Trillia stared at the goblin's back as he wandered away to fetch another gryphon.

Son of Stas. She was under the impression that all of Stas' family was dead. Now, she wondered how to best broach the subject.

Trillia stood with a smile. Looking out over the field of gryphons. She was surprised to see just how varied their appearances were. Somehow, in her head, she assumed they would all look like Monte. Giant golden creatures that struck fear in the hearts of the wicked.

As Simon returned with a large, grey gryphon, she motioned to the two gryphons that were coming along. "I don't understand why their fur is so different in appearance."

Simon ran a hand over the head of the beast standing next to it. "It's based on their mana usage. A lot of the Gryphons in the capital of Kadessa are golden. That's because they are all raised to specialize in support mana manipulation. Most of their abilities are passive buffs that the gryphon doesn't have to use or activate. This is so that they can focus entirely on aerial maneuvers and combat."

The goblin walked over to Taz and rubbed his beak as well. "Taz here has weather mana manipulation. He's the only gryphon anyone has seen that has such an ability. And despite how invaluable such a creature could be on the battlefield. A lot of the golden gryphons think he's useless. I mentioned it before, but there are a lot of issues with the Golden Gryphons right now. They've...lost a lot of faith in the past decade or so."

Trillia certainly knew the why. She offered the goblin a slight nod and joined him in petting Taz's head. Illana motioned to all of them. "I think we should get going. If you want, I can go, fetch the crate, and bring it here."

Trillia paused. She stared at the goblin and scanned him again. Trillia scanned each of the gryphons, which caused them to give little squawks. A knot formed in her stomach.

She mentally reached out to tug at the mana in her ring.

"Urgent. No fellow pact-bounds on sight. Golden Gryphon aggression. Should I trust Gryphons and Perishsong? Please advise immediately, Arlyss."

Layla blinked and looked over at Trillia, who still wore a smile and had resumed petting the gryphon. Layla spoke up. "Why don't we just all head to the ship together? That saves you from having to travel through the city to retrieve the package."

Trillia spoke up before Illana could object. "Oh! Oh! Can we ride the gryphons to the shore?! Pretty please?"

Simon chuckled and nodded. "Lily can easily carry all four of you. Taz here will let me ride him to the port. Don't worry. Lily is a calm girl. Just don't kick her sides. She might spin and dump you into the city."

Illana and Andromeda both shared worrying looks. The dragon hunter spoke up. "No. I will walk." She didn't wait for an answer or argument and simply turned around and walked away.

Illana rubbed her eyes, agitation setting in. "I'll walk as well. Don't dally." The elf stared at Trillia for a moment before turning to leave as well.

Simon asked Lily to lie down so that the girls had an easier time climbing on top of her. Trillia leaned down and hugged her neck. "Thank you for letting us ride on you. We will try not to fidget."

Simon grabbed Taz's mane, and the gryphon jerked its head, yanking Simon off the ground and onto its back. Trillia had flown with a few other people. Every single time had been an amazing experience. She felt Layla's arms wrap around her waist, and the acolyte pressed her head to her back. "I've never flown." Layla could barely whisper the words. Trillia grinned as Simon and Taz took off.

The younger and smaller gryphon had to get a running start to do so.

Lily spread her massive wings, and with a single, great burst of power from her legs, the older gryphon was dozens of feet in the air.

They climbed and climbed into the sky. Leveling out well below the clouds. It was far, far higher than Stas had been willing to go. Trillia looked ahead to see Taz spinning and doing loops, Simon on his back with a giant smile, whooping and hollering and laughing as they made their way to the port.

Layla was trying to crush Trillia at this point. The acolyte's eyes were shut tightly, and she seemed to be holding her breath. Trillia looked down and saw the city hundreds of feet below. She spoke softly as she hugged Lily's neck. "I'd never land."

The Gryphon "Lily" wishes to establish a mental connection. Do you accept?

Trillia readily did so. To her surprise, the creature was far more sophisticated than Taz. "Why do you not trust Master Simon?"

Trillia's breath caught in her throat. She realized that Taz and Simon were quite far ahead of them and that Lily had started to climb further into the air. It was no time for games. The two orcs would obviously survive the fall. But there was no telling how bad it would put Layla into the negatives or what sort of debuffs either would get from it. Trillia didn't care to find out.

"My Master told me I'd be meeting other pact-bound creatures, creatures that accepted a pact from Lord Arlyss. We have very valuable cargo that will save thousands of lives. I cannot afford to trust anyone. I'm sorry."

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Lily stopped climbing. They were now over the port, and she slowly circled at the same height. "Elf is hiding something. So is Captain Freeman."

The displaced Captain's name worried her. Her anxiety started to creep up. "Thank you. If a fight breaks out, protect Simon and Taz. Let us handle the elf and Captain. I wouldn't want you all to get mixed up in our scuffle."

The gryphon severed the mental connection and slowly started to spiral down in a corkscrew maneuver.

A message came back.

"Trust Robert. Inquire as to our people. Do not let anyone but Robert or Lak'Lorn be in control of cargo."

It sounded like Amelia's voice, but she knew the words to be from Arlyss. As they landed on the docks, Trillia glanced up to see other gryphons had also taken flight.

Simon was happily chatting with Lak'Lorn. Well, chatting at Lak'Lorn would perhaps be a better way to describe it.

Taz was doing his absolute best to convince a fishing boat that he was a good gryphon deserving of large amounts of fish. Robert stood at the helm and looked down at her. Immediately, she reached out to establish a mental connection.

