Years had passed since I began to hunt down the necromancer who took Lady Darkrose’s life. But I got word of activity in the forsaken kingdom of the eastern continent. So I finally had a clear primary goal.
Gradually Pearl and I were able to communicate more clearly. I was eventually able to explain the situation with the pheromones and she seemed relieved, but also she seemed as if she had been challenged. She kept taunting me to try it again, insisting that she would be unaffected.
Pearl explained that her father was in fact grateful that I had saved her life, by raising her from an egg. But also pointed out that her father also believed me to be dead. She told me how her father wanted to keep her safe, by keeping her under his supervision any time she was not within the protection of his domain. But she picked up my scent and once her father had guided her development to ensure the purest dragon adult form; She came looking for me. She also explained that her name was too difficult to pronounce in the human tongue, and Pearl was just the first name she came up with, but Dash Snow & Pearl were all acceptable names for now.
The book of dragons documented the annals of times long lost to man, it described the four kingdoms granted royal rings, and royal dungeons by the dragons. And the rise of one kingdom above the others, a plot by one kingdom to turn the other three kingdoms against one another. Man against dwarf, and elf against man. And finally it outlined the fall of the age of dragons. When finally the betrayers struck down even the harbingers of Fate. There was also information regarding the dragon's true energy source, and it sounded a lot like the soul energy that I had learned about from the demon realm. But with a much stronger focus on dreaming. It explained the near addictive nature of my naps with Dash back in my youth and young adulthood.
There were also some very interesting tidbits on dragon transformation, a lot of the words were too foreign to translate properly; But I got the impression that most dragons did not like to take human form. And not just that, but it seemed to strongly imply that it was forbidden. Or perhaps just seen as taboo. I was curious about reproduction but I couldn't seem to find any information in this book about it, and Dash seemed reluctant to volunteer any information she had, if she even had any at all. I played with the idea of using pheromones on her, she clearly had no problem with it. But I decided the information wasn’t vital, at least not presently.
Back at H.Q. the guys were working miracles with electromechanics. They had been experimenting with sound, creating devices which could amplify one's voice using electricity, and project it again many times louder. They had made promising advancements regarding the recording of audible sounds and noises; Although this advancement would not be as widely accepted as the others, due to magical alternatives to voice recordings and communication rituals. But by combining the two methodologies, we were able to improve upon both concepts. With crystal audio storage, the age of magi-tech began. Well not the magi-tech some of you may already be familiar with; Maybe It’s better to differentiate the two, so “M-tek” then.
It was well known that the great sea is not a place most sea barring vessels ever return from, so I’d attempt to avoid a direct crossing. My best options were to sail from the northern tundra, or from the southern elven continent. As a half-elf I always felt out of place with the elves, I had spent most of my life around humans, and the few pureblood elves I had encountered did not hide their disdain for me. So I decided against sailing from the south. The next preparation I made, or I suppose the first actual preparation I made was instructing Hellsing Corp.’s R&D to locate the best shipwright they could find.
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I decided to hire Dash on as my 2nd in command, allowing me to delegate tasks unworthy of my attention. I planned to travel to the dwarven kingdom to construct my ship. So I started by travelling around Denisea gathering the materials and personnel required for the job before sailing back north. This was when I really started to notice the effect that all of the activity was having on Sanctuary. The peak population must have reached beyond 100 people, and there were people setting up camps beyond the previous limit where I had planted a perfect ring of trees spanning a ban of a few dozen metres in width. I almost felt like they were squatting out there, but they were planting and growing plants of their own; Plus I knew most of these people would be finding their own accommodations, once I opened a two way portal in the dwarven kingdom.
Once Sanctuary was about as full as it was comfortably going to get, I set sail. I was actually quite nervous, it hadn't been my first time back on a ship since my encounter with Pearl’s father; But it was my first time on a fully manned ship under my command since that day. I felt pretty safe anyway, because this voyage was very familiar to me although that was probably just a false sense of security. Fortunately the trip went by without a hitch, I was able to open a portal to Sanctuary using my Steed, so we were even able to take advantage of the comforts provided from within.
I shouldn't have been surprised to find that the dwarves had already integrated glass and electricity into their city, maybe it was even M-tek. Up-on arriving at the entranceway to the underground dock, we were met with giant spotlights illuminating the statues that were difficult for most to see in the dark. Although my night vision had improved drastically since becoming a vampire anyway.
Deeper into the mountain they had built a crane system for unloading ships, and it seemed they were actively expanding their drydock systems. There were more Dwarves here then I had ever seen at one time, and they all seemed more than happy to be busy. I readied my steed and disembarked. I opened a portal to Sanctuary using my steed and announced our arrival. A surprisingly large number of people began to exit the area but many of them asked when they could come back, and wished to provide advice on developing Sanctuary as a township of some sort. I wondered who would be best put in charge of such a task, I imagined Lady Darkrose growing plants and helping the flora exist in harmony. But figured someone living would probably be best suited for the job for the time being. I decided to assign Dash as the quartermaster and temporary leader, or mayor, or whatever.
It seemed our shipwright had sent word ahead and preliminary preparations had already begun on my vessel. It would contain the most cutting edge advancements in M-tek, full-metal hull, armaments, chemically propelled projectiles, as well as magically induced ones. She would cruse at half sail under her own power in dead wind, and hopefully, will even be able to crash right through a lesser vessel. And, in honour of Lady Darkrose; I would call her The Black Ruby.
Yet again, I would have other duties to perform before construction could begin. First I would have to meet with the king, and formally request that I use his facilities, next I would have to commission the smelters guild, followed by an inspection from the royal guard, and review from the forging guild’s board of counsel. I figured this was just formalities, and just for show, but unless there was something going on that I had missed; This was no show.
Immediately upon arriving at the throne room the king began to shout and spit. Accusing me of stealing his kingdom's secrets, and spreading them to every known kingdom and probably beyond. Then I knew, it WAS a show, and a very convincing one. So I retorted in kind, defending my genuine discovery of steam pressure. The debate grinded to a halt with a stalemate of, prove it. So I brought him into Sanctuary.
Once there, he revealed his suspicion of a spy within his kingdom. I kind of felt that was a little far fetched, but I agreed it was better to play it safe rather than introduce any unnecessary risks. Beyond that the King was eager to see the advancements made on my horse since he had seen it last. He was blown away by the advancements made on the Mk. III but we were both about to be blown away by the latest development.