The world squeezed and stretched. My stomach turned, and vertigo struck. The universe spat me out of the cosmic butt-hole and I felt my eyes burn despite the fact that I was squeezing them shut.

Everything kept going in and out. I got squeezed harder and stretched out farther. I could taste my eyeballs and yet see both my feet and the top of my head at the same time. I gagged as a slimy sensation filled my sense of taste.

My frayed nerves informed me I was on fire. I was cold. It was too hot. My left butt-cheek hurt more than my elbows. It also hurt to breathe. I couldn’t breathe. I was also drowning in the ethereal mana.

Without ceremony, it ended. I immediately spiraled into a spastic coughing fit. Air-Wish-You-Were-Dead had landed without wheels and on fire. It took some time for my brain to regain equilibrium. My senses were reporting things, but my mind had gone to a dark corner and having a solid cry.

My danger senses were useless. I could feel someone close by, but I couldn’t identify who it was. The small spike of adrenaline was useless as my senses strum my frayed nerves. I was completely vulnerable to whoever this was.

This, someone, was immediately at my side. I wanted to growl out, but I felt a warm hand settle onto my forehead. Familiar energy soothed my aching body. I knew this energy. It was a deep and intimate warmth.

How often had we done this for each other?

I felt her energy flooded into my systems and my body drank it in. The transfer ratio was absolute garbage, but at my current health, any help was a wonderful help.

“Never. Homestone. Ethereal. Form,” I gasped out and I felt some cool liquid enter my body. It tasted of blood and ashes. A health potion that you learned to like as it meant you would not die today.

The soothing feeling of the potion rush through my body. Though it was no cure-all, it was enough for me to calm and relax. Despite my lack of sight, I could still pull up my status bar.

The 0.1% HP was ticking up in full 1% increments. This was a high-grade potion.

I opened my eyes to see Gwendolyn Aster. My oldest friend and confidant. A lover and a companion that had never betrayed me. Not when it counted, at least.

“You idiot…” Gwen whispered as she cradled my head on her lap. It was soft. It was always soft. I snuggled in and smiled as we somehow once again beat the odds.

“Did you? Have any. Problems?” I whispered out. The world was still spinning. This reminded me of the last time Feraleigh held a drinking challenge.

She roped the entire company to a drinking contest. Which she won, and I had to get a proper report from Gwen afterward.

“Everyone got their prized possessions and left. Some wanted more… but I had the Red Wagon backing me. So no, no issues,” Gwen replied as she fed me water from a water bottle.

I drank and nodded. The world was rough, and self-interest was never stronger than when your life was in danger. The battle line had collapsed, the Heroic Legion disbanded. No pensions. No rewards. No retirement.

I sat up. Gwen pulled me towards her and I leaned against her as she hugged me. Wasn’t high levels supposed to make me nigh immune to this? Or was this afflicted because of the ‘clever’ warping technique I had used?

“We… we should get going…” I groaned as I tried to stand up. It took me a few seconds to realize I hadn’t moved. Did my body mutiny against me? Or was it because the world was spinning enough that I had trouble telling up from down?

“Come on, darling,” Gwen whispered as she got up and lifted me with her. I don’t remember her being this strong, but it was most likely a levitation spell. Or she had also gotten a lot of levels from Balthasar’s defeat.

It didn’t matter. I could worry about that later.

“Sleep,” Gwen whispered into my ear. I nodded, and the world went into blissful darkness. It felt sort of like getting flushed away into unconsciousness.

—

The wagon ride was smooth as it traveled across the land. The floating design was both faster and softer than traditional wagon rides.

The main issue with this design was the power consumption. Magic engines needed a lot of mana, and this meant a lot of mages or large mana stones.

Which was expensive for the manpower and the raw mana requirements. Cheap mana stones only carried a single charge. While the more powerful mana stones were far more expensive.

When we were at full power, this was not an issue. With hundreds of mage class heroes, we could power the fleet of airboats without problems. Now that it was down to Gwen and me, we managed.

The Red Wagon, which we also nicknamed the Tardis, was flying forward. Not fast enough to get called a car, but far faster than regular walking.

We had measured this thing, hitting a top speed of 100km/h when we had a team of mages. Which we no longer had, so we traveled at a third of that.

The barren landscape didn’t help as we both stared out at the desert-like world. It dotted the land with crystal formations. Some were clear, but most were opaque. Dirty crystals that we never did figure out the reason for existing.

