashed at the sides, rocking the boat even more. After a while into the thing, Unalu brought the boat to a full stop.
The inside section was huge, easily four cargo ships could enter it side by side.
It was at that moment that Kaidan noticed the sides of the shelter bearing an intricate system of Rings inside it, visible through what seemed to be glass. They started spinning and soon, the dust in the air became blue and began to move to the side of the Klonoa, lifting it slowly in the air.
“You gotta be joking me…” mentioned Tom in his usual monotone voice pointing upwards. The view blew everyone's minds, the under section of the inverted U-shelter was a gaping hole… with ships floating inside it, blue dust surrounding the hulls to keep them floating.
The team of four walked outside as the Klonoa lifted in the air, and then moved sideways, following the track of Rings in the side, until it came to a full stop, midair, with nothing between them but the blue dust and the ocean below or the ceiling above.
And then, walking in the air, two figures appeared. Dressed in full knight's armor, one wearing a blue cape, and the other a red cape approached them, each step made atop a platform or blue dust forming as they moved, and dissipating as their feet raised from the “floor”.
“Welcome to the North Australian Shelter 5,” said a feminine voice, coming out of the armor with a red cape. “May we speak with the commander of the ship and confirm the manifesto?”
Unalu approached the deck and the two figures stepped onboard.
“I’m the commander of the Klonoa, Commodore Sanders.”
“Am I to assume those are the citizens from Elysium, whom you mentioned have lost their passports?” said an intense masculine voice from the armor with a blue cape.
“Correct, we lost it at an incident transporting them outside of Elysium-3”, Unalu said, clearly hunting for the proper English words to keep a nice sentence.
Kaidan noticed both knights had something similar to a sword attached to their waste, but the edges seemed dull. at the right of their chests, engraved in the armor, was a weird insignia. The one in the red cape had a large dark circle, surrounded by five rings, and a strange combination of 6 smaller circles, the outermost one missing a ring. They reminded him of the drawings of an atom, but flat.
“The Empire can provide identification for travel, but Elysium citizens are considered part of the United States, so contact with the UAC will be required to provide proper passports,” said the feminine voice.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
“ I just need your first names to input your Estimated Time of Demise in the manifest. How long do you all still have to leave?”
“I’m Kaidan, I have about 11 months left.”
“I’m Ayane, I also have about 11 months left.”
“I’m Dylan, me and my brother here have 9 years left.”
“Brother?” said the woman in red, reading the manifesto on a tablet, “none of you share the same family name.”
“I’m not his brother,” Tom said Harshly. “I’m Thomas by the way.”
“I should assume the girl in the dress is the oldest of you all then? Being a Minsho Priestess that is,” said the woman.
“It seems the rumors about your little cult traveled really far Miss,” said Dylan.
“The tales of Elysium and their unique aspects are well known to the world, for good and for worse,” said the woman inside the armor with a red cape.
“Now for the declaration of goods,” followed the one in a blue cape, his insignia bore a circle enclosed by six rings, the innermost two containing two smaller circles, “out of the ordinary we detected an unregistered Exocore unit and seeds which you disclaimed not to know the plat type.”
“Sorry about it Mister Knight, er- Commodore Sanders - I think the lady might be able to explain it better,” Unalu answered, positioning Ayane to be more visible.
“I imagine you’re aware that any type of fauna and flora cannot be transferred between countries without legal authorization,” the knight in blue spoke towards her.
“Well, we planned on naming and giving specs for it after tests, but since Elysium-3 exploded and the island was destroyed -”
“Wait what?” said the knight in red. “Elysium-3 exploded? We haven’t heard of that.” A tone of surprise briefly appeared in the serious voice of the woman, even if slightly.
“Well, you see…” began Ayane, frantically at a fast pace, “we created those seeds to clear the sky, but a man tried to destroy it, he exploded the city, sunk the town and now he is after the Main Towers and..”
The knight in blue rose his hands, asking her to stop.