It took Illana another five minutes to reach the port. Andromeda was nowhere to be seen. In that time, Trillia had filled Robert in. Lak'Lorn had gone to watch over the cargo. Robert stood on the gangplank. As Illana approached the ship with a smile, he took a few steps down and blocked her way. The crew had powered the many shields of the Argo. "Illana. Trillia was supposed to meet other pact-bound creatures of Lord Arlyss. Why did you take her immediately to the Gryphons?"

Illana tilted her head in confusion. "The Golden Gryphons are the port authority. They'd know where to look for whoever we are supposed to meet. In addition, I thought it best to have a few gryphons along to ferry the cargo. A gryphon is far faster than most other pack animals."

Robert continued to stare at her. His eyes slowly drifted up to see a half dozen gryphons in the sky. His eyes slowly drifted to the horizon, where three large, heavily armed ships had moved into position to form a blockade at a moment's notice. "What a wise decision. Forgive my questioning. We'll entertain our guests here on the ship until you return with Lord Arlyss' pact-bound creatures. You know this city better than the rest of us. I am sure the folks at the Golden Gryphons will help you locate them."

Illana's face darkened, and she took a step forward. "It seems silly to dally. We can load the box up and meet up with the others. Otherwise, we have to come back to the ship again, then set out."

Trillia spoke up as she stared at the elf. "A few hours won't make a big difference. It's better to keep the cargo here and safe. Until we are sure that our people are in the city. We were delayed. It's possible they are not here currently."

Illana let loose a heavy sigh. She ran a hand through her hair and looked over at Trillia. "You or Layla should come with me. So that the pact-bound creatures know that I am not lying to them."

Robert shook his head. "That's not required. You are a pact-bound to Lord Darktone himself. They will trust you enough to come to the port to verify what you're saying. After all, why on Alirast would a pact-bound of Lord Darktone ever betray the pact-bound creatures of his son."

Illana looked between Trillia and Robert. "What's going on here? I've sailed with you for decades, Robert. Why are you doubting me?"

She seemed hurt. Trillia felt a pang of guilt. She wondered if she had been wrong to doubt.

"Because. Lives are at stake, Illana. You, of all people, should know that we must be careful when dealing with [Primordials] and deific issues." The Captain's words struck a nerve.

Illana's face twisted into anger, and she spat on the dock. "To Infernus with the [Primordials] and the deities. Enough of this squabbling. I wanted to do this without harming you or the crew. I love all of you dearly, Robert. Surrender the cargo." She let out a loud whistle. A second later, Monte slammed into the top of the ship.

At least, the Gryphon tried to do so. It hit the barrier, and the ship dropped several feet further into the water from the sheer force of the pressure. As it bobbed back to the surface, Captain Freeman looked down at the crew below. Robert's eyes closed, and he shook his head. "Why? Decades of sailing together. Why would you betray us?"

Trillia began to worry. The other gryphons were slowly beginning to descend. Simon looked on in confusion. Taz gently set the fisherman down that he had been terrorizing for fish.

Illana rubbed her eyes, and Trillia felt a surge of mana forming in her. "Lord Darktone....no. No, he doesn't deserve that respect. Kain chose to save his wife and children over the safety of the entire realm. My village was torn apart by one of the rifts that appeared on the day of the cataclysm. Tens of thousands have died. Millions more will before the [Primordials] are sealed yet again. For what? One woman and a few brats? That's a fair trade to you, Robert?"

Robert's shoulders slumped. He turned his head and nodded. Biggs and Wedge ran off and began getting people to their stations. "Lord Darktone loves the mortals of this realm with all his heart. I won't fault a man for defending his wife and children above everyone else. I'd burn this realm to the ground to keep my crew safe. We always watch out for family, Illana. Until now, I assumed you were part of my family."

The Captain walked back to the ship and kicked the gangplank into the water. His voice raised. "By Arlyss Ocrey Darktone and the Grand Leviathans. Any attempt at taking cargo from the Argo will result in a declaration of war!"

Trillia watched as an ominous red mana flowed from him. The water seemed to tremble at his words.

"From this point on, Illana Perishsong is no longer part of the crew. She is no longer afforded the rights of the Argo and her safety."

The Captain turned his head to look at the gnome who had been pulling ships in and out. "Push us out to sail, Harbor Master. Lest you break the contract of the Leviathans."

As the gnome nodded and began to push the Argo out, a blur of brown appeared behind him. A spear stabbed through his back, into his heart, and out his chest. The gryphon rider slowly began to gain height. The gnome's body flopped back down onto the decks. Panic broke out in the harbor.

Monte took off and slammed into the top of the Argo again. The shield crackled with energy. Captain Freeman looked over at Simon. "Use that damn mana of yours, boy. This ship is in violation of the Queen! Its cargo is to be seized immediately."

Trillia looked up at Monte and the Captain. Rage built up inside of her. She unleashed fury, charged two million mana, and raised her hand.

"[Chain Lightning]"

As mana surged from her body, the sky went black. The world seemed to slow around the ship as a thin streak of brilliant light shot out toward the Captain.

Trillia felt the mana in the area groan under the weight of the spell she had cast. She felt the mana of those around her shrivel and refuse to answer their call.

A notification popped into her head.

You've projected a [Mana-Warped] Aura. Any creature with less maximum mana than you is incapable of using skills or abilities that utilize mana. Any attempt to do so will cause your own mana to counterspell their abilities at a cost equal to 10 times the amount they used. This will stay in effect until you are out of mana or spend one hour suppressing it.