Bartholomew was both our head blacksmith, and a once-upon-a-time geologist. He never figured out what they were here, but he had lots of theories.

“We should hit the last oasis and we can then enter the Kingdom of Northrock,” Gwen said as she studied the map. It projected the simple paper map in front of us, and a rough dot was showing where we were. Unlike GPS, this was all manual guessing.

The dot worked and worked well, but we could move it around the map. You needed to manually calibrate the thing. Which was an issue in this demon wasteland as it was not landmarked friendly.

“We can rest and I can charge the mana crystal there,” I agreed as I leaned back onto the seat.

I was glad we could retrieve the Red Wagon. Unlike the Legion’s basic airboats, this one had a lot of extra spells and charms to make it a luxury vehicle. Not to mention the wide array of protective runes and enchantments.

Gwen gave me a tired smile. She was pushing herself, yet there was little we could do for now. She regenerated more energy points than I did, and I had some mage skills. Her tier-three Sorceress class was more powerful than mine.

Well, going from a basic mage to witch/wizard, to sorceress/sorcerer was big jumps in power.

The Red Wagon steered to the left, as the map showed the Oasis close by. One more stop and we could rest.

Assuming the Akashic Church had not convinced the whole Alliance to turn on us, that is.

I made a face at the thought of going on the run. It was foolish to think we could elude everyone forever.

Which was why we would not try. The Red Wagon needed to head back to the Dwarves to get fixed. They had pledged allegiance with our Legion, and that should count for something.

Once the Red Wagon got fixed up and altered to look like every other large airboat, then we could travel. Becoming merchants would work best as we could haul cargo across the land.

I predicted that a civil war would erupt soon enough. Alliances like these broke down as inequality and greed set in. Even the Akashic Church had made some big enemies by elbowing their way to the top.

Not to mention that sheer power disparity that was going to roll into play. I doubted that all Akajinns were dead. I would guess half of us got killed off. An odd instance where the strongest and the weakest died.

Which left a lot of low triple-digit Akajinns becoming powerhouses. Those that could persuade enough to join them could change the course of their history.

“I see skimmers,” Gwen said as her eyes glowed with the Clairvoyance skill.

I perked up. Skimmers were small, quick airboats. Good for fast travel from town to town.

Yet out here? In the Demon Wastelands?

“How are you feeling love?” I asked as I looked over to my girl.

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Gwen met my eyes and smiled. Her eyes twinkled as the afternoon sun was at its zenith. The hot weather had her remove her cloak, and I leaned onto her shoulder. I enjoyed the skinship as the Red Wagon skimmed forward.

“A bit tired. I can’t wait to leave this wasteland. Get back to civilization and hot showers,” Gwen muttered as she ran her fingers through my hair.

“Right?” I agreed as sat back up, and her fingers ran down my back. The hot weather had me undressed to my basic shirt and pants.

Akajinns were lucky that we could use the item box and arsenal subspaces. Convenience was an apt description of what it was.

My gear wasn’t the best, as I had to focus more on speed and agility rather than raw defensive armor. I could wear the heavy plate, but I wouldn’t get the Akashic blessing to support it. I would like a normal person wearing heavy armor.

I slid into my armor. Mitheric chainmail and demonic scale leather. I would also need these to get looked at. The chainmail was missing chunks, and the leather looked as I had washed it with lava.

I stared at the option to summon my Blood Reaver and Purple Talon. Then I dismissed it. They were a thought away, and I didn’t want to come across as hostile.

As my father always said; don’t go looking for a fight and if things go bad, go down swinging.

I looked up at the blue skies above. I hoped my old man had a peaceful end. He and mom had tried their best. On that note, I hoped my sisters found happiness and also had a peaceful end.

Memories of smaller, louder siblings flashed through my mind. Akashic blessings made memories so much easier to recall. The good, and the bad.

Gwen moved the Red Wagon off to the side, away from the other parked skimmers. They were familiar as they were what you would often find in service of the Akajinns in the Legions. They got parked around a rare sight in the land, palm trees. Purple palm trees.

“Cut the engine, and let them cool,” I ordered and slid out of the simple front cabin of the Red Wagon. It resembled an automobile compartment, except a cushy bench versus individual seats. Gwen gave me a thumbs up.

I closed the door behind me as I looked around. There was a fair amount of plant life here, and I could see the clean waters of the small lake.

We were in a bowl-like area. Ridges of rock and opaque crystal formed a U shape around the body of water, protecting it from a lot of wind and sun.