“Those are very serious…. accusations that you throw around.”
“I’m sorry, I know - I - I -” Ayane kept on.
“The man,” Kaidan interjected, “that caused all of this is called Anton, he travels with an Asian named Shinzu, a child, and possibly another person. we have not seen.”
The two knights looked at one another, but with helms, judging the reason why was impossible. Shock? Worry? What did they think?
Four knights flew aboard the boat, riding the blue dust like a bird rides the air. Although they did not possess a blue cape, they had a faint tint of blue-coated over their armor. The insignia they bore had the central circle, with four rings surrounding it, while two smaller circles were attached to the innermost rings.
“Those people can control the dust well, maybe I can ask for one of them to help me.”
“Let me be clear,” said the man, his voice deepening, “you all possess no documentation, an unregistered Exocore, strange plants, telling tales of the destruction of an entire city AND island, none of those things bodes well for you all. Still, I do recognize those names, and their particularities, so I’ll give you all some benefit of the doubt.”
“Captain Palakiko,” said the knight in red, “ you shall come with us. The ones responsible for the Exocore and weaponry, follow the knights on the left. The girl should follow the knights on the right, they will lead you to a meeting with our Grand Alchemist, and he shall verify the seed's origin and true nature.”
Kaidan looked at Ayane, who seemed worried
“I’m sorry, I did it again, didn't I? I keep messing up and ruining us…” she said.
“I thought we’d already passed that. You can’t blame yourself for not knowing how things will turn.”
“But it’s my mouth, I never mention the right things and -” but she was interrupted by Kaidan touching her shoulders.
“Don’t worry about what ifs, they’ll do you no good.”
“Had I been stronger, or better…”
The last words of his son sprung to mind, the pillar of water rising, the rain falling, Uroa’s sacrifice… and then, he shut them out.
Then, he turned to the knight with a blue cape.
“Are we under arrest?
“Under investigation only. For the time being, this ship will be out of reach from you all and you can’t leave the shelter until we verify your claims. After completion of the duties I’ve just assigned you all, you are free to walk around… once we know what is up, we may talk.”
The four knights began to control the blue dust surrounding them, using it to move metal around, creating a platform from the boat to the top balcony ledge into the shelter proper.
“Do you expect me to step into that floating thing?” asked Tom, annoyed.
“The clothing you wear has no traces of Iron in it, we can’t expect you all to walk on dust unharmed,” said the knight in red.
“Judginental too much?” said Tom, even more annoyed.
“The uniform you wear predates even the first Exocore, we understand your technology might be outdated.”
“Let it go, brother, we’re already in a pickle here,” Dylan said as he grabbed Tom.
Kaidan stepped into the first platform, floating above thin air. It wobbled a little with his weight but it quickly adjusted.
Into the shelter, passing by ships floating in the air, he went.
---
As the trio got escorted by the station, they came across a giant hanger, where multiple knights, wearing different armor colors, were spared with one another.
Next to each sparring duo was a person dressed all in black, of whom were in control of an object far too familiar to Kaidan: the orb Anton carried and used to control the beast.
Right by the entrance stood such a trio. One wearing an orange cape carrying a spear with circular patterns of dust surrounding it in an orange hue, the other a taller knight in green, with no cape, holding a single-handed sword, the base wavering with green dust encircling it.
As the knight in green attacked, his sword moved like a whip, extending and retracting from the origin point, but at every hit he managed to deal to the man with a spear, the dust couldn’t cut through the armor.
“The strongest composite of irons I imagine…”
Eventually, the knight in green delivered a flurry of attacks, and the dust around the sword escaped it, splashing in every direction.
The girl near him, dressed in a black dress, holding the orb, began to spin as if dancing, and the dust that escaped collected around her and returned to its neutral state, turning it invisible once more.
She had pitch-black eyes, and even darker hair with complementary tones of red strings at the tips of its long run, almost touching her waist. Red was a stunning color in her, her lips had a bright red lipstick and she wore a necklace with what seemed to be a ruby, small yet noticeable over her white skin.