Which explained why water gathered here. Aside from the very rare trees in the area, the sunlight only hit the water for a few hours during the sun’s zenith. Otherwise, it was in the shade.

I strode over to the skimmers. Simple airboats focused on speed. They hovered via magic engines and used up mana like a car would gasoline. Mana stones were an excellent substitute, but pricey. Especially those that could recharge via the minute particles in the air.

Raygaia was a mana rich world, unlike Earth was. It was here that the miracles were common. Miracles that defied the laws of the world. The people would attribute things to the almighty god Akashic.

They powered each skimmer off. The simple canoe & car hybrids had the engine usually in the front. I went over and touched the protective cover. Warm as the air. Not hot. Which meant that these had been here for a while.

I hopped up onto the roof of the airboat. These simple designs were so Earthlike it was strange. Influences from another world. I smirked as I scanned the area. Unless they were all hiding in the trunk, they were going to be waiting by the lake.

For most travelers, the water was important. Magic could clean the water and make it safe to drink.

Unlucky for these potential bandits, we did not have to resupply here. The Red Wagon had its own water gathering systems. We could afford to skip this lake, though topping off our supplies was the smarter choice. The risk was easier to manage since we could ration our water.

So it meant either we would rest here for an hour and then leave, or they had to come to us to fight. With a Sorcerer and a meat shield, they would get killed in short order.

Wait. Couldn’t Gwen summon more water? I knew it was harder in a desert landscape, but… No. I didn’t want her overstraining until we could all get proper rest. Unlike the Novice class, everyone else had to take time to lick their wounds and heal.

The rustle of leaves caught my attention as eight people came out. It was the from our Legion. The five dissenters and three more.

“Well well well, look at what the cat dragged in boys,” their leader, a Knight class, chuckled as he walked towards me.

“Looks like we won’t be going back empty-handed after all!” a girl, a Witch class, laughed as she giggled at the sight of the Red Wagon.

“Or, you can leave,” I rebutted as I stood and glared. “You forget the difference between us.”

“Oh? I am going to regret, am I?” the leader asked as he mocked me. He wobbled and shivered as he looked to his companions. They all broke out laughing at the sight.

I couldn’t blame them. I was the infamous War Novice. The lowest class available.

Yet they were forgetting something very important. I was at a much higher level than they were. Even before we fought the Demon Lord, I had the highest level in the Legion.

It didn’t do much as stats were all hidden numbers. We had a star system beside each stat. I had two stars under Body, Mind, and Soul.

The popular theory was that these stats got multiplied by your level. This would give you a rough estimate of your base stats.

What wasn’t a secret was the existence of level suppression. If you fought something higher level than yourself, you had penalties. These penalties only got worse as the gap widened.

“How about you hand over the Red Wag-” an Archer class’s words got cut short as a dagger stuck him in the eye. “Augh!” he fell back, screaming.

I summoned my dagger back and hopped forward to charge the closest person. A Knight holding a spear. He panicked and thrust his weapon at me.

I used my sword, Blood Reaver, to redirect the spear and jabbed at the man’s helmet with my dagger, Purple Talon. The man screamed as I drew blood through the open T shape of his helmet.

My right arm drew back, and I angled Blood Reaver. Then I thrust with the Sword Thrust skill at the man’s neck. Stab.

The man let out a gurgle as I used Sword Slash to cut out of the neck. Blood sprayed out as I severed half of his throat. I took a step back and watched the man keel over. I didn’t focus on him, but on his friends.

The man fell to the floor and convulsed. His body accepting his various commands to move, but he could not focus as he panicked. His concentration was on his shrinking HP numbers.

The Archer shot and it came close, but it sailed over my shoulder instead. He still could not see from his eye, but he tried to shoot. I would usually commend those kinds of skills, but not against me.

I threw my dagger at his head. The man screamed and slipped as he tried to back away.

“Oh, no you don't!” the Leader screamed as he stepped in front of the Archer. He deflected my dagger with his shield. A sword and shield Knight. Very traditional.

The Leader opened his mouth, but we lost all sound.

[Cracka-Zap!]

[Boom!]

The world went white for a moment and I ducked. I saw a bolt of blue and purple strike the ground, and I had to blink away the after-effects.

I summoned Purple Talon back and leaped to the side at a dead run. I scanned the opponents and realized that they were now broken.

I slowed down as I realized the group was already in disarray. The Leader was a blackened corpse, and everyone else was on their knees.

I had seen its effect enough to recognize Gwen’s Sky Rending Thunder skill when I saw it.

I power walked over to the Witch who was already getting up. She looked up at me. Confusion turned to horror as I stowed away my dagger and raised my sword with two hands.

Sword Slash.

—

Gwen was napping as I returned.

I finished docking the skimmers onto the Red Wagon. The mystic space expansion had slots for smaller airboats. I didn’t understand how the enchantments worked, only that they did.

There was enough for a dozen, but they were all empty when we had left. Most likely taken by the fleeing Akajinns.

Now we had an extra eight. I also topped our water supply off. I wasn’t sure if it was wise to use the mana stones to clean that much water, but I figured we should take the risk. If these assholes had found us, then the Church would not be that far behind.

I felt the Red Wagon rumble as its engine ignited, and we floated back up into the air. My alternative plan was to head further north and then swing down into Northrock.

“We off?” Gwen asked as she rubbed at her eyes and sat up.

“Yeah, we are ready to go,” I smiled as I brushed an errant hair back behind her ears.

Gwen smiled as she leaned forward, and we shared a brief kiss. Tired, Gwen showed off her affectionate side. She demanded cuddles and warmth as a kitten would.

“Gwen Aster, will you do the right thing and marry me after this?” I asked as I wrapped my hands around her waist and pulled her towards me. She gave me a soft moan of approval and nuzzled into my neck.

“The right thing?” Gwen whispered as her eyes lit up.

I smiled and nodded.

“Maybe,” Gwen responded and licked her lips. She leaned for another kiss.

[Bom!]

We both looked left towards the source of the sound.

[Clonk!]

A black trail of smoke rose from a damaged skimmer. The thing puttered as he wobbled in the air.

[Buum!]

The skimmer made it another few meters before it fell to the earth and ground to a halt.

We watched as a woman kicked off the metal door and slid out. In her arms was a bundle and she took great care to check it over before making her way towards us.

“Keep the engine warm,” I ordered and slid out of the front seats. The woman was jogging towards us and eyed our ride with an intensity I could taste.

“Give me your airboat, and I will let you live!” the woman hissed as she adjusted the bundle in her arms. A wailing cry shrieked, and the woman paled.

I was about to laugh. She was wearing some clothes that reminded me of… what was that? I glanced to a glinting speck.

I squinted as I stared at the small specks of light coming closer. They were approaching fast.

“We got Church-boats coming in!” Gwen yelled as she lowered her driver's side window.

I stared at the woman, who was now trying to both calm the crying child, and glare at me. The surrounding energy crackled as her emotions ran high.

“Don’t cause trouble, and you can ride with us,” I offered.

The woman stopped, and her posture froze. It was enough for the baby to stop crying for a few seconds.

“We got betrayed by the Akashic Church and the Alliance,” I motioned towards the Red Wagon. “I feel that helping you would piss them all off.”

The woman sneered. Pride bubbled up, and her features became haughty. Then the baby began crying again.

“On your word, Akajinn?” the woman asked as she tried to rock the baby. It didn’t work.

“My oath as an Akajinn,” I began the ritual that would bind me. “That so long as you don’t act against me and my companion, then you, and the baby will be safe until we reach Northrock.”

The woman stared back and saw the skimmers flying towards us. They were not generic models, as we could see hints of the flag fluttering on their airboats.

“Agreed,” the woman said and deflated. As if the words had stripped something from her.

“Get into the front, and we will leave. Now,” I ordered as I made my way to the front cabin.

The woman hesitated for a second before getting in. I followed and closed the door.

“Time to run?” Gwen asked as she eyed the newcomer with curiosity. The crying child didn’t bother her at all.

“Time to go,” I agreed as I closed the door.

“Max speed?” Gwen asked as she cooed over the baby. Akashic blessed all Akajinns with a powerful body. One of the restrictions was that we could never have children. Thus babies were important beings for family units.

I looked at Gwen and smirked. She sighed as she recognized my face. “Make it so.”

Gwen shook her head as he didn’t get the reference, but did shift the wagon to max speed. The magic engine hummed as it drank from the mana stone. It was inefficient, but the resulting burst of speed was enough to calm the crying child.

The skimmers ignited their own boosters. They sped forward, but their much smaller engines and mana stones could not even keep us in view.

With a relaxed posture, we skimmed forward and out towards the unknown North. Where we could begin a new life, and a slower adventure.

————

Chapter 03: The end is just another beginning