“I’m sorry Master Edgard,” said the knight in green, removing his helmet. Under it, a young and pale blond man hid himself. He had a strong face, shaped like a triangle, and deep blue eyes. His voice was serene and energetic.
The Knight with the orange cape removed his helmet, and an older man, around the age of thirty, was underneath it. His hair was dark blond, and he had a perfectly trimmed beard all around the very strong face of a veteran, matching his slight green eyes. This was the depiction of what Kaidan imagined a knight would look like.
And so would Sean.
“Would you mind me giving a minute?” Kaidan asked the knights in blue to escort him.
Although the knights agreed to give him a minute, he didn’t truly wait for the answer and ran into the hanger, towards the trio of knights by the entrance.
“I’m sorry to interrupt,” said Kaidan, “but I heard you are a Master. Like a combat master?”
“Yes I am,” said the man in an orange cape, with a strong and rough voice. He positioned the spear right next to him, the flat tip touching the floor, and in length, the object was almost his height, and the knight was a tall man.
“I know you don’t know me, but could you please teach me the basics of using a Ring?”
“Indeed I don’t know you. I already have a pupil and the process to be a squire requires application and -”
“Apologies for interrupting,” said Kaidan, “I’m not from the Britannic Empire, so I don’t know of your customs. I’m from Elysium, and we are outdated in combat expertise. I beg -”
“As I mentioned, I already have a pupil,” followed the knight.
“Outdated?” Kaidan heard Tom saying bitterly in the back.
“I just need the basic knowledge, ten minutes of your time at best?”
“Ten minutes is nothing, you wouldn’t even know how to operate the First Ring.”
“Maybe some questions then? I have a few -”
“He has already made it clear, he is my Master and has no time to deal with you, apply to be a squire somewhere else,” said the knight in green. Despite the words, he said it all in reverence.
“I know this might sound strange. But because I’m…. outdated, my son and everyone I know died. All I ask of you is to help me prevent this from happening again, with ten minutes at best.”
“You have no idea how many people have come to me with tragic tales, real or otherwise. None of them became my pupils.”
Kaidan kneeled in front of him and stared deep into Edgard’s eyes.
“This is my last year, there is no point in me trying to be a knight or whatever. All I want is to avenge my son, and all I ask is for ten minutes or some questions.”
A silence broke between them, and then, Kaidan continued.
“I know I might bother you, but I don’t want to regret failing in the future and thinking that happened because I didn’t bother you enough.”
“Allerie,” Edgard said, “give me another spear.”
The girl in black began to move her hands and body, and suddenly a spear, flying under blue dust, arrived at Edgard’s hand.
He handed it to Kaidan.
“Vren, let's continue your training. We’ll fight a mock battle against those three. They’ll have ten minutes to “try”, and beat us, if they do well I might even answer some questions later. If they fail, they shall never bother us again.”
“What do you mean three?” asked Tom, as he noticed two more spears arriving. “I don’t intend to fight.”
“Your friend will need your help, after all, it’ll be two against three. Be glad the sorceress there is not joining us,” Edgard mentioned looking at Allerie.
“Sorceress?”
Kaidan grabbed the spear.
“I don’t know how to use a spear, sir, none of us ever used one.”
“Every squire in the empire starts by learning the way of the spare.”
The rain began to fall, the Blight Storm raged outside the shelter, the ocean waves crashed nonstop stop and the sound of the drops of water meeting the flat section of the place was so intense the noise of the other knights sparing was drowned by it.
“Alright, I’ll show you how “obsolete” we are,” said Tom standing by Kaidan. “Even if you don’t order me to fight, I’ll kick them, sir.”
“Time for the lesson to begin,” Edgard said as he readied his spears, the dust around it forming rings of orange color and Vren’s sword, a null white blade, reshaped into a green wavering liquid made of dust.
“You have ten minutes.”